Last night I got an SMS from one of my friends which said "Bharat mata ke besharam bachon, kal agar valentines/friendship day hota tho ab tak 100 SMS aagaye hote. Behave like a good Indian and wish in advance a Happy Independence Day." I mused over it a little bit and was amazed by this surprising truth. When I was in school, we used to celebrate this day with great entusiasm and it would be a day no less than a festival. The preparation for this festival would have started a couple of days ago, from buying the rectangular paper flag to be affixed to the pocket of my shirt to getting my school uniform washed and ironed and being kept ready for the next morning. We used to get up early in the morning and we all would reach the school by 7.30. Watching the national flag hoisted by one of the luminaries of our village, singing the national anthem in chorus.. ah what days those. We never knew what a friendshipday or a valentines day was. Things have chaged a great extent, for sure.
Today I along with one of my cousins went to the nearby park (I took my son too) and saluted the flag but it was all comedy of errors. The person who was managing the show called it a republic day and the speaker boasted about the Gandhi, Nehru family inexorably. But that shouldnt deter us from being what we are. I was going to one of my relatives' place and was passing through predominantly muslim areas. We call ourselves the biggest democracy in the world but these places gave me a feel that the minorities do not cherish this day as much as the majority do. The areas clearly lack the fervor of independence. Atleast, I didnt see many muslims wear the national flag, infact to be candid I didnt see any. There were couple of flags hoisted at the small cross roads and that was quite a sight to behold. Let us all understand spirit of being independent and try and reduce this divide. JAI HIND.
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