Hi all,
Today [Jan 26, 2006] we Indians are celebrating 56 years of being a republic. I strongly encourage you to read through the address to the nation by our dear president Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. [Thanks to Abhijit for the link]
We hoisted the tricolor at USC this morning at 7:30 and it was interesting to see that at least 15 out of the 1500 Indians at the university were there braving the cold and having woken up on time.
The sweetest thing happened after we had taken down the flag. A girl [sorry I could not make out her face since I was not wearing my glasses] came up and asked why the flag was not up. We said that we had taken it down since we cannot leave it up all day. Upon that, she said, "Please at least show me the flag. I am feeling so homesick". Sweet.. very sweet.
The I-day and the R-day both evoke mixed feelings in me. Since I never saw the country in times of explicit peril [wars, pre-independence, etc.], I feel that sometimes I undervalue the importance of these occasions. So my dear readers, I pose this question to you:
What does the Republic Day of our great nation mean to you?
It will be interesting to see your responses. Hopefully it will answer some questions I have been struggling with.
My answer will be in the comments.. see you there!
Jai Hind!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
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I started feeling more about these occasions during my stay in the USA, maybe because I needed something to hold on to. I am currently sitting in my office in my khadi kurta and jeans, telling Zack what today is for.
ReplyDeleteI strongly feel that the youth today should feel more about what it is that they owe their country. The R-day to me is a celebration of having a constitution for the country - knowing what rules to follow, and having the right to decide that for your own country.
I feel that today is the day when parents should tell their kids what it means to be a republic and a nation and what their duties are as citizens. The sad thing is that many parents themselves are not clear about this.
Here's hoping that we all get our answers today!
Jai Hind!
-A
well :) nothing similar at my end, but the feelings are there. Hopefully would write something inspirational and would post something to the community as well.
ReplyDeleteJai hind :)
To me, this day signifies the birth of independent India as an identity in itself, rather than the 'Domain of British Commonwealth' that it used to be till 1950. It tells me to be grateful to the entire generation that gave all it had in order to make India the country She is today. Moreover, it inspires me to try to give back whatever little I can to Her, in any way I can. In a nutshell, to be a good Indian citizen, in all sense and meaning of the phrase.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes Bhaiya.... Why did u have to take the tricolor off? Was there some reason as to why it couldnt survive the Republic day?
Republic Day to me is a lot of things....
ReplyDelete1. A day to look-back and see what we, as a Nation, have achieved and how much more is still there. (Thanks to various Newspaper supplements on this day, this task becomes easier.)
2. Again, with the help of Newspapers and other media, finding out, how Individuals can help build a nation. (The best example for this is The Indian Constitution, which could actually be credited to a few learned men, as opposed to Independence, which had a more sweeping and wide-spread public involvement.) So, Republic Day is more symbolic, in terms of Individual (or small group) efforts to gain major mileage.
3. Displaying the various symbols of patriotism, like the National Flag, or badges, or as Pathak said - wearing a Khaadi kurta. I strongly believe, that wearing your emotions on your sleeve does make a difference.
4. Feeling cheerful, generous, and enthusisatic all day, listening to the Patriotic songs being played on the radio, TV, the locality school..!
Lots more to say...maybe in a detailed article. And yes, today I watched 'Rang De Basanti', which posed similar Qs as Pathak is facing. A must watch for any Indian..!
- Jai hind
A friend of mine sent me this link to the constitution. Will be interesting to read it to see what goals are achieved. Thanks dear anonymous friend.
ReplyDelete-A
Priyank: We were not sure if we were allowed to hoist the flag in that location the whole day. Also none of us would have been there to guard it.
Check out this link
ReplyDeletehttp://www.boloji.com/memoirs/028.htm
it says
'It commemorates the date that the Indian Tricolor was first unfurled in January 1930 at Lahore, by Jawaharlal Nehru, future prime minister of India,. There at the banks of the Raavi he declared that the Indian National Congress will nor settle for anything less than full independence from British rule. '
The article in general makes a good reading, should check it out.
Also, the fact that the Republic of India came into power on this day is a significant achievement, and a stepping stone, ending years of kingdoms, british rule and finally getting united .