A few archival snatches from the morning of August 15, 1947 came with a national newspaper today. The sepia sheets spoke among other things, of cinema, riots, a Mahatma on fast, a toothpaste ad asking a very relevant question, “Are you afraid to kiss him?” Not much has changed, has it? If you discount the Mahatma, of course. Mumbai was still Bombay then. India was celebrating and eager to redefine its own identity. And Pakistan had just become Pakistan.
Despite the great human cost of Partition, both nations had a sense of hope that they would become sovereign, powerful and would blossom to their full potential. The concerns about good governance and peace we had then still persist. What has changed though is the quality of leadership. The new cabinet of India which was to start functioning from August 15, 1947 had a Nehru, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, Dr Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Dr Shyama Prasad Mookerji, Dr John Matthai and others.
This was a nation once led by stalwarts whose politics could be questioned but not their personal integrity. Few could be accused of putting personal interests before nationhood. Freedom was meant to empower us and help us build a nation we could be proud of. And yet, 65 years later, when a jaded foreign tourist commented on a social networking site I frequent, that any nation building of note in India has been done by ‘outsiders’ and not Indians themselves, I felt rage but also the need to examine what she was saying. So the British built the railroads. There is Lutyens’ Delhi. Corbusier’s Chandigarh. The French influence on Pondicherry. The Portuguese influence on Goa.
She has probably not heard or read about the Indus valley civilisation and its evolved urban culture, advanced town planning and as discovered in Harappa, and Mohenjodaro, the world’s first known urban sanitation systems. The ancient Indus systems of sewerage and drainage that still remain unsurpassed.
Maybe she doesn’t know that Indian architecture once had an innate understanding of region, cultural context, weather and geography and we have a architectural and civic heritage that can stand up to the most advanced and evolved civilisations.
We assimilated diverse strains that enriched our food, our arts and crafts, our architecture. It is here that Buddhism was born, Sikhism was founded, Christianity was welcomed, Islamic architecture found expression and we once built aesthetic structures, intelligent cities, created rich artistic traditions, understood ecology and respected forces of nature. There was less greed, more refinement of thought and creative initiative. We should have brought all of these characteristics to the process of nation building post independence. And yet here we are, 65 years later living in an askew country steeped in visible corruption. In cities where even garbage cannot be managed efficiently and roads are not tarred and children fall in open drains and are swept away.
Rural India that was supposed be central to our identity as a nation has fallen off the edges of our consciousness. Farming land is being swallowed. Farmers kill themselves or get shot at when they assert land rights. Tribal rights have been suppressed brutally. We remember the North-East and Kashmir only in the wake of a bomb blast. We have acquired nukes but we can’t protect our cities from strolling terrorists and taxi bombs. And have we really lived up to the promise of that morning of August 15, 1947?
Freedom is the right to dignity and yet just yesterday, there was a report on manual scavenging in Karnataka. Not surprising in a state ruled by corruption where before every political upheaval, MLAs are taken to resorts to be bought and sold. And crores have been mined out of natural reserves under the patronage of political masters who cling to their seats of power when disgraced.
Freedom is accountability and yet a government mired in scams has been systematically and petulantly targetting those who are asking for it. So yesterday, there was an accusation from a party (accused of siphoning hundreds of crores in multiple scams) that Anna Hazare had spent over two lakhs on his birthday celebrations.
Freedom is gender equality. The right to education. The right to a safe childhood. None of these rights are completely protected in a country where women travelling in local Delhi buses have to carry safety pins. And are told to dress in a certain way and not go out at night to prevent rape. Where dowry is still a reality. Where millions of children are undernourished and will never see the inside of a class room.
Freedom is the right to love and be loved. A tall order that if you are a Dalit, or gay or a couple sentenced to a vengeful honour killing by a Khap Panchayat.
We are not all there yet. India as an idea is invincible. India as a nation is still discovering itself. The fight for freedom, for self hood, for pride, for exemplary citizenship, for upright, accountable governance, for a country that cannot be mocked for its open sores by derisive guests, is not yet over. But we will get there. Because we were there once.
Reema Moudgil is the author of Perfect Eight (http://www.flipkart.com/b/books/perfect-eight-reema-moudgil-book-9380032870?affid=unboxedwri )
Very well expressed. India is still to re-discover her self-respect but not by arrogantly super-stating it but by being self critical and honest. It is unfortunate that whoever is being critical of the governance is targeted upon and suppressed. We, citizens need more transparency and accountability.
Yes Reema, Indus valley civilisation, harappa, mohenjodaro, our epics, our festivals all suggest that this so called Indian subcontinent had an affluent past. But the question is “where was india ???”. India never existed that time. There must have been more than 1000 little kingdoms existed during that period in this Indian Subcontinent which kept fighting with each other. We cannot claim corpse of that dead past as ours which existed more than 3000 yrs ago.
Some 350 yrs ago merchants ships from portugal,france, britain were out for trade and eventually made these kingdoms of this indian subcontinent as its colonies. They did treaties and fought battles with maratha rulers, rajput rulers, mugals, jhansi, nizams, mysore and so many various kingdoms and conqured them and united them as British India. At that time more than 100 princely states actually existed.They united us n ruled us. This independent india or our india is a gift of britishers. Had they not come here, then making of if not 12 then 10 or 8 or 6 different countries here was inevitable
By that logic, there were no countries in the world. And am not claiming the past as ours but the future because as a civilisation, we saw it once. We created it in the way we lived and thought. I am not writing a chapter on history but reminding that culture as rich as ours is not just about geography or history. But the ability to create any reality we want.
Yes indeed there are far more lesser countries in this world exist today than those existed before colonisation. If u look at british colonies, all malasian kingdoms were united into 1 malasia, all indian kingdoms were united into 1 india, all american kindoms were united into 1 america which claimed their independence in 1776. Africa cdn’t be united as it became cocktail of 6-7 europian countries.
Ok let’s forget the world n talk’bout india. Do u think that sikh rulers of north india were powerful enough to march upto kanyakumari n make 1 india or tipu sultan was powerful enough or marathas or muguls or nizams or nawabs or rajputs were powerful enogh to constitute one united india ?? The answer is no, they all needed 1 more powerful ruler to conqure them and unite them into 1 country.
And fortunately for us that India was ruled by a very liberal community-the british-not by the nazis. They were so liberal that they brought in their own educational, judiciary n governing systems here which we are following till now. So many of our freedom fighters Gandhi, Nehru, S.C.Bose,Ambedkar were educated in london itself. They were so liberal that they found themselves to deal with nonviolence of Gandhi. Gandhi n Nehru wd know what it is to fight, had they fought against govt.run by hitler
After Hiroshima n Nagasaki, europe realised that to remain in power, the nuclear warfare n modern tech is much more important, and the occupation of asia n africa had lost its imortance whatsoever. So they left asia slowly and gradually and people of asia n africa believed that they won their freedom throufh their nationalist struggles-which is only half the truth and the other half is quite different
like I said..this wasn’t a treatise on history but an attempt to remind ourselves that we are more than a colony in spirit..that we have the pride and passion to be a great nation and we do..
Pls read 2nd last para as
….they found themselves HELPLESS to deal with nonviolence of Gandhi…..
Regression can go on infinitely. When the European traders came to India they found that India had more goods to offer than their own nation but they wisely stopped the drain of their wealth to India. It was only after the Industrial revolution and East India company rule that Indian economy got a setback. No nation did any obligation on the Indians by building what they wanted to. Each one was smart/enterprising enough to get much more than what it invested whether it be infrastructure, administration or education. While this regression can go on, I think the very idea of making a remark on other nation’s self-respect / achievements is lame and arrogant.
haha very much true, i’m sounding arrogant. I know my logic is going against our basic programming, our teachings, our history books.
Yes regression can go infinitely.
Yes the britishers developed infrastructure, administration or education system for their own selfish reasons. But my question remains the same as I asked in my 1st comment ie “Where was India before britishers??” When did india took its first breath as single united counrty? What caused India happen?
I believe that india took its first breath in 1857 and our united revolt against britishers caused India happen
We are not programmed for pride but for feeling less worthy than the west. My argument is against that..and that is all I have to say in this matter.
No, Rajeshji, I didn’t mean your remark is arrogant. This is your own nation; you have every right to be self-critical and opine. You are most welcome whichever way. I meant the attitude of the foreigner who made the remark was arrogant, immaturely mocking at some1 else. (as mentioned in the article, para 3 line 5)
As for rule under one head as one country…… I guess may be it can date back to Emperor Akbar or before that King Asoka and Chandragupta Maurya.
I’m sorry Nilesh. I misunderstood.
Reema, yes I may be wrong. U can convince the convinced but u can’t convince the unconvinced.
On a good node, it’s been a beautiful synthesis of all contradictions.
Mr Arora, I have no desire to convince anyone to feel pride or shame or a mixture of both..we work with our conditioning and we work against it and we choose what we feel most strongly about..and we have a right to.
Oh no, Reema i think there is a misunderstanding. When I say “u can’t convince the unconvinced” here U is refered ‘in general.’
It should be read as “one can’t convince the unconvinced”
All this time I was the 1 who is convinsing n you were the 1 who is unconvinsed. Moreover u are not reqd. to tell me that u’ve no desire to feel pride or……… I’ve been following ur articles for a long time and i think this much i know about u.
Moreover our agrument ends yesterday when I write “I may be wrong”
sorry, I misunderstood too..point well made and humbly taken..keeo reading us and debating..its great and we appreciate it! Many thanks
Thankyou for a place to learn, discuss and contribute.
Shashi