Clarion calls shall rise to the sky and passions of countrymen shall be on a high on this Republic Day. On Rajpath shall be displayed our might in military and the diversity of our nation and The President shall salute the men and women to the proud National Anthem. Flowers shall fall from the heavens heralding our 67th Republic Day and Mr. Hollande will express his gratitude with an air of utmost amazement and pride, to which the nation will spend one day swallowing that ball of appreciation and the next three months criticizing what Prime Minister Modi ate for breakfast on this Republic Day. The government shall issue individual speeches of what the country can go towards while the opposition, which ironically was in power for the last ten years, will launch a scathing attack demanding what could have been.
The Republic Day is indeed an honorable day. However, in the new age of the culture of speaking out everyone voices their opinion on the day. As humans with the ability to dissect an argument, we choose to besot ourselves to one side while mostly choosing not to dissect that argument. The ones speaking out vary from young enthusiasts with well-meaning motives, young radicals inspired and moved by old radicals, journalists and professionals whose job it is to debate on such days because these are the days to not only feel proud but also assess. The purpose of the parade is to showcase our abilities to the nation. Such a celebration is vital for those who are a part of it and for those who live their daily lives thinking of globalization because the military prevents them from fearing conquest and slavery. But on this Republic Day, I want to draw the focus on the people who are watching the program on television, feeling patriotic or are rather indifferent to it. The spotlight is on the citizens of the country.
What is a country? A demarcated area of land inhabited by people secure within that region financially, culturally and religiously? That may or may not be an acceptable definition to the citizens of any country. The point is a country is not something to be defined. It is something to be felt. As family cannot be defined as ardently as it can be felt or the oneness of a community, country is an extension of the same. Hence a question immediately arises when someone poses the primary question – what has the country achieved in nearly 70 years of independence – what is your contribution? It is time to contemplate on what we as citizens can do for the country.
Now, it is important I mention all my friends under one banner as “fellow countrymen” who seek greener pastures for their future life; some would probably use that opportunity to contribute to the country but most would happily enjoy the paychecks and the dire conversion rate of the Indian currency. Do I go about calling them selfish? Or do I accept that their fame across the globe is the pride of India? Is their contribution to the GDP of another nation an insult to their homes? No, it is not. To still believe the fact that they never leave their thoughts of home is enough. It is an epiphany as I listen to the music of Skyrim and draw an analogy of how Skyrim represents America or India. Although, I would immediately scoff it with a deeper analysis and comparison but the fact that all three places are so diverse when it comes to having a multitude of people from different cultures and heritage living under one banner yet struggling against discrimination and racism convinces me of the analogy. I think we are taking steps to make a more cohesive world but that may be a far-fetched dream as governance since two millennia has banked upon and used culture as a catalyst to rule.
India is no more a slowly developing nation. We are taking massive steps to become a dominant voice in the world. But every growing nation has unpleasant secrets and we as citizens know them the best. Therefore, it is up to us to make it right. Yes, the government kicked off the Swachh Bharat and Make in India and others but what are we as citizens doing? I still see juice boxes and spit flying across the road. Do you think Swachh Bharat means more downtrodden garbage pickers to clean up your shit? It is not so. It is merely an awareness program to remind you to adopt practices that make you think USA is clean. Whatever else is provided by the government is an aid for you to fulfill your task as a responsible citizen of the country. I am immensely proud of my friends who are currently entrepreneurs and are stalwarts of Make in India, also they are bringing about a technological revolution in India which is a noble venture. Entrepreneur is not a fancy neology for a businessman. An entrepreneur gets another word attached to his etymology – impact. A businessman may simply be another grain in a sack full of rice but an entrepreneur will seek to find a solution to a problem thereby causing an impact. Whether that is positive or negative, only time will tell.
The time to sit in an armchair reading a newspaper, shaking heads and getting up to leave for the regular job will also change the country if you can just find it within yourself to be a citizen that you hope to live around. After all, a country is represented by its citizens. And if you feel that you are moved by such a proposition and would like to propagate that idea, do it too. We spend a lot of time moaning about what is not right and very less time wondering why it is not right. We dismiss the reasons amidst the moaning and blame everyone else other than us and hope to run out of the country because “it has no hope”. If all of the citizens felt that way then no country would progress, I am afraid. And we do so because it is too hard to blame oneself. If one does so, then one must act too. But do we have time for that? I imagine a group of heads nodding to ascertain the fact that, indeed, they do not have time. They have time to go drinking, hiking, fucking and patronizing every beggar that looks up to them. Hardly, a few ask the person their story and ponder how many share the same fate and what they could do about that. My appreciation for those who do and courtesy to the many individual ventures who have begun to change things. Please learn to affect lives and nurture hopes not destroy them. The country shall progress when all of us accept that it is within our capability and our scope of responsibilities to work towards the growth of the country and thus uncover our potentials too. The avenues are many and there are amazing stories to be made and to be told.
Living lives is not a bad thing. To enjoy a glamorous hotel out of hard work is a good thing. But this Republic Day, ask yourself – did that work undermine lives or change them towards a better story?
“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.” – Rabindranath Tagore
Ink Idle 
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