Independence day
Beyond the jargon. Beyond the paper supplement. Beyond the expressway that is blissfully empty. Beyond the PM’s broadcast from the Red Fort. The colors saffron, white and green. What is it? Can’t answer.
Is a celebration. surprise at the flags and sweets distributed at work
Is hearing about Noakhali, about sacrifices, intrigue and betrayals so vivid they sound like they happened yesterday and not 60 years ago, hearing about how trains with the migrants were shunted off from the Pak,Punjab to Sindh, masterminded by the province CM, Sir Noon himself, avoiding future refugee issues.
Is suddenly standing to attention dinner time, mid morsel, as the Nightingale sisters render the national anthem. Airtel.in/jayahe
Is singing along with S Balasubramaniam, and a sudden tear- no, not because you cannot hit the high notes
Is oohing and aahing at the property but stunned, putting your calculator away because there is just no way you can afford it, not on your salary, and anyway it is too big and too far away. Will keep looking, next please.
Is a day when you sit and think of the nation’s issues and problems, your issues and somewhat problems, the widening divide between the haves and the have-nots. The next day you get up and walk. We thrive in chaos, like this only we are.
6 comments:
amen!
yep, sounds just like the independence day i remember. :)
i don't trust the quiet; am always waiting for chaos to return.
but that "widening divide" is more slippery...it is a subtle change, like the tide. at least we hear the chaos coming.
mystic- :)
portia- the undercurrents are always there.here the rift in so much in your face it is horrible. those flats were next to a slum, but they will get money and be relocated. atleast these ppl have some silver lining,I was reading about starvation deaths among tribals in Orissa (one of the eastern states) amd had to put away the article.
still, there are instances like Sudha Murty,the wife of the founder of Infosys, India's largest IT company, travelling to tribal villages and helping in a big way- schools, healthcare, water. She could go out and party too, no?
yes. thank goodness there are people who don't forget. she is only one person but it sounds as if she makes a world of difference.
mane to sa re ga ma pa joi ne radu aavi gayu. aaj kal badhu surface par reh che jaane...
i think it is a day to take stock. shu right thayi rahyu che..and work waiting ahead. i know the balance shifts to the latter half...but still, without the 15th...nothing would matter ne...we'd still not have an identity to bemoan.
yes, but voice of india is good.
true.
isnt it surprising despite the chaos we've travelled as far as we have?
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