Sare Jahan Se Accha Hindustan Hamara,
Sare Jahan Se Aacha….
Listening to this patriotic slogan was my morning greeting on Independence Day. As soon as I opened my eyes and walked towards the window, the first thing that caught my attention was the Indian tricolour, with a deep sigh of sustenance which kick-started my day. This day offered me a different kind of excitement. No study hours in the school, various functions and events, and so many sweets. Being the month of August, the weather offered a cool breeze, medium showers of rain and small puddles of water here and there which made my walk to school jollified.Almost a week prior to Independence Day, my team and I had started rehearsing for our stage performance. After the speech by our school authorities, the National flag was hoisted followed by the National Anthem; everyone used to stand still with a deep sense of elation and patriotism on their face. What a moment it was!
After the National Anthem it was our turn to present patriotic articulates and cultural folklore. These activities focused on introducing our young generation to their country’s culture and diversity. People from all caste, creed, race, religion, community and language came together to celebrate the day when we got independence from the colonial rule. On this day we were inculcated about all the brave heroes and warriors who enthusiastically fought for the country. I felt so proud to discover that I live on a land whose ancestors were so valorous and for a few moments that pride used to drown me in itself to such an extend where I used to start dreaming of myself becoming a soldier for our Indian Army someday.
Such was the grit and faith of our heroes that even today, when we hear about their glorious tales each and everyone of us still feels the same thirst for freedom, independence and dignity. With this my day at school ceased. Yet the day did not actually end there as there were still a lot events to attend. I ran to my home with a packet of cookie and chocolate in my hand. After reaching home I used to find my father watching the DD National channel, my mother had to make me realize that I still have a lot of things to do; but nothing bothered me as I had to witness yet another flag hoisting ceremony. Shortly after, I would hear some music and wait till the vague sound morphed into crystal clear lyrics of patriotic songs. This served me an indication that the programme was about to start; taking this warning seriously I immediately gulped in the last chunk of breakfast left on my plate, got dressed (following the code conduct we had to wear something white or something related to the tricolour).
Just like any other function on Independence Day, this one too had some formal initiations followed by the cultural programme. It was fun and concomitantly inspiring to watch our future generation portraying our country’s prosperous culture in such a unified way. By this time, it was afternoon and people started moving towards the dining arena for lunch. On this day even lunch had an exceptional menu. Various cuisines from all over the country were generously served and not a single dish was continental, wholly Indian food made in pure ghee (Indian clarified butter), it wouldn’t have been wrong to acknowledge the fact that most of the people came there solely to taste the unblended Indian food. In addition to the splendid savour, the utensils and desserts were also typically Indian.
Our lunch terminated with a small discussion on the political and financial situation of our country. After lunch, the last segment was a quiz competition which was conducted with a sole aim of making people aware of the recent innovations and amendments adopted by our country. With this my day came to an end. On my way back home, I used to witness hawkers selling stickers and batches of The Indian flag, so many rallies were organized playing patriotic songs on high volume. As dawn approached, my mind, brain and body felt weary. Sitting back, the only thought which occupied my mind was the fact that from the next day I had to recoil back to my regular life. But still a question prevails in my mind: “Why is patriotism not a practice or a habit, why only on this particular day we instantaneously become responsible citizens?”