Some Independence it is!
The British left but the feelings
of hatred remain. Yet another
befitting celebration to mark 65 years of freedom from oppressive foreign rule…no celebration!
Meghalaya has never lagged behind in gearing up for the Independence Day festivity that wraps the whole of India. While other states are busy buying tri-colors and white dresses for marking the glorious event with various colorful shows, we here are shopping too.
The only difference, tri-colors are replaced by colorful wine cases, stocks to last the 24 dreaded hours of ‘dry day’. Shops are seen bustling with activity with people swarming CD renting shops and grocery stores to pile up on ‘stacks of entertainment’, cigarettes being sold like hot cakes…a rather festive mood.
Why not? It’s a bandh. A day to relax and let loose the weary aching muscles, sip on some late morning tea and spend a lazy afternoon watching an obvious ‘non-patriotic’ Hollywood blockbuster. It no longer is a hidden fact that the feeling of ‘smashing’ the idiot box arises when Bhagat Singh’s life story becomes a day long programme. Well, the fight was over 65 years ago and isn’t it bad to dwell on some ‘ancient rivalry’?
All we need to aid development being an Independent nation is another bandh. If senses can be slapped into us, bandh will in an instant become history. Rebellion was never synonymous to playing in the street and burying heads at home. It is indeed a hilarious day knowing that we enjoy ourselves because we are not ‘treated’ well at the hands of the centre.
So, as independently as we may, we celebrate this day here in Shillong (every neighborhood!) with a feeling of oneness when it comes to mocking the sacrifice made by our forefathers.
I am pretty sure that Independence Day would be one hell of an explosive celebration if our forefathers were jeans clad and some special ops situation arose in order to overturn a mighty kingdom. Interesting huh? But we are possibly shy to acknowledge that all we did was sit quietly, wrapped in a ‘dhoti’ and follow non-violence till we made them lose patience and take leave fuming with rage.
It has now reached a point of being a tradition, a rather wonderful ideology being passed on to subsequent generations that “Look, you don’t need to cry over some sacrifice…just dance atop the treasures we unraveled for ourselves.”
It is amusing that this childish ‘rebellious’ trend started only recently and we gladly obey it, not because we fear having our guts blown or existence threatened but we need a day to escape work, wash our cars while we listen to some rebellious vocals and try our luck at a few street games.
The general sight of every neighborhood (justifies this page) is that of a strife torn third world nation that would see a sudden emergence of a heavily armored tank. Everyone playing in their shorts, the one game which at the same time has not seen much development in the state…football. Independence is depicted knowing that you can even lie down in the street without fearing anything. It becomes the right time for toddlers to learn bicycles, take dogs out for a walk, play cricket and perform dares of closing eyes and walking in the middle of the street. What a happy Independent scenario!
Anxiousness is not in the direction of remembering the past but in creating yet another dead present. It’s just an excuse needed to wiggle tails and run back into burrows we call homes. 65 years later, the only difference is that we dance to terror tunes from people having the same skin complexion and bombs which are seemingly costly (petrol prices are soaring!).
What is there to rebel when you are the apple of the eye? After privileges and numerous state policies and sanctions and grants, we are like…”hmpffh! Is that all you can offer step mother?” If we are so into the fact that there is hardly any Independence then I am sure we can have another ‘boycott-the-government-day’ which can be held some other time. We would be more than happy to make it a successful yearly event, skipping work and re-enacting the same hazy-lazy scene.
If shame is an emotion still valid, I suppose we can depict that knowing the fact that we are amongst the few states that celebrates ‘Pre-Independence’ and not ‘Main-Independence’. ‘Post-Independence’ is a wonderful option!
If it weren’t for a few shots fired in the air before the 15th, there would be a complete boring silence…