To celebrate Independence Day, I bring you the story of Bhagat Singh- a Braveheart, a freedom fighter, and one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Independence movement, who our country has the honor of calling our own. He was also known as Shaheed-e- Azam. Bhagat Singh is my real-life hero. If I had been born in that time, I would have been a freedom fighter and his associate. I remember him as a handsome yet robust man with handlebar mustaches and a hat from the history books I read in school.

On 27 September 1907, a baby boy was born in the village of Banga near Lahore. This baby would grow up to be one of India's greatest revolutionaries- Bhagat Singh. He was born into the family of revolutionaries; his father and uncles were freedom fighters. Even as a child Bhagat Singh was inclined towards fighting for freedom. As a schoolboy, his idol was Kartar Singh, a 20-year-old martyr who sacrificed his life for Indian independence. With the ever-growing unrest in the country, the issue of independence was never far from Bhagat Singh's mind especially when the Rowlett act was passed under which the government can imprison anyone without a trial.

Naturally, this act was condemned by Indians, and gatherings were held all over the country to discuss and protest this unjust act. One such gathering held at Jallianwala Bagh ended in a brutal massacre. When general Dyer's forces opened fire at the unarmed protestors killing hundreds of innocent people. This gory act of Jallianwala Bagh shocked Bhagat Singh. He was just 11 years old when he witnessed this incident. Shortly after this incident, he bunked his school and went there hours later when this massacre happened. With his broken heart, he brought some blood-soaked soil believing this would inspire him to sacrifice everything for the nation's freedom. As if collecting the mud, he took an oath that he will teach a lesson to the cruel Britishers.

After college, he moved to Kanpur and met Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi an ardent nationalist, and joined the Hindustan Republican Association to make aware fellow citizens about the urgency for freedom. He started the 'Nav Jawan Bharat Sabha' in Lahore and worked hard for patriotic causes. When the Simon Commission was appointed by the British to study the political situation in India, Indians become furious as there was no Indian representative on the commission. Lala Lajpat Rai protested the Simon commission on 30th October 1928. Cries of "Simon go back" and "India for Indians" echoed everywhere. The British authorities resorted to lathi charge on the protestors. Lala Lajpat Rai was injured brutally by the Britishers which led to his death. The death of Lala Lajpat Rai shocked Bhagat Singh to his core. He knew there was only one way to pay the British for their brutality, "blood for blood" he declared.

In December 1928 he and his associates Raj Guru and Sukhdev plotted to take revenge and kill the police chief responsible for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. But instead, they shot John Saunders, a junior police officer in case of mistaken identity. Bhagat Singh had to flee to Kolkata to avoid punishment. There he met Jatin Das and learned how to craft bombs. While later the government proposed the trade dispute bill and public safety bill meant to suppress further the labor class and empower the government. He planned to use a bomb to make their voice heard.

On 8 April 1929 when the bills were introduced in the central assembly. Bhagat Singh and one of his associates, Batukeshwar Dutt threw bombs by yelling "Inquilab Zindabad"(long live revolution), "Inquilab Zindabad". The bombs they used were of low intensity and were only meant to scare but not hurt. However, the police came to catch them and they did not try to escape. He intended to use the assembly as a platform to advocate Indian Independence. Though there were no causalities, Bhagat Singh and Dutt got imprisoned. "If the deaf has to hear, the sound has to be very loud. We have bombed the British government. The British must quit India and make her free", he said. While he fought for the country outside prison, inside the prison too he didn't fail to fight for his dignity. The conditions of the Lahore central jail were unbearable. Even the food was barely edible. In protest, Bhagat Singh along with his fellow inmates went on a hunger strike. Batukeshwar  Dutt was given a life sentence in the Assembly Bomb Case, Bhagat Singh, along with Rajguru and Sukhdev, was sentenced to death for the murder of Saunders. Later it became famous as the Lahore conspiracy case.

Although Bhagat Singh had an option to submit a mercy petition, he denied this and said "it is better to die bravely than kneel before the enemy". Bhagat Singh and his associates were led to gallows on 23rd march 1931 but instead of trembling with fear, he smiled and proudly embrace death. He became a martyr at the age of 23. The entire nation rang with the cries of "Inquilab Zindabad". The fiery spirit of Bhagat Singh inspired millions of Indians to follow in his footsteps and win us our freedom.

Fearless in his approach, at such a young age, he devoted his life to a greater cause of freedom without even once thinking about his life. Bhagat Singh has been idolized as one of the most prominent revolutionaries of the independence movement. At the age when a boy's heart gets soaked in love, Bhagat Singh's heart was soaked in patriotism. His life was short but eventful. Today's youth can learn from Bhagat Singh the lessons of bravery, courage, and fighting for our rights and our country without fearing our lives. That we should follow our purpose passionately and work tirelessly to achieve it. With his selfless spirit, he made a huge sacrifice for our country's freedom.

With this story, I pay my tribute to the hero of India's freedom struggle, who fought against the British oppression bravely and still infuse in us the feeling of patriotism and nationalism. My salute to such a brave hero. Jai Hind.

Setting the stage

Dear readers, I am not going to write any patriotic slogans or quotes of our freedom fighters from our history chapters. We all have been learning the history of our Independent India since school days. Hence, I presume that every citizen of India ought to know them. What I am going to narrate are multiple, real life short stories of my life which kept shifting my mindset about the word “freedom”.

Definition of freedom

In literal terms means possessing the power or right to act, behave, or speak as we want. In other contexts, it could simply mean the situation or state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.

Where did the freedom thing actually start in my life

While everyone has their own meaning and expression of freedom, each one of us feels stuck or restricted at least some time in our life. Coming from a conservative, South Indian, Brahmin family, I faced several restrictions for us, three girls, in terms of dressing, time limit to stay out, not eating out in restaurants with friends or accompanying friends to movie house. Splurging money on outside food and movies was a strictly no no for us. Though I loved going for picnics, I wasn’t allowed to go for school picnics too, neither did we ever have family vacations to different places. These things were considered unnecessary and it became important for my father to give importance to saving money for our education and marriage. I always felt claustrophobic and choked to live under these restrictive conditions and cried for freedom. I craved freedom to dress in western outfits, freedom to spend time with friends and enjoy different cuisines at good restaurants, and experiencing the joy of going for school picnics looked like the farthest dream to me. On the other hand, my father, being an enthusiast in learning political and national issues kept emphasising on the country’s freedom and how our soldiers’ sacrifices, fighting on the borders to let us experience freedom. Patriotism was far from my interest, I was caught in my personal demands of selfish freedom then.

First experience of long awaited freedom

Few years later, I got married and the real freedom that I had dreamt of, actually manifested in my life. My dream of travelling was actually coming true. My first anniversary trip was planned for Singapore. Unbelievable isn’t it! Along with the travel plan came the need to buy trendy clothes, the best clothes for good pictures. I can’t explain how I felt. Roaming out late nights on the streets of Singapore and just experiencing real freedom was just something unexpected. 

Shift in the whole perspective of freedom

Now this gets really interesting with my third anniversary journey to Kashmir. An unexpected twist created a profound meaning of freedom in my life. I still remember the coldest snow covered month of February when we visited Kashmir. During our sightseeing tour to Gulmarg, we happened to see a small tent of our soldiers, completely covered in heavy clothes to save themselves from the biting cold. While we were just engrossed in clicking pictures and throwing snowballs at each other, all other tourists were repeating the same. 

Life just seemed to be hunky dory on a pile of snow! However, something kept distracting me frequently towards the army camp. I started keenly observing their actions. An army man was heating something in a small bowl on a small wood fire. I walked up to him and started talking to him. I was just drawn towards him with some sort of compassion or you may call it empathy. I asked him for a picture together. I don’t know what made him trust me and he just handed over his large gun to me to enhance my experience of getting the best picture. The gun was too heavy for me to handle even for a few minutes and it felt like a burden and my entire arm was aching by now. After just a single click, I was quick enough to hand it back to him. I became emotional and was uncomfortably shivering with temperatures running in negatives. I was awestruck! I asked him about how they could carry such a heavy burden on them the entire day, especially when I could barely handle it even for a few minutes and how could they survive in this ruthless snow. The remaining part of what my heart felt that day can be best explained through my poem…

Thousands of brothers fighting for freedom day and night

While in tranquility we sleep, enjoying our morsel and delicious bite.

I am sorry my brothers for we were naive and ungrateful 

Now that I realise I am remorseful.

Hundreds of you for our motherland your life laid

We took you for granted and never prayed.

We watched them wearing your uniform and acting

While extravagantly splurging on popcorn and cold drink

Enjoying the dolby, mocked-up gun roaring,

In reality, with several rival bullets you were dying.

The actor in your uniform earned more accolade,

While attention to you, my Real Heroes was never paid.

In Kashmir one day, I fortunately met him, begged to know

How the hell could he feel patriotic in the ruthless snow.

He laughed, “Hindustan is my home”, he said,

“Be free my sister, I’ll protect you till i'm dead.

Even if I die my soul will always pray,

May God, lemme be born a Hindustani this way

I wish and I promise, for my mother, my life I’ll lay!”

I won't suppress my emotions to reveal that I actually wept while composing this poem. Continuing my Kashmir experience, learning the stories of Kashmiri Pandits who were driven out overnight from their own homeland, brought about a huge shift in my attitude towards freedom and never ever did I lament about my personal freedom. I learnt to enjoy and be grateful for the best I had in life. It’s rightly said, “ If you are not grateful for what you are gifted with, very soon you’ll have to repent for the same things when they’re lost”.

Although the Kashmiri Pandits fled to various other states and other countries, lived as refugees for decades, they never ever felt threatened in their country, they accepted the situation, never criticised the Indian government and settled as true patriots of India. In contrast, we see some disloyal and ungrateful, high class celebrities who receive overwhelming love from the citizens of India, who continue to enjoy abundant riches, but grumble about India being unsafe for themselves. Covered with exorbitantly paid security throughout, they still have the audacity to speak against the security and safety in our motherland.

Nevertheless, it’s time for me to return to my present condition and just keep some lessons from my past. I am an empath, defined as HSP or highly sensitive personality and a hardcore introvert. I am quite expressive but use my voice sparingly. Today, I have freedom to express, protest, motivate and bring about a change in the societal mindset through my writings. I should say, Digital Writopreneurs’ Hub provided me with a robust platform to prove that “my pen is mightier than my voice”

To completely quit my corporate life of seventeen years needed the freedom to be deaf to the notice of all acquaintances convincing me otherwise. I wanted to just do what I wanted to be identified with - ‘an influential writer & a crazy wanderer’. It’s been a year and a half after abandoning my full time work and travelling excessively and exclusively to various states. An independent solo backpacker was thus born! Moreover, I wrote endlessly till I could pen down all my travelling experience to build a book. I am identified as an author too. Those who contradicted my decision to be out of a full time corporate slavery have now started asking me about what’s going to be my next destination and what would be my next write-up. Fascinating, isn’t it!

 I would love to go unstoppably with my words, however, I am content to summarise my story by writing that freedom is priceless, it’s an asset that is not received by everyone. I appeal to my dear friends and readers, cherish what you have, unshackle from the chains of others’ decisions, and liberate yourself from your blocked mindset because the past doesn’t equal the future. Beware- don’t misuse your freedom to cause harm, damage to others’ freedom and happiness. 

Last but definitely not the least, I want to say, ‘I fought for my own freedom but I am not a freedom fighter’. Let us all spend a minute to remember, pray and thank our freedom fighters who fought in real sense to give us freedom. Without them, I wouldn’t be writing in the coziness of a secure home, right! Jai Hind!

#freedomstories#writingcontest#digitalwritopreneurshub#freedomfighter#poem#freedomtotravel#freedomtowrite

Authored by: Rekha Kamath

This is my story.

I was born and brought up in India, an independent and developing country.

I have been told that my family rejoiced at my birth and welcomed me into the world. My parents had conceived unexpectedly, and in a heartbeat, devoted the next twenty years of their lives to raising me. In those times, parts of India were still debating on whether it was worth raising a daughter. I was luckier than most.

I was a curious child, eager to attend school. Knowledge had always fascinated me. I learned about heroic patriots and their self-sacrifice. I wrote essays on outstanding Indian men and women who were the epitomes of excellence. I was familiarized with the miracle that is our human race and our advancements as a species. And, I read about splendid civilizations and cohesive cultures from a time long gone.

Outside the walls of the institution, I saw that people were slaves to the opinions of others. Life revolved around petty feuds and cheap entertainment. Members of the community were more interested in sabotaging one another’s success than their own betterment. Families glorified the neighbour’s son and dehumanized their own children. At home, we were taught to compare and compete against our friends. The idea of community was declared a myth and everyone worshipped the Darwinian doctrine - survival of the fittest.

In childhood, I did not have living grandparents to visit during vacations. But I often travelled to the ocean and the mountains with my parents. Those family trips were important experiences that expanded my perspective. Every time I stepped out of my house; I learned something new about the world. I visited many beautiful mountain ranges, peaceful villages and exotic architecture. I saw many religious establishments studded across this vast holy land. Later I reflected that in this country, we are allowed to exist side-by-side but never mingle. Ironically, murdering a person can sometimes be more acceptable in our society than marrying them.

I belonged to a small family. This meant only a few people were hedging their bets against my future. Even so, as a student, I encountered a lot of pressure from my teachers, peers and sometimes strangers. I was considered to be gifted and hence was expected to follow the popular norms and excel in them. Fortunately, I had loving and progressive parents who endorsed my choices and prepared me to be my own person. They encouraged me to follow my own path and equipped me with their wisdom. My father is a rational man and my mother is an empath. They made sure to imbibe their best qualities in me and always taught me that life itself is bigger than myself.

Girls of my age were commonly told that our end goal is to be a wife and then a mother. Any other identity was only as good as a dusty trophy on the shelf. A rebel at heart, establishing financial independence became my top priority. I decided to pursue a career in software development, a male-dominated domain. I didn’t have a particular end goal. Computers were intriguing machines and I just wanted to live life on my own terms.

My father often said birds push off their offspring from their nests when teaching them how to fly. Soon, it was time for me to get a taste of what it truly means to be an independent individual. After finishing school, I left my cosy little hometown to attend an Engineering College in Dehradun. I was as excited as Bilbo Baggins going on an adventure. Overnight I found myself, miles away from home and, among people who spoke and dressed differently. It was all very new to me. So I did the one thing that I was familiar with – studying and passing the examinations.

I spend the first couple of years within the confines of the hostel. Then I became tired of the food and the intrusive surveillance. I told my parents that I wanted to live on my own, cook for myself and enjoy more privacy. Again, they supported me wholeheartedly to take that first step of my adult life. I started living as a paying guest with a local family a few kilometres away from the campus. Not only did I learn to manage a kitchen and my own tiny home, but also to take care of myself.

After finishing my education, I accepted an internship in Gurgaon. The capital region was different from the small towns of Bengal and Uttarakhand. People were more open-minded and hence there were more temptations to steer me away from my path. I laboured at a software firm for two years before moving on to the next one. In my journey as a corporate employee, I came across many remarkable individuals. I had made many acquaintances and a few friends. I was exposed to many experiences that developed my character. I had grown up to be the strong and independent woman whom I idolized when I was fourteen.

However, recently I realized that I had unconsciously surrendered to the idea of living a mediocre life. I had fallen prey to the illusion of comfort and had given up my creative liberty. Perhaps, I had broken few strands of prejudice but heavier chains were weighing me down. I was no exception to the collective dogma of hate. I have been yearning to belong but living in separation. My mind had been infected with fear and doubt. I thought I was taking my power back from society. Instead, I have been pawning away my blood for mere survival all these years.  

We are only as free as we allow ourselves to be.

No matter in which country or situation we are in, none of us are truly free unless we unshackle ourselves from the imposed identities. To experience true freedom, we must transform our parasitic relationships into symbiotic ones. All of us are imprisoned by our minds, our traditions and our perceptions. We must unlearn to be slaves and rise as masters of the self! We are only as free as we allow ourselves to be.

The foreign oppressors may have left us alone seventy-five years ago. But we are yet to conquer the tyrant that lives in our homes and our hearts and truly experience freedom.

Written by: Meghma Hira, Content Writer and Digital Writopreneur

#independentindianwoman #freedom #freedomstory #writingcontest #independence #meghmahira #contentwriter #digitalwritopreneurs #rajindersoni

A wonderous character from the J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.

This is my story.

I was born and brought up in India, an independent and developing country.

I have been told that my family rejoiced at my birth and welcomed me into the world. My parents had conceived unexpectedly, and in a heartbeat, devoted the next twenty years of their lives to raising me. In those times, parts of India were still debating on whether it was worth raising a daughter. I was luckier than most.

I was a curious child, eager to attend school. Knowledge had always fascinated me. I learned about heroic patriots and their self-sacrifice. I wrote essays on outstanding Indian men and women who were the epitomes of excellence. I was familiarized with the miracle that is our human race and our advancements as a species. And, I read about splendid civilizations and cohesive cultures from a time long gone.

Outside the walls of the institution, I saw that people were slaves to the opinions of others. Life revolved around petty feuds and cheap entertainment. Members of the community were more interested in sabotaging one another’s success than their own betterment. Families glorified the neighbour’s son and dehumanized their own children. At home, we were taught to compare and compete against our friends. The idea of community was declared a myth and everyone worshipped the Darwinian doctrine - survival of the fittest.

In childhood, I did not have living grandparents to visit during vacations. But I often travelled to the ocean and the mountains with my parents. Those family trips were important experiences that expanded my perspective. Every time I stepped out of my house; I learned something new about the world. I visited many beautiful mountain ranges, peaceful villages and exotic architecture. I saw many religious establishments studded across this vast holy land. Later I reflected that in this country, we are allowed to exist side-by-side but never mingle. Ironically, murdering a person can sometimes be more acceptable in our society than marrying them.

I belonged to a small family. This meant only a few people were hedging their bets against my future. Even so, as a student, I encountered a lot of pressure from my teachers, peers and sometimes strangers. I was considered to be gifted and hence was expected to follow the popular norms and excel in them. Fortunately, I had loving and progressive parents who endorsed my choices and prepared me to be my own person. They encouraged me to follow my own path and equipped me with their wisdom. My father is a rational man and my mother is an empath. They made sure to imbibe their best qualities in me and always taught me that life itself is bigger than myself.

Girls of my age were commonly told that our end goal is to be a wife and then a mother. Any other identity was only as good as a dusty trophy on the shelf. A rebel at heart, establishing financial independence became my top priority. I decided to pursue a career in software development, a male-dominated domain. I didn’t have a particular end goal. Computers were intriguing machines and I just wanted to live life on my own terms.

My father often said birds push off their offspring from their nests when teaching them how to fly. Soon, it was time for me to get a taste of what it truly means to be an independent individual. After finishing school, I left my cosy little hometown to attend an Engineering College in Dehradun. I was as excited as Bilbo Baggins . Overnight I found myself, miles away from home and, among people who spoke and dressed differently. It was all very new to me. So I did the one thing that I was familiar with – studying and passing the examinations.

I spend the first couple of years within the confines of the hostel. Then I became tired of the food and the Intrusive surveillance. I told my parents that I wanted to live on my own, cook for myself and enjoy more privacy. Again, they supported me wholeheartedly to take that first step of my adult life. I started living as a paying guest with a local family a few kilometres away from the campus. Not only did I learn to manage a kitchen and my own tiny home, but also to take care of myself.

After finishing my education, I accepted an internship in Gurgaon. The capital region was different from the small towns of Bengal and Uttarakhand. People were more open-minded and hence there are more temptations to steer me away from my path. I laboured at a software firm for two years before moving on to the next one. In my journey as a corporate employee, I came across many remarkable individuals. I had made many acquaintances and a few friends. I was exposed to many experiences that developed my character. I had grown up to be the strong and independent woman whom I idolized when I was fourteen.

However, recently I realized that I had unconsciously surrendered to the idea of living a mediocre life. I had fallen prey to the illusion of comfort and had given up my creative liberty. Perhaps, I had broken few strands of prejudice but heavier chains were weighing me down. I was no exception to the collective dogma of hate. I have been yearning to belong but living in separation. My mind had been infected with fear and doubt. I thought I was taking my power back from society. Instead, I have been pawning away my blood for mere survival all these years.  

We are only as free as we allow ourselves to be.

No matter in which country or situation we are in, none of us are truly free unless we unshackle ourselves from the imposed identities. To experience true freedom, we must transform our parasitic relationships into symbiotic ones. All of us are imprisoned by our minds, our traditions and our perceptions. We must unlearn to be slaves and rise as masters of the self! We are only as free as we allow ourselves to be.

The foreign oppressors may have left us alone seventy-five years ago. But we are yet to conquer the tyrant that lives in our homes and our hearts and truly experience freedom.

Written by: Meghma Hira, Content Writer and Digital Writopreneur

#independentindianwoman #freedom #freedomstory #writingcontest #independence #meghmahira #contentwriter #digitalwritopreneurs #rajindersoni

A wonderous character from the J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.

1. From this I have learnt mainly into struggles for Independence and Naxalite will attack three regions are Gujarat, Kashmir and Tamilnadu.
2. War will happen at that time I felt some army officers dying it was so bad situation about it.
3. The naxalite will shoot one police officer and they will say about we are going to attack India and your gang in Tamilnadu and will shoot him and he will say Jaihindh in that time I felt so pathetic situation in my mind and soul.
4. Action King Arjun named Bharath is the hero of the movie in the Jail he will ask the Prisoners to escape from the Jail and Support me for the search for Naxalites.
5. He told to his mom that I am going to resign my police job. While his mother scolding to his son that you are thinking that mother is more important than police job.
6. In this case he was promised to his mother that he will resign his job soon.
7. After some time it was raining on that time hero Bharath will come to meet the commissioner of Police, and he will on the Lady Justice Statue that he was promised that he will to the island and attack the naxalites and he has taken charge on that time I felt that I am proud to be an Indian.
8. He took the revenge on the Island and search for the Naxalites, he got know the naxalites secret place where they been hided.
9. Action King Arjun named (Bharath) and his team planned to go for the search for Naxalites and they had plan the to kill them.
10. Commissioner called to bharath and he was saying that his mom was not well after that bharath asked the commissioner I can able to talk to my mother if possible? On that time I felt very sad and emotional.
11. Then Action king Arjun Named Bharath caught with Naxalite.
12. Naxalite was threating him that for India your saying Jaihindh that will occur for sometime only.
13. The Naxalite has planned in the evening World Public meeting president and Annai Maria to kill them.
14. The Action King Arjun named bharath has been left from the helicopter and he was going to save the president of India in the World Public Meeting.
15. After that while he was travelling in Van he saw his mother died I felt very sad and Cried that time because as if mother is most important aspect in my life.
16. He started the Van by saying Jaihindh!!! Jaihindh!!! Jaihindh!!!
17. He quarreled in the World Public Meeting by saying the President Itself the culprit for the Naxalite. By that time I felt very happy that we got the independence day very successful and truthful in my life.
18. I felt very happy to watch Jaihindh movie very sentimental and patriotic movie.
19. While Action King Arjun Mother was passed away on that time I was crying and tears in my eyes.
20. I am requesting the people to watch the movie and explore the patriotic spirit and efforts towards Independence and Freedom to watch.
21. Climax Scene: Action King Arjun and his team got reward from the President of India and all the Prisoners were posted into the academy of Police Department.
22. At finally Action King Arjun will Salute the Indian Flag on that I felt very happy and proud be Indian once again Jaihindh!!! Jaihindh!!! Jaihindh!!! Vandhe Matharam.

# Patriotic Memory # Independence Day# Patriotic Movie# Jaihindh# Vaidyanathan Ramasamy# Digital Writopreneur

Penned down my nostalgic feelings with freedom

Independence Day and patriotism both are related to our blood and life. The day holds great significance in the heart of every Indian citizen living in India and abroad. On August 15, 2021, India would have achieved 75 years of freedom. As such, this year marks the 75th Independence Day of the country. While it is a celebratory annual occasion and a national holiday, wherein people hoist the national flag, wear colors signifying the tricolor, take part in many games and cultural programs, it also coincides with the Partition of the country that brings back painful memories for us, given that India was severed on communal grounds, much to the dismay of many national leaders and ordinary citizens.

When Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose commanded to all the people of the nation, “Give me blood, and I will give you freedom”. This freedom fighter was a real patriot who dedicated his life for the sake of others. 

We are very much enthusiastic listening to the national anthem “Jana-Gana-Mana”…; we all stand and sing together. I feel proud to be an Indian especially a Bengali because the two legendary personalities like Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay were born in Kolkata. I was born and brought up; the place called ‘Naihati’, the house of Bankim Chandra was hardly 10 minutes from my lane. I passed out from Rishi Bankim Chandra College (RBC) for women, which was located at Naihati. The locality is very popular due to this famous college. This college was established in 1947, the glorious year of Indian Independence. I used to walk through the side of the house and think that the world-famous litterateur and “Vande Matram” lyricist was born here! What a patriotic touch for me!

India is a country full of diversity in culture, tradition, heritage, caste, etc. This is called “Unity in Diversity”. A tribute is even paid by the Prime Minister to freedom fighters of India by declaring the day as a national holiday.

Importance of National song ‘Vande Mataram’

Vande Mataram" is a poem from "Anandamath", a novel written by Bengali litterateur Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and published in 1882. Written in Bengali and Sanskrit, the first two verses of this poem were accorded the status of India's national song (distinct from the national anthem) in 1950.

Importance of our National Anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’

The national anthem, like other national symbols of a country, represents the tradition, history, and beliefs of a nation and its people. Hence, it helps evoke feelings of patriotism among the country’s citizens and reminds them of their nation’s glory, beauty, and rich heritage. It also helps unite the citizens of the country by one single song or music. During the performance of the national anthem, citizens of a nation, despite their ethnic differences, stand up in unison and listen attentively or sing the song with great enthusiasm. Every school and college starts their assembly prayer with our national anthem, even if in a movie hall, before starting any movie, everybody stands up and gives a tribute and respect for our country and its people. 

All schools and colleges celebrate Independence Day every year. The program starts with the flag hoisting, by the Head of the Institute/School. Students in school perform March-past with the drill playing loud and tri-color flag, flying high. Students of colleges do take part in the celebration. They do march-past with the Indian flag paying tribute to the motherland 'India'. 

Amazing feelings of Performance at School!

Post the flag-hoisting ceremony, patriotic programs by children from schools based in different states is one of the main attractions. When I was in 7th standard, every year our school used to celebrate Independence Day. Every class used to participate actively and it was a grand celebration. The celebration was organized by the cultural team and choreographed by my best friend, Susmita. Being participated in dance and craft competition, I was a bit excited and it was held at “Barowari Prangan”. It was a big playground and various kinds of games and sports were used to organize for talented players. The rehearsal of this program took 1 month to complete. We all dedicatedly practiced and the song was selected by our respected P.T teacher, “Ma Tujhe Salam” composed by legendary A.R.Rahman. 

The day was 15th August, at 9 AM. The weather was pretty marvelous and it was a windy day. We gathered at our school premises and wore white churidar and orange dupatta knotted around our waist. 

The decoration of the stage was amazing. The corner of the ground was decorated by the management; they arranged designable chairs and a big table to keep all the prizes and rewards. The headmistress, assistant headmistress, teachers, and other staff were sitting. The game teacher was instructed to maintain discipline and silence to the volunteers carefully. Some students were given a trial of coming Chief Guest ad how they should welcome him. They arranged nice sitting arrangements for all the students. 

Now the program was going to start. I was standing in the front row; the arrangement was quite like this:

• After entering the chief guest from the car, 2 students will precede further taking a bouquet in their hand, every step should be followed by a parade. The parade team was ready, now we were waiting for the final bell. 
• Bell rang, and 2 students were coming in front of the chief guest to welcome him. The cameraman was busy taking photos and videos. Everything was planned beautifully with a lovely band party. 
• Our chief guest was none other than my uncle Dr. Pradip Kumar Bhattacharya. He was the chairman of Bhatpara Municipality. After seeing him as a chief guest, I was feeling proud and very happy. 

Our program started, and everybody was getting ready with their costumes of dance, singing, recitation, and speech. I had little nervousness to perform. Our function started with the national anthem: “Jana Gana Mana……”. Everybody stood up in unison and sang passionately. Staring with our respected headmistress’ speech encouraged us a bit. She described the importance of Independence Day, how did we get freedom after struggling rigorously. How our patriotic soldiers dedicated their life to get freedom for India and the background music was tuned to ‘Vande Matram’ and “Sare Jahan Se Achha”. 

The music was on; we took our position and started to perform. “Ma Tujhe Salam, Amma tujhe Salam……….” We performed very well and everybody as well as all teachers stood and clapped for 5 minutes. The background music, lovely weather, beautiful performance all together made a huge success of this function. We all acquire appreciation from others. ‘Ma Tujhe Salam’ and ‘Vande Mataram’-this song is dedicated to our “Sujala, Sufala motherland India. I also participated in making a tri-color national flag and it was selected as the best. They announced names for prize distribution and my name was one of them. 

These golden days were the precious moment of my life. I shared my freedom story related to patriotism and performance. Now, it’s time to pen down your thoughts and add in the comments section. 

#patrioticmemory #patriotism #memorytorejuvenate #independencedayperformance

#lovelyfeelings #poulomi #digitalwritopreneur 

• Freedom to enjoy all the rights of an Indian citizen as provided by the Constitution of India

• Freedom to make a Living anywhere in India

• Freedom to practice their religious beliefs, culture, and traditions

• Freedom for Children to have mandatory Education at least till the age of 14

• Freedom of Girls Education to achieve all the heights as the boys

• Freedom for a Single Adult to live his/her life on their own if they choose to, without Marriage

• Freedom for All Citizens not to suffer discrimination based on their caste/gender/marital status/orientation

• Freedom for Married Couple to choose Not to have children, if they don’t want to

• Freedom for Men victims treated with equal dignity and empathy as Women w.r.t. abusive Relationships/Marriage, Domestic Violence, Harassment, etc.

• Freedom for All Citizens to excel in whatever field they desire, without any restraints in the form of favoritism, nepotism, partiality, etc.

• Freedom of Speech for Citizens to oppose what they feel are not right without any fear of retaliation based on draconian laws

• Freedom of Speech to express their views without jail time for rising intolerance

Independence Day Celebration

We all are happy proud Indians and it's some different kind of satisfaction and enjoyment when we celebrate this day with our society or communities or local people. So let's see how it goes with me as I got a chance to attend this with my sweet little cousins.

Last summer I visited my granny and there I had really great fun. I got suggestions from elders that I should join my little cousins on independence day celebrations as there will be so many activities which kids usually perform to pay some tribute to the nation in their own style.

So I was very excited to be a part of it.. It had so many colourful activities including dancing,singing, some educational plays where some kids were playing role of great indian leaders like mahatma Gandhi , sardar patel, subhash bose, chandrashekhar azad, jawahar lal Nehru, bal gangadhar tilak.

Variety comes in the form of Jhankis (tableau) presented by different class students with the same pride as school children presenting “projects”.

You can feel the passion, the power, the undying love for their motherland mixed with innocence.

The irony is when the little kids participate in such drama they give you goosebumps like you laugh when they laugh and you cry when they cry.. That's how innocent is childhood and how we react to them unconsciously.

Every one of them was a star for that day and they share their respective life beliefs .

A little kid shared something which touched my soul not just my heart. He came up with such beautiful idea that human crave love and attention only..and when his basic needs not met by others then comes anger, hatred, jealousy, stress, unhappiness and he just don't understand that it's love what he needs most not materialistic things or possessions.. Nothing in this world can give him happiness rather than his state of mind that happiness is in this very moment. Happiness is not attached to anything. Look at the child what he possess for being happy all the time, nothing!!!

Trust me he needs nothing from outside world because his love needs are being fulfilled. So is true for everyone else. We forget this thing and lives a life full of competition, anger, dissatisfaction, jealousy, stress etc.

We simply don't understand that happiness is not in past neither in future.. Happiness is just in this moment. So live it to your fullest and spread only love because world only needs love and empathy because it is already full of everything else which is not required.

So on this independence day let's live our life to the fullest and also love our family and friends genuinely without any expectations.

Let's made our world a little more loving and a little more empathetic.

It ends with remembering our great real life heroes who sacrifice their life for our well being. Who left behind their families for us so that we don't have to loose anything. We not only proud of them but we respect them from core of our heart.

"On this Independence Day
We remember the years past.
We honor this very day
For our flag, old glory, has last.
On this Independence Day
Two centuries ago, we
Declared our independence
For justice and liberty.
Let us celebrate with joy and honesty
Happy Independence Day!!!"

These events were actually very nice where all the students perform very well and they decoded the message that how important is freedom for everyone and to make us understand that what sacrifices are done by our great leaders so that we can enjoy freedom...

As it was not gifted it was earned..

Yes freedom was earned by the endless sacrifices made by all of our national heroes

When we think about independence what is that feeling which keeps us motivated ?

Yes! this answer could be vary from person to person but we all want to live our life freely despite any other person's influence on it.

How important is it to understand that even those pets which are in our own houses crave for that freedom which we won on 15th August 1947.

..as I believe any living thing on this earth could not enjoy slavery as it pounders their heart with agony and pain. So please respect their feelings too and keep them free so that they can enjoy the same life as you're already enjoying.

On this independence let's come together to make someone else's life better and happy because if we all come together only then India will be blessed with heavenly love and peace

"Freedom" - just hearing this word gives us a sense of relaxation. Our mind paints the picture of a place that depicts peace, calmness, and victory. This word holds different meanings for a person depending on their perspective. It could mean:

• Walking out of an abusive relationship.
• End of years/months of slavery.
• Expressing our opinion without hurting somebody's sentiments.

Fortunately for us, we live in a democratic country where every citizen can exercise their fundamental rights. Among all these, "Freedom of Speech" holds the utmost importance. However, when it comes to religion, the matter becomes sensitive. There are many incidents when a movie/series/book created a massive uproar by hurting the religious sentiments of several people. 

- Do you remember the "Tandav" web series released on Amazon Prime Video? There was a scene that led to a huge controversy. The audience demanded a boycott of the whole series as that scene displayed disrespect toward Hindu Gods.

- Another hot topic was the arrest of stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui. He cracked a joke on the song "Mera Piya Ghar Aaya O Ram Ji".

People must be cautious because matters can turn from worse to worst within a few seconds. Many such incidents are still fresh in my memory and it hurts me to see someone playing with the religious sentiments of our people.

"Freedom of Speech" is every Indian citizen's right and we should never cross our limits. Also, we must never underestimate the power of social media. Once content comes under the scrutiny of the public's eagle eye, it may go viral for all the right or wrong reasons. So, be careful!!

I am narrating an incident that still shakes me to the core whenever it crosses my mind. It is buried deep in my heart and today I am mustering the courage to share it with you. Are you ready??

I spoke my Heart and I was Trolled!!

It was the holy month of Ramzan. I was scrolling through my feeds on Facebook when a news caption caught my attention. This incident is from Turkey. It read: 

"While traveling in a bus, a man hits a woman because she was wearing a western outfit".

My reaction? I was shocked. How can someone do this? Hitting someone because his/her views are not at par with our expectations? We do not have the right to abuse anyone like that. Tell me, what would you do if you were in his place? At least, I will not harm her like that!

I typed in the comment section, saying:

"Let her wear what she wants to. If you do not like it, then do not look at her. It is that simple!". 

Within a fraction of seconds, I received reactions to my comment. Some people agreed with me and many were against it. You will not believe it!! People who made "angry" reactions were Muslims. But I was not surprised because they were all men. 

Their comments read:

"You know nothing about our religion. Go, study it".

"What that man did was right, I would have done the same".

"That is the problem with broad-minded people like you. Shame on your parents, they did not teach you the right way".

There were more but I do not dare to mention those here. Too much moral policing in one day was enough to put me in a bad mood. Their comments upset me. I was brutally trolled by an army of keyboard warriors. To be honest, I know I said nothing wrong. I have no right to force my opinion on you or anybody else.

Even today, I see many such comments on Instagram posts. I have refrained from reacting to such topics. I deserve to live in peace; everyone does. That woman was treated unfairly on the bus while others preferred to be mute spectators during the incident. The most disgusting part was that most of the men in the comments section supported the man hitting the women. Sad, isn't it? 

In the Holy Quran, Chapter 2, verse 256 states:

"There is no compulsion in religion".

This verse makes everything crystal clear. We cannot and should not force our opinion on others. We are no one to judge. And yet, people point out flaws in others. If I want to make my message clear, I will explain it politely rather than saying it in a reprimanding tone.

Trust me, I have seen many people saying this and it hurts me.

"What are you wearing? This is not our tradition!"

"This seems too outdated. It is the 21st century, come on!"

Truth to be told, the "burqa" that we Muslim women wear is our faith in God. It is usually a black-colored garment we wear over our costume. The hijab (headscarf), and a veil are a part of it. Many people call it a "black tent" and sometimes a "letterbox". They think it is too old-fashioned. For women like me, it is our Imaan (faith). There are many incidents of hate crime all around the world.  Headscarves are pulled, women detained at the airports, scanning performed in an improper way, etc. Women and girls are stripped of their educational rights if they wear a headscarf.

My Message

Things never go as we plan and people do as they please. If someone makes bad remarks about my burqa or beliefs, it is my responsibility to make him/her understand the reason behind it in a humble manner. If they understand and respect it, it is good for both of us. But if my behavior left a bad message, it would be my loss. Chances are I may feel provoked and it is better to walk away before things take an ugly turn.

Some of my cousins also think it is too oppressing to wear a burqa in this era. They say that they would never wear it. My perspective:

"Okay, it is up to you. Maybe, someday you would understand its significance. It was my decision to wear it and I do it happily."

I try my best not to judge others. I have no idea about the connection a believer shares with his/her God. It is between them and I am no one to pass negative remarks if I am not on the same page with them.

What do you think? Share your views in the comment section.

#freedom #freedomstory #writingcontest #independence #freedomofspeech #digitalwritopreneurs #rishakhan

Written by: Risha Khan, Digital Writopreneur.

I will be sharing my "Freedom to Speech" story soon.