The terms of patriotism and nationalism might easily be confused with jingoism and extremism right now, given the current political climate of the country. Isn’t it a complete contrast from how happy we used to be as kids back in the day, when Independence Day either used to mean a welcome holiday or an actually festive occasion?
So unless you’ve been that lazy bum who woke up at 12 noon and missed all the shenanigans at school, in the neighbourhood and even on your television screens, you’re probably going to have heavy pangs of nostalgia upon reliving all of this ahead of August 15 – India’s 71st Independence Day.
THE address
I don’t know about you all but a lot of my friends and I were woken up by our parents to watch the Prime Minister’s address from the Red Fort in the early hours of the day before school. Will you be watching PM Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ this year?
(S)c(h)ool
After several weeks of preparation, many of us were a part of the large group that paraded on the drum beats of the school band. The geeks always use to line up for addresses and backbenchers couldn’t get enough of their tomfoolery, or the free sweets! Oh and who else collected tricolours on the way to or back from school?
Free breakfast
If retiring from school within a couple of hours wasn’t enough cause for celebration, joining parents at the neighbourhood’s flag hoisting was an experience on its own. And more free food of course!
Ye desh hai veer…
Was it just us or every locality has a bunch of uncles, invariably dressed in white kurta-pyjamas, loudly playing ‘patriotic’ songs on extremely harsh-sounding loudspeakers? No wonder why Ye Desh Hai Veer Jawaano Ka is a song for the generations in our country.
Border much?
The rest of the day would definitely involve watching a series of Bhagat Singh movies, if not Border. But thank god for Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra that we later got Rang De Basanti in the mid-2000s!
How did you celebrate your Independence Day as kids? Let us know in the comments section below.
