Independence Day – August 15th. A day associated with flags, flag hoisting, and a general level of celebration.
So, what is so very special about this day ? What is it that we are celebrating ?
Freedom is an obvious answer – but freedom from what? Theoretically, it is freedom from the rule of the British Empire or Independence from the British Empire.

So what is it that Independence means – it means the right to run your own life. But, as we all know, as human beings, we can’t ever be totally free. There are too many bonds and obligations. We cannot do what ever we want, in any society that we live in. For example, you cannot run naked down your street without being arrested for obscenity. You cannot increase the size of your home without a zillion permissions. you cannot marry more than one person simultaneously. Infact, most of our lives are determined by all those things that we can’t do, rather than all the things that you can. All that we  can do is live within a certain set of laws, rules, norms and regulations – that hopefully, allows you maximum flexibility in leading your life without too many constraints.

What does Independence or indeed Freedom mean to nations? The ability to be free of ‘outside’ interference. But, we live in an interconnected world. (Unless, of course you live in North Korea). The UN, theoretically, ensures ‘good’ political behavior; the World Bank ‘good’ financial behavior; the ITU ‘good’ telecommunications behavior and so on. Most nations cannot get away with murder – unless of course you are the USA led by George Bush or Pakistan under any leader.

So, I come back to my question – what is it that we are celebrating, and should we really be looking at how we define that day – so that in a modern world, it doesn’t just become another day marked by cards and revelry without any substance ?
Is it freedom that we ought to be celebrating or the Right to Self Determination

If it is the latter, then what happens if one part of the Nation wants the right to self determination by itself ? Should there be force used to keep this part back in the whole or should the people be given the chance to exercise their right to determine their future ?

Maybe we ought to be celebrating interdependence rather than independence. A day where most people in this country choose to be part of the whole rather than being part of various fragments. Where each part of that whole is important, is treated with dignity and respect. And, where the nation lives up to the promise of allowing us the freedom to be.

For me, freedom is the ability to live my life with a certain sense of  security – economic, political, religious,  legal – where I can live my life without interference or  threat of interference; without braving bullets to get to work or to get home; where my little savings grow steadily without fear that it will disappear down some rabbit hatch; where food is not a luxury; where medical care is available for all, not just those who can afford it;  Where learning is accessible and not forbidden; where i don’t get beaten up for breaking rules written a couple of thousand years ago …

For me, Independence Day actually means all these. And, i have benefited from most of the things that i have listed. I am lucky that I  don’t live in a community with a Khap panchayat or a state where the Armed Forces Special Provisions Act is in force;  – I am lucky that my home does not adjoin hills rich in minerals that are gifted away to prospectors; and I count my blessings that my desire for education was neither hampered by my gender, or religious rules, or societal norms or abject poverty. But, a large chunk of people who became free on the same day as I, do not enjoy those freedoms.

Maybe – we all collectively, rather than converting 15th August to a Hallmark card and a shopping discount day, ought to keep this day contemplative and work towards ensuring that Independence is not just a term.