Jai Ho! Long Live Our Dreams...

We were on a Delhi Yatra this Sunday. As kids who work away from home we were proud and eager to show out visiting parents the grandeur of Delhi.... And what better time then the Grand Republic Day celebrated at the very heart of Delhi? 

Well one Day before the Republic Day( 25th Duh!!! also a Sunday) when the patriotic fervour we decided to visit the Red Fort, when we went there we realised it was closed for visitors with disappointment oozing out of our faces we decided to stroll down the lazy streets of Chandini Chowk. Then with a never say die spirit we decided to move on to the India Gate.... But, well here we saw stretches of deserted streets.... so we moved on to what I loving call the museum of Gods or Akshardham which was of course open with a few instructions like :

• In the list of things you cant take inside with things like bullets, blades and alcohol was a another item drunkards!!! Well I like the spirit of not recognising the human status of drunkards :P

Then after braving at least a dozen frisks and checks... by the time we reached the entrance we had the done with the teertha yatra feel. And, on why I call it the museum of Gods? Well It has these magnificent looking statues of Excessively hunkish six packed Gods... no nicely displayed I forget prayers and end up gaping at the beautiful architecture. 

Ok! Back to the point... Every Republic Day and Independence Day we celebrate about out country being free, in fact on the Republic Day when we many years ago so daringly declared Independence and a day when the best of our armed forces salute to their chief in command two things hit me harder then anything else the President who was taking the salute with all due respect to her seat did not in anyway inspire any confidence in me... I did not see a commander of armed forces I saw the face of an old women wrapped as much in a saree as by the influential political powers in the back ground!

Secondly, I saw that ironically on the days preceding our display of strength people preferred staying indoors out of fear more then anything else I heard out at least a paranoid friends and relatives who advised me to stay in so sure that I would be blown up to pieces by a terror bomb otherwise. It felt weird that we had more confidence in their capacity to blow us then our capacity to hold them off.... That left me wondering if we would have ever won over the great ( sarcasm for those to didn't notice) British Empire if our Freedom fighters were to be cowed down and preferred staying in? 

In short this Republic Day I wished for an India where people stop waiting for the messiah to walk in from the skies and find independence on the streets, but that does not mean we can make do with a compromise Presidential Rubber stamp. I pray for the Wings of Fire ( with tribute to its author) that will soon provide us with the strength to fly our country high.