This festive breath of fresh air — the tricolour flutters, telling everyone a story of sacrifice, determination, and development as a country. India, or Bharat, as a nation celebrated its 78th Independence Day on Aug. 15, 2024.
We celebrate it; recall the journey we’ve travelled so far, rejoice in it, and reflect on it, but there’s something that gets overshadowed in the light of the day.
“Having been oppressed for so long and robbed of riches and resources, be it materialistically, mentally, socially, or spiritually, the Indian psyche now wobbles between aggression and obsequiousness towards everything ‘Anglo.’”
We surely have gained freedom from the Brits. But what about their ideologies, the stereotypes they left, and the prejudices they imposed? The injustices they perpetrated continue to shape the status quo of present-day India.
Time and again, people get brainwashed by the extremist political and religious factions of society, which these zealots exploit to their advantage to play “divide-and-rule” hitherto in the country, inciting riots and proliferating communalism.
We label individuals as belonging to a specific caste, race, or religion, but why do we fail to recognize them as humans first? If we did, then the hues and cries in the name of religion, rituals, caste and creed wouldn’t seethe the nation with turmoil as they do today. Though we may appear to be liberated, verily we’re so divided in ourselves that we are the slaves of our own rotten mentality.
This mentality stoops lower when people try to degrade and downplay women whenever they express themselves or even otherwise. Women are victimized almost invariably, trying to fit in the norms of society. From the offhand remarks on their physicality, identity and work ethics to outright harassment — mentally, verbally, physically, socially or digitally, the undercurrents of chauvinism run rampant even now. And more so when it gets disguised as witticism and edgy humour these days! Imagine Kusha Kapila, a fashion editor-turned-influencer and content creator, getting roasted (read: subjected to machismo) by Samay Raina, a stand-up comedian, on what a woman should be, how a family should look like, and all the deeply personal matters that no one would invite an outsider to weigh in on. Anyone with even a shred of sensitivity would have their blood run cold after hearing the ‘misogynistic,’ ‘conservative,’ and ‘pejorative’ comments he made about Kusha. Yet, the saddest part was that people acted as enablers, deriving pleasure from such a distasteful spectacle and feeding their fragile egos. Ironically it’s these very individuals who often come masquerading as self-proclaimed ‘ALPHA,’ ‘SIGMA,’ or other such archetypes! This is a far cry from the values we uphold for women, and their much sought-for freedom.
This isn’t the first instance of such reprehensible events. Women are objectified day in and day out, nonetheless. Manu Bhaker, an Olympian, bagged two Olympic medals in shooting, making history, but she too got reduced to just her body by getting compared to actresses! Is it really necessary to put other women down to appreciate another? Why’s it so that their calibre gets overshadowed merely by their appearance? Why do high-flyers like Prachi Nigam, who topped her Board exams recently, get subjected to unwarranted scrutiny and trolling pertaining to a thing as trivial as the facial hairs? And, to add insult to injury, the capitalist society pushed its personal agendas by advertising grooming products featuring her name, laced in the veneer of sympathy!
“The day a woman can walk freely on the roads at night, that day we can say that India has achieved Independence.”
Mahatma Gandhi
This casual cruelty doesn’t limit itself online. It perpetrates in ground reality, and it’s immensely gut-wrenching to even have to cite such flagrant happenings that send chills down the spine. A second-year female trainee doctor who was about to complete her masters, was working at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. In a horrendous series of events, this resident doc was sexually exploited, mutilated and atrociously murdered there, after her long 36-hour duty. Women working in their workspaces, doing their jobs, performing their duties, seem to have no rights and freedom, not even on their bodies! A similar grim act happened at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Odisha where a doctor sexually abused two women who came to get an echocardiogram test done. Another, where a café staffer at a Bengaluru coffee outlet hid his phone in women’s restroom and secretly recorded them. All of these happened in the last 10 days! Sounds like freedom, right? These heinous incidents are an exemplification of the social malaise entrenched in the culture today.
Vinesh Phogat, India’s first woman wrestler to reach the Olympic finals, has a somewhat similar story to tell. Last year, the resolute Phogat was on the streets of Delhi, along with Bajrang Punia (four-time medalist at World Wrestling C’ships), Sakshi Malik (first Indian female wrestler to win a medal at Olympics) and others, marching towards the new Parliament, and protesting against the Machiavellian ‘Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.’ They urged the judiciary to press charges of sexual harassment on him. Phogat stood steadfast on the safety concerns of women within the purview of the wrestling community in India, where the issue had been inconspicuous for long. Yet, all she got was apathy, getting manhandled, and being labelled as “anti-national” as the system turned a deaf ear to the outcry. What can we call the society in this scenario, except for imitating jingoists?
“I will not buy glass for the price of diamonds, and I will never allow patriotism to triumph over humanity as long as I live.”
Rabindranath Tagore
We remember the ideals of freedom fighters on this day but often forget to apply them in real life. Slavery is going by the set norm, without anyone challenging it or having the ability to question it. While freedom and independence lie in breaking the constraints that hold you back, whether they are by the society, family, relatives or the system or by one’s own self. If there’s anything one should learn from this day, it’s the ability to fight and call out what is not right! Lest it be a day gone in vain.
When are we going to uphold the ideals that we revere of our freedom heroes?
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