India @ 65: Memories and hope

Sipping my morning tea on Wednesday, I tuned in the television as I do every day. Surfing channels after watching the travel news and weather on the BBC's Breakfast Show, I found the NDTV showing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort. It's India's Independence Day, I said to myself, slightly disappointed that I couldn't wake up early enough to watch the flag-hoisting ceremony live, as I do every year.

On my way to work, I was awash with memories of independence day celebrations. As a child it was a very special day for me. I felt standing in apt attention during the flag hoisting ceremony and saluting the tri-colour was a fitting tribute from a young boy to his predecessors, who laid down their lives for our motherland. Often my voice would get choked and eyes moistened while singing the national anthem.

In our childhood days, it was a practice to expose the young to the golden days of Indian freedom struggle. We were shown movies on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Kshudiram Bose, Bhagat Singh and many others. May be those films had their reverberations on my young mind as I used to stand in pride in front of the unfurling tri-colour.

Whenever I used to be in my hometown of Belgharia, I used to attend the independence day celebrations at my local club Udayan. After the flag hoisting, a picture of Netaji used to be garlanded. This was followed by a parade, and saluting the tri-colour used to be my proudest moment. The sweets and savouries (jilipi and singara) were a bonus for the kids.

Often I have dreamt of being born when India was fighting for her independence and had become free. The description of the time when India gained freedom still evinces my interest and stirs my imagination. As a child Netaji was my hero and he still continues to be my greatest patriot. As a young boy, whenever I would have seen a statue of Netaji, be it by the side of B T Road at Baranagar or at the five-point crossing at Shyambazar or at the Maidan, I used to salute him and the expression of respect filled with pride would amuse others, often causing laughter.

As I matured and was exposed to more reading about Indian independence, I felt that probably Netaji was more of an emotional person and those with emotions rarely succeed in the craft of politics, but his love for our motherland India was unflinching. Netaji seeking the support of Germany and Japan only shows his eagerness to make India free. Notwithstanding the ideological allegations that many have against Netaji, he still remains my patriotic hero.

Many years back when I was doing a radio feature on Shyam Benegal's film Netaji -The Last Hero for the BBC, I came across Netaji's daughter Anita Bose Pfaff and her economist husband, Martin Pfaff. Our interaction at the Indian Gymkhana Club in Osterley was indeed a great experience and I still hold the cassette with their interviews as a prized possession.

When I mentioned to Anita Bose Pfaff that Netaji was my childhood hero and I used to slaute his statue,  she burst out in laughter, but was very measured in her assessment. She had no complaints about being so far away from India, despite her father being one of India's greatest leaders. Her husband Dr Martin Pfaff is a very open-hearted and jovial person. He told me that he always enjoyed the care and attention that a 'Bangali-barir jamai' (son-in-law of a Bengali household) gets in India.

As India celebrates the 65th anniversary of its independence, the nation is faced with many challenges but the remarkable achievements also can't be overlooked. There is poverty, hunger, disease, malnourishment, illiteracy, unemployment - and all of them are daunting tasks which India as a nation needs to take on in its stride. But India has also shown what it has on offer for the world and how it can shape the global order. She has bestowed a sense of pride to her people, which will undoubtedly instill greater self-confidence to ensure bigger successes in the future.

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Tirthankar.Bandyopadhyay.Blog@gmail.com