06 - India oh India!...

15th August 2005, Mayank Pande

India oh India!...

Where the British are still a source of inspiration,
Where Gandhiji means freedom,
Where Shivaji still rules in identity, 300 years later,
Where Mangal Pandey is regarded as the true first warrior.

Where corruption is a part of life,
Where cops don’t mean security,
Where politics deface the fabric of society,
Where the failure of the civic administration is a part of life,
Where 100 lives lost every day is not a big deal,
Where relationships mean something,
Where the relationship between man and wife is still sacrosanct
Where neighbours are an important part of your life,
Where children are viewed as a sense of responsibility,
Where aged parents don’t belong in old age homes,
Where the father is revered and never questioned,
Where the sister is another form of the ‘bestest friend”,
Where a girl child can both be a boon and a curse,
Where money is not the ‘be-all’ and ‘end-all’ of life.

Where temples are the weekend get-aways,
Where green fields of paddy are a source of livelihood,
Where women carry multiple clay pots on their heads to ferry water,
Where birth control is an unheard of concept,
Where bullock carts are still the primary means of transport,
Where respecting the fury of the sea is revered,
Where grazing cattle can be one form of every day responsibilities,
Where traversing places where electricity hasn’t arrived yet is normal,
Where village fairs are still the greatest forms of entertainment,
Where enjoying twenty kilometres of uninterrupted sea line is a regular bit,
Where watching young boy’s play marbles on the road is nothing new,
Where spending time outside kirana shops discussing the future of India is the norm,
Where sitting on cliffs and watching the rain approach the coast is a regular past time,
Where men’s source of livelihood is still derived from cutting wood,
Where walking 15 kilometres everyday is no big deal
Where watching the rain come over from the sea is a great deal for us city folks,

Where getting “drunk – silly”, is the latest past time and the only release from stress,
Where commuting means bad roads and lengthy traffic jams
Where the judiciary means delayed justice
Where a daughter means never ending fear

Where we discover the ease of life,
Where we discover ourselves,
Where we want to come again and again,
Where us and them, have something in common,
That is my country,
That’s my pride, that’s my belonging, and that’s my India.