Watching the 60Th Republic Day Parade today gave me a sense of pride and despair at the same time. Pride at the achievements of science and technology which transcends into defence equipments and the cultural diversity showcased in the cultural floats. Despair at the loss of precious lives fighting against terror.
The announcement of Ashok Chakra awardees moved me to tears. Not just at the sacrifices of the brave soldiers and policemen, but also at the way we treat them. Disappointed I am with the way the News channels are obsessed with celebrities on the cricket field and the silver screen; disappointed with myself for not doing enough to find out more about the heroes who safeguard my life. 30 seconds of airtime is all we give the martyrs on every Republic Day while an actress spraining her leg while shooting for her movie gets half an hour of prime time for a week. How many of the Ashok Chakra awardees did we know of before? Well, for the NDTVs, CNNIBNs, TIMESNOWs of the world they are not sensational enough. Even the coverage of 26/11 attacks concentrated more on selling 'Exclusive' interviews with the survivors.
The debate about the necessity of a parade in a nation starving for want of two square meals a day has been going on for as long as the parade itself. For me the celebration symbolises a sense of belonging to a nation which has as many peoples as the variety of items in an Indian thaali (plate serving meal in India), a sense of oneness. How many festivals do we know which are celebrated by the length and breadth of this country alike, for the same reasons, by the same name? Its also the celebration of a 'republic' which has survived strongly when her counterparts are struggling to; survived despite the internal struggles and differences; survived and lived to the fullest glory of the Constitution that the framers dreamed of.
Happy Republic Day!!! Vande Mataram.
Ms Tha,
ReplyDelete1. Very valid arguments/reasoning/observations!
2. As for me, I watched the Parade only in childhood and loved it! There is still a kid in me but somehow I am missing it year after year!
I have not watched the full parade in last 6 years! This is despite the fact that I have a tiny TV in my room which is two feet away from my bed,a desktop 2.5 feet away from my bed, a radio 4 feet away from my bed, a hostel TV which is 70 metres from my room and the parade venue itself is about 15 kms from my place! Shameful but true! I am a patriot, just the same!
3. I wish the government was more liberal in awarding the Ashok Chakra this year!
4. If restraint on the number of awardees is to be exercised, it should most aptly apply to the Padma awards! Every who's who in India from (from Tom, Dick, Harry to Akshay and Aish) is getting the Padma awards!
5. Our News Channels badly need reform of course! I recall reading in a report that some reporters were deliberately lying prostrate on the ground in Taj's vicinity to fake urgency and grab eyeballs!
6.Belated Republic Day greetings! Vande Mataram!
yeah true enough !!
ReplyDeleteWe the Friends regularly talk about the Media now a days ,About the people ..
Bush's dog got 30 mins of coverage on some national news channel which was pathetic for me .
"Media considered as a mirror to the society but i think now media has changed the definition of society by its own... the society for media now is bollywood,cricket,politicians or may be Bush's dog"
Somehow we also responsible to be obsessed with such news (entertainment channels) ...