Author: Jyoti Sharma
Publication: The Times of India
Date: January 24, 2007
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS/City_Supplements/Bombay_Times/Why_are_we_embarrassed_to_show_love_for_India/articleshow/1434862.cms
Unlike the UK and US, why do Indians shy away
from public displays of affection for our country?
Why is it that Indians do not wear love for
their country on their sleeve the way Americans, British or Australians do?
Unlike a US citizen who would wear 'Proud to be an American' tee to work,
why does an Indian keeps his tri-colour toting zeal confined to a Team India
match? Why don't we see more Indians wearing clothes, turbans or even bindis
and dupattas in the colours of the nation? Why is it that no building proudly
wears the Indian flag on its exterior a la the Nasdaq?
You would be hard pressed to spot one student
in the college campus with Indian colours on him. And if you do, it's possible
you would wonder what agenda the person is pursuing!
Is it that Indians are less proud of their
country than rest of the world? Or, does the truth lie elsewhere?
Nationwide polls as part of the India Poised
campaign show that Indian youth today are fiercely proud of India and passionate
about seeing their country in the forefront of world powers. Make no mistake,
at heart we are all proud Indians. But, rarely would anyone catch us admitting
so publicly! What makes us Indians so defensive about a public display of
affection for our country?
Explains sociologist Beenu Syal, "Even
with elders, Indians are respectful rather than affectionate. The same attitudes
apply to the country, which is seen as the motherland."
So, whereas Indians look up to their country
as the motherland and accord the respect due to it, they would be as loathe
to show that affection publicly as they would be to hug their parents, siblings
or wives in public.
And yet, today there's a difference. India
is suddenly into PDA (public display of affection)! Today on the world scene,
the country seems to demand and expect that show of affection and Young India
is suddenly eager to show that love and proudly display that affection. If
Shilpa Shetty is the target of a racist attack on UK TV, it arouses strong
emotions in India and youngsters are willing to fight back for what they consider
an insult to India.
So far as wearing tri-colour goes, initially
of course there was the legal issue related to our usage of the tri-colour.
Till a few years ago, wearing Indian colours or hoisting a flag meant you
were flouting the law. It took a long court case to finally get the freedom
to hoist the tri-colour. Says youth activist Aditya Raj Kaul, "The laws
were definitely a factor here. Now, with those regressive laws gone, you see
many more people hoisting a flag on August 15 and January 26. But it will
still take some more time for the trend to really catch up. In that context,
2006 has been something of a watershed with so many youngsters not being shy
of taking up issues that made a difference to the country."
Indeed, this year has seen Indian youth raise
their voice as one for Jessica Lall, Priyadarshini Mattoo and Nitish Katara.
Helping them along and showing them that patriotism and a sense of justice
are the right emotions to fight for, were movies like Rang De Basanti and
Lage Raho Munnabhai.
Kunal Kapoor, RDB's Aslam, adds, "You
can't attribute such a strong reaction to only a film. RDB was just a catalyst.
It tapped what was already in there by presenting patriotism in a package
that the youngsters understood and empathised with. Also, our generation definitely
takes more pride in our country than the generations before us.
We are more informed, we don't look up to
the west and we know there are opportunities for us in India."
Suddenly today love for the country is not
just the neta's prerogative. "I love my country" no longer reeks
of hypocrisy or self-aggrandisement. Today's youth loves India for her history,
for her rich culture, for Gandhi, for truthfulness, for a sense of justice
and fair play.
kanpur.times@timesgroup.com