I’m grateful to live in an independent country where:
Being born a girl or a boy or into a caste doesn’t make a difference,
A person has the right to choose his own faith and question his religion and its practices,
A person has the freedom to choose his/her field of study,
People who decide to pursue arts aren’t judged till they make a name for themselves,
A person has the freedom to question political authority and live to tell the tale,
A person can exercise his/her freedom of speech and expression without being called an outlaw,
A person can expect basic services without having to bribe someone to get it done,
A woman is free to study and pursue a career of her choice with equal opportunity and pay,
A person’s liberties aren’t questioned in the name of patriarchy, tradition or culture,
A person’s food choices aren’t questioned by the state,
A person gets to love another regardless of borders, religion, caste, sexuality or orientation,
A person gets to choose if he/she wants to get married and to whom,
A couple gets to choose when and if they should have kids/ go for adoption,
An artist gets to put across his/her point of view without fear of work being banned or asked to leave the country,
A filmmaker gets to put out a piece of work without second guessing the community or a fringe group that might take offense,
A journalist can follow a story to its logical conclusion without fear of getting disappeared,
A comedian can make fun of the Prime Minister and everyone has a laugh about it,
Universities are empowered enough to encourage critical thinking/ free speech,
A person gets to question the working of the armed forces without being branded an anti-national,
Being a minority doesn’t make you a malleable tool to influence a political narrative,
People entrusted to rule serve the people’s interests and not an archaic communal/ religious ideology.
Happy 70th Independence Day.
The Millennial Monk 