By Meghna Hegade

Meghna is a Mangalore-born British citizen. She lived and completed most of her studies in India. A mother of two, she looks forward to moving back to India in the future so she can pass on the culture and legacy of her country on to her children.

 
Aug 15: If I were to look over the whole world to find out the country most richly endowed with all the wealth, power, and beauty that nature can bestow – in some parts a very paradise on earth – I should point to India. If I were asked under what sky the human mind has most full developed some of its choicest gifts, has most deeply pondered on the greatest problems of life, and has found solutions of some of them which well deserve the attention even of those who have studied Plato and Kant – I should point to India. And if I were to ask myself from what literature we, here in Europe, we who have been nurtured almost exclusively on the thoughts of Greeks and Romans, and of one Semitic race, the Jewish, may draw that corrective which is most wanted in order to make our inner life more perfect, more comprehensive, more universal, in fact more truly human, a life, not for this life only, but a transfigured and eternal life – again I should point to India.

- Max Müller (1883)

Max Mueller was a scholar lived in the later part of the 19th century. While he never visited India, he was considered one of the foremost authorities on Indian culture due to his extensive studies of the Vedas as well as Indian religions and lifestyle. He devoted himself to the study of the oldest of the Vedas - the Rig Veda and also of the Sanskrit language.

This 68th Indian Independence Day - August 15, 2014, happens to be my first as a non-resident Indian citizen. Muller seems to have, in my humble interpretation of his words in the quote above, thought that India was the best place to be. My thoughts exactly. The difference though between our perspectives is the fact that the India that he was talking about and the one I am talking about are more than a 100 years apart. Sadly with time, instead of getting better my country seems to have been corroded by my own people.

I have lived abroad for a considerable part of my life. I have travelled to quite a few places too. And quite frankly up until now I have never felt safe and free walking anywhere in the world as I feel walking down a lane in India. There is always an inexplicable feeling of being at home as I eat pani puri, bargain with a rickshaw driver or run across a busy road.

Living abroad brings with it a different set of rules to follow - culturally. Somehow calling to take an appointment before dropping by at a friend's place makes the visit that little bit impersonal as opposed to just opening the door and walking in at tea-time.

While there was a time when the front door of my grandfather's house was open to all, in recent times people are so entrenched in their own digital lives, they barely know their neighbours. There used to be scenic routes when travelling, and now there are skyscrapers either side of the road. The fact that neighbours were treated as family and could be trusted with our children's safety and well-being.

My fond memories may be a little hazy but the India they showed was one that shone very bright. India today, as told by the newspapers seems to be one that isn't safe for almost any form of life. The women are being raped, men robbed, children violated, and elders abandoned by their own flesh and blood.

Corruption has become more banal and more importantly a way of life. Many simply accept it to be the norm and will go prepared to grease the palms of various officials. Those in power exert it through violence. Just the other day I saw a video of some officials who beat up a man manning the toll gates for insisting that they pay the toll.

I do not mean to moan on about everything wrong with my country and send out the message that I don't like my country. I am merely voicing all that my friends who have like me settled abroad talk about. We all wish things might have been a little different back home in order to give us good reasons to go relocate back home.

My country is a vibrant one, full of life and colour. It bellies immense compassion for its people and an indomitable spirit in the face of calamities. Many of the calamities have seen my people come together and help each other back on to their feet. Floods, earthquakes and much more have not been to contest with the spirit of the people to get their city up and running at the fastest possible.

I just wish for an India of the future to be slightly different. I wish for an India that is safer for little girls, that has playgrounds for little boys and one that has love and respect for the elderly. I wish for an India that is an amalgamation of the ideals of the years gone by and the technological advancement of the years to come. I really do believe that if any country can seamlessly marry old world ideology to futuristic technology - It is India.

Meanwhile, let us raise a toast to freedom. Happy Independence Day!