Yet another Independence Day dawns on my beloved nation, a very special day to celebrate India's dearly sought freedom.
Yesterday I was chatting with one of my school friends. When we talked about I-day, we went back to the fond memories of our school days. We used to have inter-house patriotic song competition in our school every year for this ocassion. There were so many songs which we were made to memorise for this competition. I still remember a few of them - 'Ae watan ae watan humko teri kasam', 'Ae mere watan ke logon', 'Jahan daal daal pe sone ki chidiya karti hai basera, woh bharat desh hai mera' and some more. Singing these would instill us with an immense patriotic feeling that time. Even today, my heart beats with a similar feeling of patriotism, awe and respect for my country when I watch movies like Swadesh, Lagaan, Chak-De.
We had a slogan writing contest in my office for I-day - 'India to me is...'. There was so much that I wanted to write, but to make it a one line slogan, all I could write was - 'India to me is a land of rich heritage, ethnic beauty and cultural diversity, my country and my pride'.
Yes, its a pride, not only for me and many Indians, but also for tourists from all over the world who have visited this country.
Keith Bellows, from the National Geographic Society says about India: "There are some parts of the world that, once visited, get into your heart and won't go. For me, India is such a place. When I first visited, I was stunned by the richness of the land, by its lush beauty and exotic architecture, by its ability to overload the senses with the pure, concentrated intensity of its colors, smells, tastes, and sounds... I had been seeing the world in black & white and, when brought face-to-face with India, experienced everything re-rendered in brilliant technicolor."
I love my country! Happy Independence Day to all!!
Jai Hind!!
