Any working class Indian would cry foul if national festivals like ‘Republic day’ falls on a weekend. Because, we need such holidays to skip work on a weekday and pamper ourselves with sleep till noon or go out with loved ones for a movie or even a day trip etc., If we all dig our memories back to schooldays, do we ever care NOW to think and remember all those famous people who made our country for what it is today? Forget all that, do we have time to participate in any local event where our tri-colored flag is hoisted? How about a thought of standing and respecting our national anthem for at least once in a year?
After all we love to laze our soul and body on such national holidays because we are all common people. But the question – is this a right trend? Where are we heading to? With growing age, we have become absolute redundant folks who cannot be compared even with kids! Glad there are many educational institutions who celebrate all national holidays with pride and share the importance of occasion among the young minds. There are exceptions there too… I was shocked to hear from a couple of neighborhood kids that their school has given them holiday as the school doesn’t have a play ground nor sufficient area to erect a flag pole to celebrate such national festivals. In our great country, even education is a BUSINESS! After all this, should I talk about the souls that run MNCs? Whose job is it any way to celebrate?
Now let me share the story of a different kind of life where that piece of cloth having three colors mean everything! Yes, I am talking about the brave soldiers who are working day and night without any such holiday privileges like what we have. One of my distant cousin who is currently posted at Ladakh was here at my home yesterday, needless to say he is with Indian Army. He had some amazing photos to share and this post is an outcome of those pics. These photos were clicked during the independence day celebrations on August 15th at an altitude of 18,500+ feets! All this is a part of their life despite the subzero temperature conditions over there.
I have a huge number of photos to share which have been sourced from him. I will publish them soon under a new post since each pic needs a special mention. With this motivation, all I want to convey is – Let us celebrate all national festivals with a genuine interest. Let us try to be a part of celebrations at any level starting from your offices, local clubs, schools etc., if nothing works out form an association with like minded people and celebrate the event with great interest. Let us spread the word of importance about each occasion. And finally take a pledge to ‘Be The Reason’.
{ 45 comments… read them below or add one }
Amazing photos there, sirji! I just hope people still remember the Indian flag: today’s world is overrun with numerous flags for every “region”!
Thanks Kartikay! Truly… awareness is the need of the hour. National festivals are loosing their sheen off late.
Thatz a brilliant post Mohan! Hats off to ur cousin and all those folks who risk their lives and bcoz of whom we consider we r safe
God bless them all 
We do hv the celebrations in our apartments every yr .. a reminder lest anyone forgets hw important the day is and how many people hv worked at the cost of their lives to help us live the way we r dng today
Can’t wait for those pics
Thanks Swaram. I will certainly pass on all these comments to him. He will feel very happy and much more proud of what he is into for sure!
Happy Republic day in advance to you!
Thanks for this post Mohan. You are bang on the subject and I really admire your cousin for his service for my country! will wait for the pics and each detail of it.
I am glad that my appartment does celebrate 26th Jan with equal vigor and I am happy to see kids imbibe the same from such events. I just wish and to some extent even feel that all of us really want to stand and salute all our heroes atleast on such occasions and if we all continue thinking like this, we will be the reason.
Happy Republic Day in advance!
Sure, I have a lot to share. Watch out for them here in very near future
Thank you.. wish you too a very ‘Happy Republic Day’.
Btw… happy birthday vineeta!
Thank you for the wishes! Hey need a favor.. you know about the young hearts initiative. Can you please help me promote it on Indivine too.. Link is here Thanks!
Done! I have tweeted about it too
Thanks for sharing the pics.. I don’t think Lil P or kids her age even know what republic day means.. We don’t celebrate in our apt..Hmm I don’t think so.. Let me see if I can get all kids down for a flag hoisting and singing the national anthem. Happy Republic Day in advance!
Agree. Kids of Lil P’s age might not understand the true reason. However, they can be taught about the things like flag, Republic day parade, participation from various armed forces in celebrating the day etc., will make a difference. Also, showing them the Republic Day parade on DD will amuse them.
hmm i do agree most of us………..aren’t paying much respect……….
I used to be there for the parade on 26th Jan…..till last year…..i moved to bengaluru this year…..It was an amazing feeling to be standing amongst hundreds may be thousands of people…….watching the celebration which may be for some was a life time moment………that was great………
We don’t respect the day that much ……don’t agree with that much……don’t about others….but my father used to wake me up early in the morning to watch the parade if i couldn’t make to the RAJPATH……….for others, it just depends on them…… i mean it may not be on the same day …….aahhh leaving about others……. it said that …when ever you hear National Anthem ….one should stand in respect of the National Anthem …….but one shouldn’t do that….if you are in a closed room or under a roof…..like inside one’s home…….
don’t wanna hurt anybody….totally my comment……….full respect to all the soldiers on the border…..even i have 3-4 relatives…working for Army may it be Kashmir or Indo- Tibetan Border……..
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Hitesh. My salutes to all those brave souls out there. I could walk through my association with NCC and participating in RD parade selection memories…
Awesome post at the right time. Kudos to your cousin and i look forward for joining my good old school for celebrating tomorrows republic day proceedings. I was missing this for years together.. now I wont miss a chance. Yet again a great post.
That sounds so sweet to read through your comment. Thanks Reshma. Happy Republic day!
So true… you have written some kind of unaccepted truth here… I believe this mentality of ours towards national holidays really needs some drastic changes…
Thank you for writing this post.. This article is a tight slap to those who don’t respect their motherland and treat national holidays just like any other Sunday!
Brilliant Work, Mohan!
Thanks for appreciating the post Parth. Hope this wakes up some of the sleeping sids
Nice post Mohan. The men and women in uniform deserve more respect and appreciation. Needless to say it is a thankless job. We only talk about them when things go wrong.
Thanks Hari. So true, agree with you completely on that. Do you folks get to celebrate in US?
Very Nice post!!! I am feeling ashamed falling into that group of people who think of republic day as a holiday and happy that it came on weekday. How much I have changed, am remembering my childhood days and the fun we used to have on republic days, painting our national flag and then putting on our terrace!
Thanks Neilina… not many can be as brave as you are! accepting the reality and admitting is a great virtue. Glad you felt the need for celebrating such occasions.
“Take a pledge to be the reason”… that was so well said….”celebrating national festivals” to me mean being proud of being an Indian… while its extremely important to feel that way… we should feel that way every single day of our lives. Why just on republic day or independence day…
happy republic day guys!
Good point. Yes, but the fact is many of us have come to a stage where holidays to observe national festivals has become a must! So that, atleast on those days people get to feel the importance. Thanks for the wishes and wish you too a very happy republic day.
Mohan, it is our day and whatever it is we must cherish the moment that makes us enjoy the freedom that we take for granted. Very few people in the world can have that freedom where we can tear a government apart If we feel and it is right to do so.
Absolutely. Thanks for dropping by and look forward to see you more often here
Mohan…first let me wish you a very happy new year and a very happy republic day.I was on a month long vacation,looks like i missed a lot here.
You are right we treat the days of such importance just very casually,i see people not standing up if our National Anthem is being played.But a good thing happened this morning,i received many Happy Republic Day Calls from my friends-otherwise it used to be only me wishing them.I welcome this change.
Hey kavita, thanks for the wishes and I too wish you a happy republic day. Wow.. that a welcome change for sure. Nice to hear such things. Hope we get to celebrate all national festivals in the same spirits.
Happy Republic Day to you and all your followers here…
Nice thought conveyed at the Right Time…
KUDOS!
Thank you and we all wish you the same! Glad you liked the post
Hey nice post…just today I heard a quote on peace by a famous personality (forgot his name). he says….
” The world is at peace when the patriotism is removed from each and every human being on this earth”. In a way, he is right…In a way he is not..Whats ur take on this???
Good question and a nice summation of thoughts on your blog. Well, to answer that question, I think it is a must for any person to feel proud about something he belongs to as well as to build a competitive ecosystem. If there is no competition, we will be on a stand still. That is one thing that makes humans far superior when compared to other creatures. So, It is good to have the patriotism feel. A feel towards better mankind.
Happy Republic Day to all fellow Indians.
Nice thoughts Mohan.
thanks Jeevan!
Nice post.
The enemy that we have to conquer is we the people.
I wrote this piece a year ago and I still maintain the thought.
Take a look if time permits.
Thank you. Surely will go through
Thanks for your visiting, look forward to see you more often.
Oh wow.. You must be a proud cousin!!!
Happy Republic Day
very much proud of him
awesome and at the right time right post! we need reminders all the time
sad that we need reminders… but that is reality!
Hey mohan after reading your post a thought came into my brain and i thought i have to do a post on it. I posted something which i felt about the republic day on my blog and thanks for sharing an awesome post with cool pictures.
Thanks Raghav… I am glad you liked it
Well… You must have seen my comments on the issue that you’ve nicely portrayed here in this post, at many of our blogger friends’ posts on ‘Republc Day’, dear Mr. Mohan!
Hence, I would suffice, here, by saying that it’s not just about the ‘celebration’ on these momentous days of national historic significance, but the very fervor of ‘being an Indian’ that’s required to be instilled into the psyche of the new generations in the country.
And for that to happen, the very structure of the rudimentary education in the country needs to be revamped and that can be done only when the character of our leaders gets the much-needed metamorphosis for the better.
Thanks for sharing! Cheers to you!
Thanks for your thoughts dear Shrinath! Nice to have you here… look forward to see you more often
Gr8 work sirji….
Keep rocking.
Thanks Piyush!