Sunday, August 15, 2010

15th of August!

Independence Day!  I'm sure we all agree that this day is of great significance in our history.  It probably changed our lives for the better even before we were born.  I accept the logic behind the importance of Independence.  But no matter what we do, we can never really feel it.  Unless there is a war or crisis, we don't really give much thought about patriotism.  I'm not saying that we are evil or selfish; I'm sure we will prove ourselves when/if an opportunity presents itself.  So, what are we supposed to feel on the day of Independence?

You could say that we should feel proud and that we should thank the heroes who gave their lives for us and all that stuff.  But, its easier said than done.  I mean, we ignore the beggars on our streets every day.  We are used to not feeling empathy.  So, how are we going to feel deeply compassionate about someone whom we haven't even met?  The answer, is to meet them.  No, going to the grave of the soldiers wouldn't do us much good.  But watching a movie that is less heroic and more realistic about our Independence might help.

Last night, Sony Pix screened the movie Gandhi.  I have seen the movie before but I still decided to see it once again to remind me of the feeling; the feeling of Independence.  This isn't some cheesy, heroic movie about how one man saved a nation.  In fact, the movie was written by an American and directed by an Englishmen, even Gandhi himself was played by Ben Kingsley born in UK.  The movie was released in 1982.

The movie starts with the life of Gandhi in Africa but quickly fast-forwards to India.  As soon as he reaches India, he starts collaborating with Nehru, Patel, Jinnah etc.  The movie shows how these great leaders differed in opinion but still had immense respect for each other.  It shows how one man grew to become the father of a nation and how even he couldn't control what was happening to our country.

When we think of Gandhi, we think that the whole country stood behind him as he faced the Britishers.  But that is far from the truth.  We get a glimpse of the real history of India and Pakistan.  We see how one man struggles to preach peace when the whole world is engulfed in a World War.  Most of all, it shows us what it really took to achieve Independence! 

Saturday, August 14, 2010

My Bad

I didn't post for a long time now and if you go through my previous post, you'll probably figure out what happened.  Yes, I failed, miserably.  I wanted to do some work on the website daily and post it in my blog but I obviously didn't.  But that doesn't mean that I didn't work on my site.  Never mind that, this post isn't about my site.  This is in fact about an amazing article that I read today.

You know how everybody has got different versions of the same story?  When a bunch of people say Gandhi is the father of our nation, there is another gang claiming he ruined the country.  Everybody has got their own opinions about everything.  Its called perception and it has been intriguing me from my college years.  Perception is the way we see the world and though we see the same thing, trust me, we interpret it in a completely different way.

We live in this society without giving much thought about what the society forces us to do.  We have all felt like prisoners at times, trapped inside the giant walls that the society builds around us to blind us from thinking any other way.  Seeing beyond these walls is called free thinking.  If you think that was just some philosophical bull crap, then my friend, you are caught deep inside this prison.

Free thinking is questioning what is generally taken for granted.  This has been the difference between great men and ordinary man.  If you still don't get any of that, just go through this article.  Its one of the best articles I have come across in recent times.  The article is basically about failures.  Its about the attitude we should have towards our failures.  Its about learning to learn from your mistakes.

I see people spend at least half of their daily life online.  Internet is a treasure island and if you are gonna spend half your lifetime in here, then at least take a few moments to search for these treasures.  Reading a couple of articles might not change your whole life, but it will slowly change the way you see your life.  Please, do yourself a favor and read it.