The patriot, not me...

A couple of months ago a close friend asked me if I was a patriot. The answer was an instant and definite no! The conversation fizzled out eventually though leaving me with a lingering thought of why this word did not apply to me. I care deeply for my country, I am committed to making it into a country that I can love and be proud of. I feel that the responsibility of making it reach its potential is every individual’s and mine and that running away and settling abroad for a better pay (what they call the brain drain) is being escapist!

Unfortunately, I have come to think of the word patriot as akin to extremist. This I blame on the connotations the world around me have attached to it. Patriots are those who beat up a fellow Indian because they have an opinion that breaks away from the norms of our society or what Hindus call themselves when trying to purge those who believe in another or no god. Patriotism to me is intolerance.

On the other hand I have to say that in the last year I have realised that many of my friends and acquaintances, most of whom are still finishing their education, seem to agree with my views on India and are almost as committed as me to making India a place they want to live in. This change of heart and sudden absence of the need to leave a.s.a.p came as a surprise to me but is encouraging and hopefully will be an inspiration to others. It’s a very comforting thought that I wont be the only one fighting this battle, I never said it was going to be an easy one!

It’s all very well for people to point fingers and blame each other and usually the government for everything that’s wrong with the country, but they make it sound like we have our own Wizard of Oz sitting in a booth somewhere flicking switches to make things happen. Well guess what, we don’t (!), and it’s as much up to the average Tom, Dick and Harry, or Raju, Rani and Rakesh in our case to ‘be the change you want to see in the world’ as Gandhiji said and personally, I think sometimes all it takes is to be true to yourself and be brave enough to be an individual who cares...