Thursday, January 26, 2006

republic day

this is the day when a nation that chooses its rulers in a more or less democratic manner opts to behave in a fashion more apt for a dictatorship. we have various contingents of the armed forces prance around in a show of arms that would make mugabe smile. and how can one miss the colourful floats that showcase each of the states of the union.

thankfully the guy taking the salute during the march past isnt a fragile old has been, who can't stand for the duration. we're at least spared the ignominy of seeing a head of state take a tumble.

adding a touch of irony and contradiction to the entire proceedings is the fact that the chief guest for the days events is a despotic monarch. who comes up with the list of potential invitees? i'd like to know their rationale for shortlisting.

even when i was a little kid in school i couldnt understand the fuss everyone made for the 26th of january. its an awkward holiday to say the least, when was the last time you wished someone "happy republic day"? if you did then please dont let me know.

independence day has its raison d'etre, we managed to get the english out. maybe its because i dont know much about the law/constitution and hence fail to get excited about it but as far as i can tell theres very little emotional drama that can be squeezed out of the fact that we released a draft copy of a document that would be edited/amended on numberous occasions. thats probably why even the marketers give it a miss. why, it even gets lesser ad spend than fathers day.

thank heavens i dont live in delhi. from what i hear its denizens are forced to put up with a greater number of inconveniences in the days leading up to the grand occasion. all under the name of security measures for the high and mighty servants of the public.

but hey! why am i complaining? yet another public holiday, the second this year. i intend to count them as they go along. the joys of being a public sector official.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

It is a very momentous occasion; the adoption of the Constitution & the formation of a republic out of an erstwhile colony + motley collection of bickering princely states. The trouble is that India's exalted leadership, in its quest for ever-more public holidays, chose to adopt the Constitution on a day other than August 15, which would at least have held some emotional significance....but
maybe I diss them too much. Maybe it was not, after all, the quest for ever-more public holidays; maybe they were just doing what their astrologers told them.

Anyway, stop grumbling & enjoy the day off if you can ignore the north-eastern rebels. I never watched the parade after Std. 10 anyway.