India @70: A moment for diaspora to relish cultural heritage
On August 15, India will complete its 70th anniversary of Independence Day – a day when it got freedom from British colonial rule in 1947.
Experts of international relations take this day as the birth of a new Indian state and by that logic, this Independence Day would mark the 70th anniversary of the existence of India as an independent state.
There are many voices within the current and the past ruling political dispensations in India who strongly disagree with the idea that India is merely a 70-year-old state and on the contrary project the idea that India is a civilisational-state with an enviable antiquity and continuity.
However, regardless of this belief running deep within the current political establishment in India, there is no stopping from celebrating India’s 70th anniversary Independence Day with great fervour, pomp and show.
Indeed, this is a day that gives an opportunity to the billion plus citizenry living inside the country to forget perceived differences and celebrate and extol the sense of unity that binds them together and have largely kept them together for the past thousands of years.
Similarly, for millions of Indian diaspora (according to an estimate the size of global Indian diaspora is around 30 million), Independence Day is an opportunity to cherish Indian cultural heritage that continues to shape their day-to-day lives in their chosen new country of residence.
The Indian diaspora has for long been celebrating Indian Independence Day all around the world almost religiously, however, the sense of exuberance and pride has largely been constrained, if not restricted.
And this constraint has been more self-imposed than outwardly imposed.
The host nations where Indian diaspora have chosen to reside, almost unanimously have offered full freedom to them to realise the full potential of their civic life.
For sure, New Zealand has been warmest and welcoming to the Indian diaspora in sharing space in its public life, allowing the Kiwi-Indian community to flourish and realise its full potential.
Apparently, for long this seeming inhibition of the Indian diaspora in celebrating their culture and heritage has been due to the lack of a self-belief and to an extent the perspective of the successive Indian governments toward Indian diaspora, which either lacked the wherewithal or the willingness to connect with foreign residents of Indian-descent.
This has changed, and hopefully irreversibly.
Today, the Indian diaspora is exuding confidence all around the world, be it in Britain, Canada, the United States (US), Australia, the Middle East, Mauritius or Fiji.
And so is the commitment of the Indian government toward Indian diaspora all around the world.
The narrative that India as a nation is not bound by any territorial limitation and instead lives in the hearts of millions of its diaspora all around the world has gained pre-eminence in the Indian government’s thinking, and more so in this current government than any previous one.
This explains why the current Indian government has taken a giant stride in connecting with the Indian diaspora all around the world through its initiative – India@70 – an Indian state-supported event in partnership with respective diasporic communities to showcase the sense of jubilation and pride associated with India’s Independence Day.
Toward this goal, the Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand, Sanjiv Kohli, has taken a lead in organising two separate events in Wellington and Auckland on August 18 and 20 respectively.
These events are planned to be different from all previous normal flag-hoisting ceremonies that linger in our collective memories about the celebration of India’s Independence Day.
Instead, they are planned to be different and reflective of a new young and confident India, which is resurging slowly and steadily after several hundred years of slumber.
The Kiwi-Indian community is set to feel first-hand the changing winds back in India and the new-found desire to celebrate Indian culture unabashedly around the world.
In fact, India@70 in New Zealand is set to step beyond the normal promotion of Indian curry-and-culture that any such diaspora events are seen to promote, and instead showcase the collective capital that the Indians have brought to Aotearoa.
Speaking to The Indian Weekender, Mr Kohli said: “The celebrations and the events being held in Wellington and Auckland are to hail the accomplishments of independent India and of its people, despite some extremely tough challenges.”
To conclude, the preliminary registration of both these free events have already exceeded all expectations and organisers are hopeful that this will be setting a new precedent of India’s Independence Day celebrations in New Zealand.
On August 15, India will complete its 70th anniversary of Independence Day – a day when it got freedom from British colonial rule in 1947.
Experts of international relations take this day as the birth of a new Indian state and by that logic, this Independence Day would mark the 70th anniversary of...
On August 15, India will complete its 70th anniversary of Independence Day – a day when it got freedom from British colonial rule in 1947.
Experts of international relations take this day as the birth of a new Indian state and by that logic, this Independence Day would mark the 70th anniversary of the existence of India as an independent state.
There are many voices within the current and the past ruling political dispensations in India who strongly disagree with the idea that India is merely a 70-year-old state and on the contrary project the idea that India is a civilisational-state with an enviable antiquity and continuity.
However, regardless of this belief running deep within the current political establishment in India, there is no stopping from celebrating India’s 70th anniversary Independence Day with great fervour, pomp and show.
Indeed, this is a day that gives an opportunity to the billion plus citizenry living inside the country to forget perceived differences and celebrate and extol the sense of unity that binds them together and have largely kept them together for the past thousands of years.
Similarly, for millions of Indian diaspora (according to an estimate the size of global Indian diaspora is around 30 million), Independence Day is an opportunity to cherish Indian cultural heritage that continues to shape their day-to-day lives in their chosen new country of residence.
The Indian diaspora has for long been celebrating Indian Independence Day all around the world almost religiously, however, the sense of exuberance and pride has largely been constrained, if not restricted.
And this constraint has been more self-imposed than outwardly imposed.
The host nations where Indian diaspora have chosen to reside, almost unanimously have offered full freedom to them to realise the full potential of their civic life.
For sure, New Zealand has been warmest and welcoming to the Indian diaspora in sharing space in its public life, allowing the Kiwi-Indian community to flourish and realise its full potential.
Apparently, for long this seeming inhibition of the Indian diaspora in celebrating their culture and heritage has been due to the lack of a self-belief and to an extent the perspective of the successive Indian governments toward Indian diaspora, which either lacked the wherewithal or the willingness to connect with foreign residents of Indian-descent.
This has changed, and hopefully irreversibly.
Today, the Indian diaspora is exuding confidence all around the world, be it in Britain, Canada, the United States (US), Australia, the Middle East, Mauritius or Fiji.
And so is the commitment of the Indian government toward Indian diaspora all around the world.
The narrative that India as a nation is not bound by any territorial limitation and instead lives in the hearts of millions of its diaspora all around the world has gained pre-eminence in the Indian government’s thinking, and more so in this current government than any previous one.
This explains why the current Indian government has taken a giant stride in connecting with the Indian diaspora all around the world through its initiative – India@70 – an Indian state-supported event in partnership with respective diasporic communities to showcase the sense of jubilation and pride associated with India’s Independence Day.
Toward this goal, the Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand, Sanjiv Kohli, has taken a lead in organising two separate events in Wellington and Auckland on August 18 and 20 respectively.
These events are planned to be different from all previous normal flag-hoisting ceremonies that linger in our collective memories about the celebration of India’s Independence Day.
Instead, they are planned to be different and reflective of a new young and confident India, which is resurging slowly and steadily after several hundred years of slumber.
The Kiwi-Indian community is set to feel first-hand the changing winds back in India and the new-found desire to celebrate Indian culture unabashedly around the world.
In fact, India@70 in New Zealand is set to step beyond the normal promotion of Indian curry-and-culture that any such diaspora events are seen to promote, and instead showcase the collective capital that the Indians have brought to Aotearoa.
Speaking to The Indian Weekender, Mr Kohli said: “The celebrations and the events being held in Wellington and Auckland are to hail the accomplishments of independent India and of its people, despite some extremely tough challenges.”
To conclude, the preliminary registration of both these free events have already exceeded all expectations and organisers are hopeful that this will be setting a new precedent of India’s Independence Day celebrations in New Zealand.
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