10 Heart Warming Reasons To Be Proud Of India

Today we celebrate our 67th Republic Day. The nation celebrates the day with a national holiday. Radio stations give a break to Yo Yo and play patriotic songs. TV channels play historical documentaries and patriotic movies. Schools organize a small program for children and most offices do a small flag hoisting.

The tempo of the day is set very early in the morning when TV sets do the live telecast of Republic Day Parade. Watching the various creative and colorful jhaankis, listening to the drum beats and admiring the Indian Armed Forces marching together as if they are weaved in a single thread, fills us with pride.

I have vivid memories of celebrating the Indian Republic Day with much enthusiasm when I was in school. I delivered speeches full of quotes of martyrs and patriotic anecdotes. I also remember how I was nicknamed ‘Bharat Mata’ because I just wouldn’t hear anything against my country and with a short hair cut and a sharp nose, I tried to look like late Indira Gandhi.

Things haven’t changed much for me since then.

10 reasons to be proud of india — Pic Source: here

My love for India is unadulterated and is based on sheer adoration for the land I am born in. I wouldn’t exchange it for any other country. This love has only increased manifolds after I got married to a man who is serving the country in the best possible way with the best of his abilities.

Here are 10 reasons we should be proud of India:

1. We can hike up on the snow peaked mountains, get down to swim in oceans, go on a desert safari and relax in the midst of all kinds of forests. ALL OF THIS without needing any visa.

2. India is an inspiration to many artists all over the world. We many not have registered numerous wins at Nobels and Oscars (that’s a different story of bias) but India has inspired many artists all over the world.

(L-R: Max Muller, Einstein, Mark Twain, William Dalrymple)

3. The Jugaad Technology: I recently read a research paper by two Harward University professors who did years long research on Jugaad! This Jugaad isn’t just all about fun and DIY, it stems from our long learnt survival skills.

4. Indian MOM: It was this jugaad coupled with the hard work of the scientists and their research that we placed our Mangalyaan on Mars in the first maiden attempt leaving the whole world in awe.

(source: ISRO)

5. Indian Women: From the beautiful Bollywood ladies to loving moms and from adventurers to scientists to artists, Indian women can do anything.

Indira Gandhi: We elected a woman as the head of the government much before than the countries like UK, Norway, Australia, Germany and other developed nations.

Arunima Sinha: She was pushed out of a moving train by thieves who wanted to steal her bag. Arunima lost her one leg when she fell on the tracks and another train ran over her leg. The brave woman brought mountains to her feet when she climbed Mt. Everest with an artificial limb. Hats off to her.

Arundhati Roy: She may flak the government and be in the news for controversial topics but she got us the first Booker by an Indian woman writer.

6. Gandhi: This is his legacy that you mention just his surname and everyone knows who is being talked about. We have Gandhi who inspired world leaders from Mandela to Obama and from Martin Luther King to Dalai Lama.

7. Made In India: From classical folk dances to the branded clothes and from softwares to thousands of movies in a year, it is all made in India.

8. The Indian Democracy: Nothing explains Indian democracy better than these pictures.

9. The Indian Food: Who can resist the taste? Be it masala chai, chicken tikka, idli-dosa, naans or jalebi.

10. The Great Indian Reply

‘We don’t need appointments for a dinner with our parents’, Aishwarya Rai had nailed it in The David Letterman Show!

And then there was Mr. Shashi Tharoor at The Oxford University where he gave it back to the British in a brilliant way. ‘Let me say with the greatest possible respect, you cannot be rich to oppress, enslave, kill, maim, torture people for 200 years and then celebrate the fact that they are democratic at the end of it‘, he said in his explosive speech.

And then this happens only in India.

(Source: Quora.com)

That’s A.G. Raju, Civil Aviation Minister (from BJP) giving hats off to Shashi Tharoor (from Congress) on the latter’s eloquent speech.

And this also happens only in India

(Source: imgur.com)

And this perfectly defines India.

(Source: here)

Ganpati Bappa Visarjan and Namaz happening at the same time at the same place. Two religions peacefully co-existing. What more proof do we need of India’s solidarity?

Feeling proud of India? Share it. Today is the day.