“At the stroke of today’s midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom”
– Jawahar Lal Nehru (15th August 1947)
“Freedom”, what does Freedom actually mean?
As we are nearing our 69th yearly celebration of Indian independence, the School of Creative Business at Pearl Academy took the opportunity to paint the picture of freedom of today’s India, through creative installations. Before I proceed to dig deeper into some of these installations, I can safely highlight the fact that these installations are made by young India. The part of India that is shaping itself in today’s global scenario.
Even after almost seven decades of the so-called independence, is the country still truly free? Is the country still free of social stigmas and taboos? Freedom is when no one is victimized. Everyone is free to nurture opinions and thoughts. Freedom is when societal frame is free from coercion of religion, caste, gender or economic background, and most importantly freedom of speech and expression.
Journey of women from being in a cage to true liberation.
Women are the derivation of any society. They are the nurturing source of our great nation at the base level but are they safe and liberated? Youth of this nation senses the demeaned condition of our country’s women. Our sorrows of Nirbhaya chapter in the capital city of this nation have barely lessened. The nation lost a daughter and its pride. A victimized woman has to go through levels of torture in order to get justice. Our independent India has its women tied in shackles of desolation and menace.
Surely our women are fighting for their liberation and brave men have joined this cause. Self-governing nation of India needs to be prompt towards elevating its code of law that can grant swift and adequate justice.
Caste based riots and social stigmas are restricting our free nation.
Students also created installations depicting social stigma of honor killings that bounds the youth of this nation. Caste based divide that prevails in India, has recently jolted our society and the youth of this country after Rohit Vermula (a Dalit student of Hyderbad University) committed suicide because of the obstacles he was going through in caste-ridden India. Our country is known for unity in diversity and yet we find growls of caste and fresh wrecks of religious outfits distressing the very fabric of our heritage. People are ready to slay each other on basis of their religion and I am not referring to Jalliawala Bagh massacre when Britishers annihilated us in enslaved India but in today’s free India when we witness Mandal Commission, Delhi, Gujarat, Muzzafarnagar Riots. Our unity in diversity is at doubt and so is our sovereignty.
Love is beyond the boundaries of gender and caste.
Our youth’s horizon of love has also expanded and they want liberation from the captivity of law in matters of love. Love is a freedom of expression and is an emotion that can only be felt. Love doesn’t have any room for classifications and ‘dos & donts’ on the basis of caste or gender. Love doesn’t know taboo and taboo can’t sustain love. Why is India so afraid of homosexuality, why are same gender marriages unacceptable? Whereas world in the west have progressed to it. Ancient India knew no such boundaries in love or intimacy. Our society’s hypocrisy regarding trans-genders in India is rather an accepted problem. We have a word for transwomen (male to female), and they have an eternal commission of blessing us in exchange of money. They are treated as less than second-class citizens.
In one such installation, students of Pearl Academy expressed intensely the state of freedom of LGBT community in India.
Pearl Academy is known for its revolutionary thinking and radical outlook. Students are taught to speak their minds and follow their instincts. School of Creative Business at Pearl Academy grooms its business students for the challenges of tomorrow. Students are sensitized towards trends of the business world like Sustainability and Impact Entrepreneurship. Nurturing Youth is the core philosophy at Pearl Academy. The youth of our nation today is sensitive towards environmental issues, societal waves, children welfare, and women empowerment. If young India wants to expand its wings then the boundaries of suppression will fade, cages of traditions would break, and the shackles of narrow thinking would break open. India is not only a nation but an idea, a philosophy, a lifestyle and so it can’t have boundaries. It’s bound to be free. Jai Hind.
By E Kukreja, Student of Professional Diploma in PR & Events
