History repeats itself — are the movements that got India independent, pertinent even today?
It took more than a century of fighting for what we believe in and deserve, to achieve the freedom we have today. None of it happened overnight!
More than 7 decades in — as we celebrate our Independence, and the human freedom that comes with it, we must remember that the citizens had struggled for over 100 years to get where we are today, an independent and evolving nation.
Swadeshi Movement, the Rowlatt Act, and the Dandi March — the fight for Independence was a collection of movements — big or small. It is nearly impossible to pick and choose which ones had the most significance. Collectively these movements were a fight for everything available to us today.
Living these movements through B&W pics and inordinately-grainy-videos, made us contemplate and question if those movements faded away with the passage of time. Or are they still alive, helping the citizens of today evolve further, progress stronger.
In this piece, Sparklin draws parallels to how many of these acts or movements are pertinent even today. How many of these continue to inspire us — to do better, be better, and persevere for what we deserve.
1. The Swadeshi Movement: OG #VocalForLocal
In the early 20th century, the Swadeshi Movement was one of the direct results of the partition of Bengal. The zest of this movement spread like a wildfire across the country. It played an important role in uniting the entire nation to boycott foreign goods and promote local businesses.
Last year, we initiated a new fight, with a never-seen-before demon.
The threat of COVID-19 forced the government to shut down the country, enforce lockdowns, and confined us all to our houses. Amidst these strict, overnight restrictions, all the flights and shipments were halted indefinitely, while the physical places of work saw no light. Businesses were shut and down, struggling. Employers and employees, with each passing day, were losing their will to fight, and their hope for survival.
The Vocal for Local campaign gained traction amongst these wheezing hopes last year. The goal of this campaign is very similar to what the Swadeshi movement demanded — to rely with strength on our local businesses and become independent of the need for critical imports.
The #VocalForLocal movement reawakened demand for India-produced products!
#VocalForLocal threw a lifeline to the small and marginal domestic industries that were struggling to survive in the wake of the pandemic.
2. The Charkha: OG #MakeInIndia
During the pre-Independence era, the Charkha became one of the most significant symbols of our manufacturing capabilities and self-reliance.
It is hard to fathom how such a humble and straightforward tool became synonymous with strength, but it did and how!
Mahatma Gandhi ingeniously deployed the Charkha (the spinning wheel) as an essential tool for political emancipation, using it as a metaphor of ‘ancient work ethics’ and a symbol of economic and social reaction to British Rule.
The Government of India introduced Make in India a little less than a decade ago, designed to facilitate investment, foster innovation, enhance skill development and build best-in-class manufacturing infrastructure in India.
“I want to tell the people of the whole world: Come, make in India. Come and manufacture in India. Go and sell in any country of the world, but manufacture here… we want to give the world an opportunity that come make in India,” Prime Minister of India, Mr Narendra Modi announced while introducing the programme in his Independence Day speech on August 15, 2014.
3. The Quit India Movement: OG #GoCoronaGo
During World War II, the Quit India movement was launched at the Bombay session of All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi. It demanded an end to British rule in India.
The campaign brought together the entire nation’s spirit and put forth the ultimatum for complete Independence as the topmost agenda of the freedom movement.
In the heat of the pandemic, last year, Ramdas Athawle coined the term ‘Go Corona Go,’ and while it did generate great laughter in trying times, the intention was not too far off. It was an attempt to try and unite the nation in our fight against the pandemic.
Taking the baton forward
The perquisite of living in a democratic country — the power to question how democratic we really are.
We choose because we can. We ask because we are independent.
Every single thing we have today is because of our ancestors’ vision of a free India. Their foresight is the real reason why we are, where we are, today. That’s precisely why we can’t stop working consciously for ourselves, the nation, the environment and the future.
