Ashima was drinking her evening tea when her 8 year old son came back from his swimming lessons. Harsh dived straight into his mother's lap while Ashima put down her cup and gently ruffled through her son's unkempt hair. "Mom, it's Independence day tomorrow. Our English teacher has asked me to present a speech in front of the school assembly. Help me write it please," said Harsh drowsily. Ashima carried her son to his bedroom and tucked him into his bed quite gently. "Get some sleep first, Harshu," she said lovingly while placing a kiss on Harsh's cheek.
"The speech, mumma," Harsh murmured while he firmly held onto his mother's hand. Ashima dragged the chair kept near the study table and sat down while taking some mental notes about the 68th Independence day of the nation that was due tomorrow. "Okay, how about I help you with the points but you frame it out on your own? You're a big boy now, Harsh. I'm sure you'll be able to do it all by yourself. And you'll do fine," said Ashima while Harsh nodded his head. He had still been holding onto his mother's hand, lying comfortably on his bed, looking inquisitively at Ashima.
"India is an Independent and Sovereign nation. But first let's understand what really being Independent is all about. Independence of a country is a state where the nation is not enslaved by any foreign powers and the citizens live in peace and maintain harmony. Independence means being able to do things at your own free will without you being controlled by anybody. Independence means freedom at personal and social level. You can express yourself. Everybody has equal rights on all fundamental things. There's no fear. There's no injustice. Everything's fair and law watches us all," said Ashima to her attentive son who was wide-awakened by now. "Let me get by notebook. I'll write it down before I forget any of it," said Harsh jumping out of his bed.
"Useless. Everything and everybody here is so useless," said Rahul, Ashima's husband, while he barged through the front door and threw his office bag on the Armchair. "My boss wants me to change the data in the presentation file that we've been working on since last month. He threatens he will hold our promotions if not done otherwise," said a visibly distraught Rahul. Ashima rushed to get him a cool glass of water hoping to calm down her vexed husband. "And this College we were talking about for Rashi has Quota system. I'm afraid she's got no chance with the percentage she scored this year. She might have to give a skip," muttered Rahul as he emptied the glass. Rashi, Harsh's elder sister, was a Law aspirant who had just given her boards this year and was away on a vacation to her grandparent's place. "I'm going out to a colleague's home. Her daughter has been threatened by some religious group on charges of hurting their sentiment by posting something on Facebook. Kids, these days! Always so obsessed with social networking whiling away their precious time," complained Rahul. He signalled Ashima to close the door as he started to leave. "Oh! And lock the door properly," Rahul turned back saying, "it's not safe for women ever in this country. I'll be late. Don't cook for me."
"India is an Independent and Sovereign nation. Independence of a country is a state where the nation is not enslaved by any foreign powers and the citizens live in peace and maintain harmony. Independence means being able to do things at your own free will without you being controlled by anybody. Independence means freedom at personal and social level. You can express yourself. Everybody has equal rights on all fundamental things. There's no fear. There's no injustice. Everything's fair and law watches us all," Harsh practiced the speech in his room.
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