Viral video of an Oxford university debate
featuring eloquent Indian MP, Shashi Tharoor
is causing shock and surprise
amongst the young British
at a time when they are set
to celebrate the glory,the 150th aniversary,
of the British colonialisation,
come November 2017....
" We never knew, were never told
this side of the story either in school
or in daily casual conversation"
Perhaps the details of history and statistics
would be equally surprising to the Indian youth
some of whom believe that the railways,
the infrastructure and the modern civilization
all emanated from the contribution
the kindnes of the white man!
Pride in what and where we were
visavis other nations and civilizations,
prior to the loot and plunder
is the starting point for rekindling spirits,
for regaining past glory
The first step then is to know the truth
and pass on the truth
to the present & future generations
let our history texts focus
less on might of invaders
and more on Indian culture
and her innnate strenghts
Placing mother India back
in her rightful place
among the comity of nations
is a challenge that beckons
Knowing true, correct history
is the need of the hour!
Edit: Found another piece of information "Lord Mccauley's address to the British parliament about the Indian citizens of that time which also gives hints about our history-
featuring eloquent Indian MP, Shashi Tharoor
is causing shock and surprise
amongst the young British
at a time when they are set
to celebrate the glory,the 150th aniversary,
of the British colonialisation,
come November 2017....
" We never knew, were never told
this side of the story either in school
or in daily casual conversation"
Perhaps the details of history and statistics
would be equally surprising to the Indian youth
some of whom believe that the railways,
the infrastructure and the modern civilization
all emanated from the contribution
the kindnes of the white man!
Pride in what and where we were
visavis other nations and civilizations,
prior to the loot and plunder
is the starting point for rekindling spirits,
for regaining past glory
The first step then is to know the truth
and pass on the truth
to the present & future generations
let our history texts focus
less on might of invaders
and more on Indian culture
and her innnate strenghts
Placing mother India back
in her rightful place
among the comity of nations
is a challenge that beckons
Knowing true, correct history
is the need of the hour!
Edit: Found another piece of information "Lord Mccauley's address to the British parliament about the Indian citizens of that time which also gives hints about our history-
I don't know all of my history but I think I remember quite well what I learnt about India's colonization and the struggle for Independence. It's interesting to listen to the statistics and the other details that were not included in our history books.
ReplyDeleteI'd listened to this talk some time back.
It was nice to hear it again and be reminded of that part of our history. And it also means more learning. :)
Nicely written lines here on this blogpost. :)
Also thank you Rajeev, for letting me know about the comment box on one of my blog pages. I didn't realize that it was gone until you pointed it out. And now, I've made the changes. Thank you so much. :)
Thank you Divya for reading, appreciating and sharing your thoughts on the subject! As for the comment box, I simply had to communicate my appreciation of that post & so commented once again on another of your post.
ReplyDeleteI feel, the history of any country should be known to the younger generation. And history should not be twisted. This is well written post. Not lengthy, very crispy and read till the end.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Ranjana for your feedback! As you have rightly observed "history should not be twisted".
ReplyDeleteI'd listened to this sometime back and yes it is indeed shocking how reality has been twisted...one also has to read Identity and Violence by Amartya Sen, to realize the truth in its essence.
ReplyDelete"The first step then is to know the truth
and pass on the truth
to the present & future generations
let our history texts focus
less on might of invaders
and more on Indian culture
and her innnate strenghts"
So true..
Thank you so much Deepa! So happy you could relate to the post.
ReplyDeleteHistory is important. Those who know it properly can avoid repeating its blunders.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing your thoughts on the subject Tomichan!
ReplyDeleteI think the Indian media is driven more by what sells (controversy) these days than the facts. Wise would know and not fall for the trap!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing your thought Alok!
ReplyDelete