Vande Mataram!

59 years ago today, the independent republic of India was born from the rubble of a crumbling British empire. The partitioning up of the British Indian empire into the newly independent states of India and Pakistan sent millions of people streaming across freshly carved, imaginary international boundaries on oxcart and on foot. It was the largest single incident of human migration since Moses lead the Jews out of Egypt. Almost 2 million people were killed in the months of religious rioting that ensued. Though India's hard-won struggle for independence was hailed as a victory of Gandhian non- violence over imperial violence, of the colonized over the colonizers, the brutal legacy of the partition remains. Many wonder whether colonialism has been cleverly subverted and re-branded as "globalization" instead of defeated and banished.

I've always been fascinated and even poignantly enamored with the history of post-colonial India. I asked my family for weeks about what kind of independence day festivities were going on and how I could take part. After reading and thinking so much about the brutal birth of my homeland, I was thrilled to be here in India on this most important day. It turns out that for most people in Kolkata, it's just another day off from work. No kebab cookouts. No fireworks. Not a solitary sparkler anywhere.

Well, there was a parade at Red Road this morning, but no one who I know went. There were some flags garlands on Theatre Road and patriotic songs blaring from unseen speakers in our para, but people seemed generally unmoved. I heard there were some great "Independence Day Sales" at Pantaloon's Department Store though. Oh, and I think Star World is showing some Richard Gere movie to celebrate our independence from Britain........Vande Mataram!