India is what we make it

Kamaljeet K Sekhon Randhawa 

LIVING away from India for over five years, I feel immense pleasure when white people say to me that they love India! Having travelled to 21 countries so far and met many people, I have never come across anyone who has anything negative to say; their eyes glitter when they speak about India. And these people are from all walks of life — from a plumber to a professor at King’s College, London. Yes, they like our chaotic country.

I, on the other hand, am extremely saddened and ashamed when I see Indians maligning our country after living abroad; bringing down our own people. Some Indians have brought up their children, sharing this view. 

It is not a rule though. I met this guy who had studied at a top-notch university in London and was looking forward to visiting India as his parents had told him many good things about this diverse country. But some would visit any country, but not India, the country of their origin.

I often wonder what could be the reason. Is India really bad? Is there any country which doesn’t have a flaw? Is there a country where gruesome rapes, corruption, dishonesty, crime, poverty, nepotism doesn’t occur? The answer is no. Sometimes sitting at an airport or walking down a busy street in London or teaching at a university in Denmark or roaming around in Europe, while observing people, I often think how we all are the biggest representatives of our country. India is what we are! India is how we behave…India is what we convey; through our words, our actions, our kindness, our thinking.

A few days ago, I played golf for the first time and met an elderly white gentleman who was extremely helpful. He had stayed in India for three years and was all praise for it. This happens often with me. I feel surprised that many people of Indian origin don’t like going to India, can’t stay in India, or feel that Indian summer is too hot for them, Indian roads are not safe for them, Indian system is too corrupt for them. But here there are white people who have wonderful stories to tell, who are sending their children to study in India so they get a wider and richer experience. Why? It is not that their countries do not have flaws. It is just that they embrace what they have. Every country is beautiful when you stop looking for flaws. A country is nothing in itself; it is what people make it. Indians roads are dirty because people have the habit of littering. ‘India’, so to say, has nothing to do with it.

Let us not tell our children to stay away from India. Let them go, learn and experience India themselves! 

No country is perfect. Love your country, not because it is great, but because it is your own.