Seventy-nine years ago, we changed the flag, changed the rulers,
and proudly announced, 
“We are free.” And we were.

The British left. The Tricolour rose.

But somewhere along the way, we forgot to read, the fine print.
Because apparently, independence came with some interesting T&Cs.

We are free to vote, but not always free, from political narratives.
Free to speak, provided our opinion belongs to the right tribe.
Free to choose our friends, our leaders, our beliefs...

But choose the “wrong” opinion, and suddenly
our freedom needs a security clearance.

We proudly say, “Unity in diversity.” 
And then spend an astonishing amount of energy
deciding whose diversity deserves more respect.

Caste. Religion. Language. Region. Food.

Sometimes, all it takes is a different opinion. And there it is. 
“Us. And Them.”

As if Independence came with two subscription plans. 
We inherited, a nation divided by history and promised ourselves
we would never repeat it.
Yet we keep finding new and creative ways to draw lines
between “my people” and “those people.”

Somewhere in there, we misunderstood what freedom means.
Freedom is not the freedom to hate the person who disagrees with you.
It is the freedom to disagree without making them an enemy.
Freedom is not choosing your identity over someone else's humanity.
It is knowing that your identity doesn't become smaller when someone else's is respected.

So maybe our next freedom struggle is not against an empire.
Maybe it is against the little empires inside our own minds.
The ones built quietly with prejudice, blind loyalty.
And the endless “Us versus Them.”

This Independence Day, when we will raise the flag, sing and celebrate
We should also ask: Are we truly free?
Not from the British. That chapter is over.
But from the prejudices, the divisions and the narratives 
that still tell us who to love, who to hate, and who belongs.

1947 gave us independence. The rest is still our work.
And maybe that is the beauty of freedom; the story isn't finished.
We are still writing it. Choice by choice. Generation by generation.
Until one day, our children look back and say,
“They didn't merely inherit a free country. They made it freer.”

Until then, let us stop asking, “Us or Them?”
And start living the answer, “Us - India.”
Not free from each other. Free for each other. 
Jai Hind.

MeriWritings