Feature – Umair Azimi

Patriotism 101: How to be a Patriot?

Over the last few years, our country has witnessed several discussions and debates, across various platforms, revolving around the subject of nationalism and patriotism. Words like nationalism, hyper-nationalism, jingoism, patriotism appears to have been added to our dining table conversation at the expense of discussions on poverty alleviation, hunger eradication and over-all socio-economic development. What wasonce considered as a sacred duty by many national heroes and leaders has today been reduced to a gimmick and a fashion statement by few politicians and news anchors. In the midst of so many pseudo-nationalists and wannabe patriots, it has become imperative for us to take a moment and ponder on what actually is implied by the much-used word ‘patriotism’.

Our concept of patriotism has become so skewed that we made a mere YouTube contest between some “nine years old army commander” Pewdiepie and T-Series a National cause. People started promoting T-Series in the name of nationalism without knowing anything about Nationalism or T-Series. People who associate patriotism with pressing some bell-icon on YouTube fail to see that this reductionist take on nationalism is an insult to the sacrifices made by the people who fought tooth and nail for our freedom.

Thankfully, we do not have to go through the struggles that our forefathers faced in order to do something for our country. However, if we want to be a real patriot, then we have to do something more than merely standing up for the National Anthem or chanting the verses of Anandamath. We need to educate ourselves and make each other politically aware so that we no longer invest our time in trivial matters like PewdiePievs T-Series, TikTokvs YouTube(although if you really have to choose, YouTube is the obvious choice but also respect others right to choose differently) and focus on doing something more productive with our time. We need an all-round education ranging from Economics to Environment and Ecology, Science to  Literature, Government Schemes, our legal and constitutional rights to understanding the duties of the government in power, responsibilities of the opposition and functions of the civil society so that nobody can take our advantage. Only when we are capable enough to equip ourselves with the tools to raise important questions, do productive work and be vigilante in our actions can we truly hope to be a true patriot.

The 2011 Census predicts India to have 34% share of youth in her total population by 2020 but what good can be the youth when they waste half of their day using YouTube and TikTok and the other half arguing if the US-based company is better or the Chinese. But if they have subscribed to the T-Series then I guess they have done enough for the country already. Today, when India is aspiring to become a top leader of the world even in the face of natural and man-induced disasters, it is important that the youth converges their will and focus towards becoming an all-round better, educated and responsible citizen so that they can take India to the top of the world. Only by unlocking our true potential can we hope to do something for ourselves and our country. And that, in my opinion, is what being a patriot means.