The idea of independence

What does the word independence actually mean? Ask your very own modern dictionary, Google, and it will provide you with many meanings for the word like freedom, liberty, self-sufficiency, self-determination, individualism, neutrality and many more. But an attempt to decipher the intricacies of these synonyms of independence opens the window to a different set of thoughts, which in turn makes you understand that independence, though a simple and commonly used term, is probably one that has the most complicated meanings. Simply because the perception of freedom is beyond the word’s meaning and is different for each and every individual. If being in the company of people you like is freedom for one person then spending time with oneself might be the ultimate meaning of independence for another. In other words, the extent of dependence decides the importance of independence in our lives. On the occasion of the 72nd Independence Day of our country, we try to gather the perspectives of different people, successful in their fields of interest, on independence. They share with us what independence actually means to them and how has it changed over the years.   

The right to express

Independence to me is one word that has the worth of my life. it should give me the ability to express my identity in front of society without any fear or inhibitionI came to this city during 1995-96 and I can’t explain how pathetic life was during those days. In addition to the fight with my conscience regarding my identity, I was in constant conflict with society in order to find my place here. I knew there was a woman within me who wanted to break the unnecessary chains of society. In those days, people from transgender community were considered a curse and I remember many incidents wherein I was abused physically or verbally.The irony is that freedom in our society means living within the constraints of the system without questioning. 

Even my initial days as a makeup artist were difficult because the people in cinema were not welcoming. But those days have gone by and I am glad I had to face those extreme situations, which made me aware of the need for independence. The freedom to express who I am without fear made me work for similar people, which finally ended up in the formation of Dhwaya. From being a part of fields where only males and females were let to work, Kerala has even hosted a transgender beauty contest. My career has also grown.  The accolades I have garnered and members of my community have achieved are testimonies to the fact that the definition of freedom is changing in the real sense.

Renju Renjimar, celebrity make-up artist and founder member of Dhwaya, Transgender Arts and Charitable Society

Now is the time of physical criticism

At all ages, freethinkers were under attack by totalitarian  forces, be it at the time of Galileo Galilei, who was accused of heresy for supporting the Copernican heliocentric system, or S. Hareesh, who is being hunted down for writing the novel Meesa. In all realms, when great progress and freedom have been achieved over the years, writers are facing a tough time. For long, India was known to offer a tolerant atmosphere, welcoming every ideology, even though it was a minority opinion. Sadly, not in these times. Everything is read with religious overtures and constructive, creative criticism has faded into oblivion. Now is the time of physical criticism using weapons to silence writers like Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, M.M. Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh. Even a scholar like M.M. Basheer had to stop writing columns on The Ramayana, which is India’s own literary epic. As a solution, I’d suggest resistance. Nothing other than resistance would work. The freedom we gained is also aimed at criticising each other constructively.

Vaisakhan, author and president of Kerala Sahitya Akademi 

Rising above the ‘isms’ 

The literal meaning of independence is freedom from dependence. I don’t think that is a state I will ever be able to reach – I am dependent on my husband, mother, father and a whole lot of friends. This dependency defines who I am so it is unnerving when someone asks me – are you independent?  However, what I have always strived to achieve is to be free – wherein my dependencies on my ethics, systems, people and morals do not restrict me but allow me to grow as an individual. Have I been able to be completely free? I don’t think so but that’s why you lead a life, in the hope that some day you get where you want to be. I have been brought up in an equal household where liberty was the given form of expression and after marriage, that has not changed. But the unfortunate truth is that my gender plays a key role regarding the nature and extent of my professional achievements.

Especially in cinema, this seems to be exaggerated from the kind and number of opportunities a similarly talented male counterpart receives to the simple perks associated with the job. It’s a challenge I didn’t choose at birth. I abhor the fact that I need to have an additional burden cast on me just because mankind thrives on the idea of inequality. On this and every Independence Day, as the daughter of an Army man, I only pray that equality in the truest sense is achieved by the human race, that we all rise above the ‘isms’ surrounding caste, race, class, gender and colour.

Padmapriya- Actor

Tied to the system

I feel surprised that in the world’s largest democracy, wherein freedom of expression is a fundamental right, the extent to which it can be exercised depends on the mercy of society. We are tied to the system and are only allowed to think till the end of the rope. If we try to go beyond the lines, we are tagged as rebels and anti-socials. Being a student, I feel our generation should be given the space to express our freedom in every form. Campus politics used to be an effort in this regard. However, these days, the situation is such that a person might also have to lose his precious life if he/she tries to be independent. There is a well-known example in my college itself. So the actual question is why is freedom being curbed. To an extent, it is the fear of being judged that stops us from going forward. One can’t write what he/she feels, one can’t make a movie in the way he/she feels and one can’t even dress the way he/she wants to wear. Unfortunately, even after 72 years of understanding that we have the right to freedom, these restrictions are practised in our society without fail.

Habeeba, third-year BA English student at Maharaja's College, Ernakulam