Sixty years of freedom. Independence. Democracy. Not long in a country's history. But almost a lifetime for the average citizen. What does it mean for the average Indian? Nothing more than the ritual holiday. Televised speeches by the Prime Minister and President of the country. Newspaper supplements dedicated to saluting the founding fathers of the country, the freedom struggle. Television programs with all hues of experts, social scientists, politicians, political commentators taking the stage to 'celebrate the spirit of free India'. For a lot of us, it's just another day - for many a break from a hectic work schedule. Not many of us think about I-Day very much, apart from sending the mandatory "SMS" wishing friends and family 'a happy I-day'.

Should it be any different? Perhaps not. Isn't 60 years is a long enough time to shed our obsession with our colonial past? Isn't the spirit of freedom and democracy a 'living' thing in our everyday lives? Surely we all appreciate the fact that we are a free country which brings with it not just rights but also resposibilities...so what's so special about I-Day?

On the other hand, it sure is a special day. A reminder of the fact that our freedom has been hard-won. That today we belong to a country that is free to shape its own destiny. To acknowledge its founding fathers and the noble values that are the foundation of a vibrant, thriving democracy. To acknowledge the sacrifice of so many unknown, forgotten people who strived to throw off the shackles of colonialism and make India free.

For me, though I-Day is a bit of both - a personal non-event and yet a historical mega event that gives me a personal sense of identity and belonging. I am an Indian...As a free-spirited, secular Indian I feel that the last 60 years have been a mixed bag of achievements and failures. The achievements are tremendous - in 60 years we have transformed ourselves from a near-basket case in economic and development terms to a nation that has managed to pull out millions of people from desperate poverty and destitution. Sure, there is much more that remains to be done. Growing corruption, the growing sense of apathy for the abysmal state of affairs in Indian politics, and rising incidents of intolerance among people of different religions are only some of the problems that India faces...and given that these problems are huge and seem almost impossible to tackle, the tendency is to question what are we celebrating on our 60th anniversary of Independence.

We are still a young nation - and despondency doesn't become us! Hope of a better future is the gift that the young possess and this gift has to be shared among one and all. For me, the 60th I-Day is a time of harnessing this hope, of looking ahead, of counting our blessings, and also of not turning a blind eye to our faults but to do everything that one can in one's own capacity - no matter how small - to correct those faults and build for ourselves and our nation a unique place in the world....

I-Day is a time for introspection and action. Let's affirm our commitment to freedom and democratic values in our own way...whether we wish to celebrate it or not is also a choice that only freedom allows us.