Human Nature is one of the most complex and fascinating creations of nature I believe. A clay that constantly keeps changing with all the external factors. May it be their family, upbringing, or society. Each element leaves a mark on human nature.
The partition of India was one such element that had a profound effect on the people of India. But as the complex human nature is, we tend to forget or bury the bad memories. We fear the terror and thus prefer keeping it in the dark. The partition memories are no exception.
The horror of partition is beyond our imagination. So we prefer putting only a single line in our academic books - “India was partitioned into two countries viz India and Pakistan and there was widespread violence”. This way the victims are saved from the memory and the future generations are away from the horror. But is this a solution? Or just a temporary arrangement to avoid fear? One reason why we study history as a discipline is to learn from past mistakes and avoid them in the future. But if we don’t dig into the past we may keep repeating the same mistakes. And therefore it is necessary to understand our past. To understand partition beyond the two lines in our books.
We hardly know about the literature dedicated to the partition. Not just the literature but also other means - movies or art based on the violence and horrors of partition. We have hardly tried to see the partition with a perspective other than political. It is this blind approach that makes us not learn a lesson. Ever wondered what would you choose if asked to - Religion or Humanity? Well, let's be honest and understand that our answers would vary according to the socio-political conditions around us. The victims of the partition never really found time to answer this question. They chose ‘Religion’ over ‘Humanity’ to get nothing but pain in return. The scars of partition cannot be erased from the countries and the people. Unlike the victims, we can learn a lesson from it. We can try to understand the partition better and stop every little act that may lead us there. Communalism, caste politics, mob lynching are all the small acts leading us to another bloody partition. To conclude, partition was never a mere geographical boundary. It was a partition of millions of Indian hearts that lived together as one. And it is of utmost importance to never let it happen again. Because a dialogue from the movie 1947 - Earth says - “Why be mean when you can’t stand it ?” Writer - Rutuja Jadhav ( Featured writer ) Editor - Priyam Kusundal Graphics - Jhem Picache Angeline Saleh
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