Celebrities from the tensil town talk about what Independence Day means to them and what change they would like to see. Sunday Pioneer reports
Take A stand for the right
Freedom means equality between men and women across the board. We have to fight for our right. Even my character Baija in Mere Sai always stands for the right things and constantly helps everyone around her. I believe in spreading smiles everywhere.
— Toral Rasputra who plays Baiza in Mere Sai
Value INDEPENDENCE
Independence to me is freedom of speech and expressing yourself and to do whatever you feel like. Freedom to choose your own path — culturally, religiously or professionally. Our country needs to get rid of rigid mindsets. People need to be more patient, as over time I have seen that we are getting very reactionary about things and acceptance for others is decreasing. Also, Gratitude is missing nowadays somewhere. We used to go for the flag hoisting to school and at that time, it was just a holiday for us. But gradually we pause and think for a moment that what Independence is. As we are born in free India, so we don’t value meaning of Independence.
— Rajeshwari Sachdev who plays Mamta in Dil Hi Toh Hai
Respect and cherish all
Freedom is not about one getting immunity from the obligation, but about living in a way where respecting and enhancing the freedom of others is more important. In a democratic country like ours, there are still quite a few prejudices in regard to culture, work styles and people in general. So I feel once we all work towards getting rid of trying to just put ourselves forward and not looking at another's point of view, it will be true freedom and liberty for all! As at the end of the day everybody's view point does matter!
— Shantanu Maheshwari who is the host of India's Best Dramebaaz
‘Be more tolerant’
Independence Day has always been a wonderful celebration for me. The only thing I want to change in this country is to make people more tolerant towards each other, if we sort this, we can go ahead and focus to make a better India.
— Namish Taneja who will be seen playing Samar in Main Maayke Chali Jaaungi Tum Dekhte Rahiyo
Small change, big results
With our country celebrating 72nd Independence Day, the present society still isn’t free from a lot of issues. We must all strive and work towards a free country in terms of issues faced every day. Our country needs independence from crime and corruption. We must be a good human being first. To respect the country and do well to people. A small change will lead to bigger changes around us making it an independent country for real.
— Bhumika Gurung who plays Nimki on Nimki Mukhiya
Freedom is in the mind
Freedom starts with the mind. Be free from all the negativity and embrace life. To me, the perfect Independence Day would mean freedom from all the stress and being with my loved ones. I remember, once in school, my friends and I trekked early morning to the nearest hill and unfurled the flag on top of the hill. That was quite an amazing and memorable experience.
— Pankaj Berry who plays Tathacharya in Tenali Rama
‘Your country is your home’
To become the best country in the world, our country should be financially sound, education system should be of high rank, we should have high life expectancy, low crime, the lowest rate of income inequality. All this can be achieved if we consider our country as our home and if we fulfill our duty towards it with honesty and integrity!
— Vaishali Takkar who was last seen as Anjali Prem Bharadwaj in Sasural Simar Ka
Be the change
We have come a long way since 1947 but a longer road lies ahead. Some areas have shown success but there still remain issues that we need to fight and eradicate. Corruption being the root cause of all that ails us. We need to make few modifications and changes in our society so that our country moves forward. If we wish to bring the change, be the change.
— Ojaswi Arora who plays Pari in Kya Haal Mr Paanchal