By Amb Aashna Kanhai
When I visited Lucknow in the final trimester of my tenure in India, I realized the confronting experience of seeing the ruins of the Residency where in 1857, the Independence movement of India started. Fierce resilience marked the road to Independence. Mahatma Gandhi has been a tremendous inspiration in the decolonization of many Caribbean countries. When the Non Aligned Movement was established and concepts like South-South Cooperation were launched, India already had substantially more experience with decolonization than other (smaller) countries. India’s affection for its Diaspora strongly shapes the agenda of cooperation between India and countries with ‘Indian Diaspora’. From 1873, indentured laborers from Uttar Pradesh Region were shipped to Suriname, the then Dutch Colony. The ancestors of the current Persons of Indian Origin, left the British colony India, taking along their culture and language amongst other (scarce) material tangibles.
The second, third and in some cases fourth generation of the Indian indentured laborers were born as Dutch citizens and with Dutch being the only language for education, awareness for conservation of the ‘mother tongue’ and ‘own (Indian) culture’, grew steadily. A combination of Awadhi, Maithili and Bhojpuri mixed with a few Dutch words, evolved as Sarnami Hindi, a language which is currently widely spoken in Suriname and is inalienably connecting the PIO’s with India. Cultural organizations emerged shortly after the independence of Suriname and would often collaborate with Indian counterparts and the Indian Embassy. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) has made sure that Surinamers have access to learning music, dance, cuisine, yoga and Hindi. On an average, around 600 participate annually in Hindi examinations and participants are not only PIO’s.
@ 75, the commemoration of India’s Independence is making us reflect on different aspects of cultural cooperation. Having an Indian Embassy in Suriname, the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav is a ‘close to the heart experience’. Planting trees, hoisting the Indian Flag and food mela for charity, Amrit e Sur, are a few of the interactive initiatives where Surinamers were involved by the Indian Mission under dynamic leadership of Ambassador Shankar Balachandran.
After ten celebrations of India’s Independence Day in Delhi, as a diplomat, it surely was a surprising experience when, yesterday, as a common citizen, I found my way to the Food Mela at Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre in Paramaribo.
Contrary to my expectations, I experienced the same lively spirit as if I was in Delhi! The singing competition, Bharat Natyam performances and food stalls, gave me a taste of my recent past. Youngsters were competing with each other with versions of Bollywood songs of Lataji, Mohamed Rafi ji and Alka Yagnik amongst others, while visitors could try South Indian and North Indian cuisine in exchange for a modest donation for charity. It was breathtaking to see Surinamers appreciate Indian Art and dishes, some they had never heard of. There I was, having Upama in my own country far away from India. ‘Azadi ka Amrit’ has been conceptualized by sharing the joy of independence, no matter how tough the challenges are.
(The author was the Ambassador of Suriname to India. Views expressed are personal and do not reflect the official position or policy of Financial Express Online. Reproducing this content without permission is prohibited.)
