Event: Lecture by P. Sainath
Subject: The unsung heroes of our freedom fight
Place: PDEU Auditorium, B002
Date: 19 October 2022
Time: 11 AM to 1 PM

As students, we come across speakers who can efficiently articulate their passion for a subject but rarely one who can ignite the spirit of inquiry and the emotion of patriotism as fiercely as P. Sainath did that October morning.

Welcomed by Prof. Amrita Chakraborty and felicitated by Prof. Pradeep Mallik, Sainath took to the podium, signifying, “The living freedom fighters today are 94 to 104 years old. Within 5 to 6 years none of these brave hearts will be alive to tell us the story of the Great Indian Freedom Fight. Your generation will never talk to, engage with or listen to one to one what it meant to be writing that glorious history.”

An erudite journalist, dedicated to rural journalism through his initiative Pari, receiver of Ramon Magsaysay 2007 award, receiver of prestigious Ramnath Goenka award, professor at Princeton University in USA, author of ‘Everyone loves a draught’ and his latest book ‘The Last Heroes’, P. Sainath is a name to reckon with in media industry.

Sainath is concerned how we are forgetting to honor some of our history. While celebrating 75 years of independence, we forgot to celebrate this few living freedom fighters who gave us our independence. Media and government is silent about the British atrocities, rather our flag flew at half-mast when the British queen recently passed away.

The colonial mindset is so deeply embedded in our mindsets that we continue to use the British terms like ‘Sipoi Mutiny’ to describe one of the pivotal events of freedom struggle. However, Indians should term it ‘Sipahi uprising’ as it was the greatest agrarian uprising in the world, Sainath explains.

Sainath elaborates how he travelled to the remotest corners of India searching for the last surviving freedom fighters and the enthralling stories he collected and converted into his upcoming book – The Last Heroes.

Mallu Swarajyam is 92. She fought British with a slingshot as a mere 13 year old, learnt to use rifle at 16. She says, “My weapon was the slingshot, yours laptop / mobile. Use it to fight injustice.” Captain Ramchandra Bhau ran a Prati-Sarkar (parallel government), founded Toofan Sena, looted trains and gave the resources back to famine-hit people.

The talk was followed by some questions and answer session. He was asked, The Indian youth has disconnected from history, what is its role now? He replied, how he was fighting for the sole of Indian journalism, similarly the youth needs to figure out how to sell its labor without selling their soles, to fight for their ideas and purpose. India today, is at a level of inequality last seen in 1920. The youth should defend the constitution that encapsulates the essence of India and fight for it.