Freedom Song

“We want to bring together thousands of voices of Chandigarh and initiate a dialogue and action on active and participative citizenry,” says Chhabra. The name August Kranti is inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s Quit India speech issued on August 8,1942,where he said that the British must leave India immediately or else mass agitations would take place. The entire event is known in history as August Kranti. “Our city was the dream of Pt Jawaharlal Nehru who had proclaimed it to be unfettered by the traditions of the past,a symbol of the nation’s faith in the future,” he adds.

“The event is by the people,of the people and for the people’ of Chandigarh,” Chhabra says. While the emphasis is on local direct action,the focus will be contemporary issues of our city. “The first event,144 Up in the Air,highlights the misuse of Section 144 in Chandigarh and Ek Anek,a street play will be staged as part of it,” Chhabra says,adding that the event draws inspiration from a song 99 Red Balloons,where children buy balloons that fly across the borders and are perceived as an airplane from the enemy and triggers a war. August 8 will see Free Will Free Wheels,an event that drives home the point to universally accessible public places,be it parks or gardens. “We need these places to be more sensitive to the need of the physically challenged,” Chhabra says. On August 15,there will be a National Anthem Ceremony at the Open Hand Monument while Root-cause will help reconnecting with the trees of Chandigarh. The fifth and final event is a surprise event. Stay connected.