The other day I was speaking to a Sikh friend of mine about how partition changed the entire course of thousands of families within a matter of days. Like many others, mine is also a refugee family, my grandfather having migrated from District Nawabshah, Sindh, in 1947. Whilst the stories of families that have migrated from erstwhile unified Punjab are far more tragic than those of families that migrated from Sindh,(given that there was much more bloodshed in Punjab than Sindh) nonetheless Punjabis and Sindhis have much in common to share about the partition. The underlying theme remains largely similar - wealthy families who had to within a matter of days or in some cases even hours decide on questions that undoubtedly altered the course not just of the present members but also of generations to come i.e. leaving their homeland and move to a largely unknown place in the hope of providing safety and security to their near and dear ones; leaving behind all that they called their "own"and start lives afresh literally from scratch.
As Dada Bhaneja asks in his book (Troubled Pilgrimage) - "What makes us stay or leave our homeland foreover" ; a seemingly innocuous question unfortunately to which there are no simple answers.
However, in one way, I believe Punjabis have been slightly luckier than us (Sindhis) as they have a land that they can call their own.(as Punjab was divided between India and Pakistan) which has helped keep "Punjabiyat" alive.It is not as if I am unhappy with the way Hindu Sindhis have been treated here in India, in fact, I shall always remain grateful to this motherland (India) for it has cared and nurtured us (Sindhis) only like a mother can ; just that i am sad that it was only Sindh (of all the regions) that wan't divided between India and Pakistan and went "in toto" to Pakistan ; thereby denying Hindu Sindhis a piece of land which they could call their own.
On the positive side, Hindu Sindhis are perhaps one of the few communities that are spread not just throughout India but across the world and are truly "Global Citizens". I was surprised to hear that internet based Sindhi Radio Channel - Radio Sindhi is heard in more than 100 countries across the globe which i think is remarkable for a community that is just 6-8 million people strong (rough estimates). I hope that we are able to retain our Sindhiyat as well so that our future generations too can experience this wonderful 2000+ years old culture.
As Dada Bhaneja asks in his book (Troubled Pilgrimage) - "What makes us stay or leave our homeland foreover" ; a seemingly innocuous question unfortunately to which there are no simple answers.
However, in one way, I believe Punjabis have been slightly luckier than us (Sindhis) as they have a land that they can call their own.(as Punjab was divided between India and Pakistan) which has helped keep "Punjabiyat" alive.It is not as if I am unhappy with the way Hindu Sindhis have been treated here in India, in fact, I shall always remain grateful to this motherland (India) for it has cared and nurtured us (Sindhis) only like a mother can ; just that i am sad that it was only Sindh (of all the regions) that wan't divided between India and Pakistan and went "in toto" to Pakistan ; thereby denying Hindu Sindhis a piece of land which they could call their own.
On the positive side, Hindu Sindhis are perhaps one of the few communities that are spread not just throughout India but across the world and are truly "Global Citizens". I was surprised to hear that internet based Sindhi Radio Channel - Radio Sindhi is heard in more than 100 countries across the globe which i think is remarkable for a community that is just 6-8 million people strong (rough estimates). I hope that we are able to retain our Sindhiyat as well so that our future generations too can experience this wonderful 2000+ years old culture.
I end with a couple of lines from Saeen Juman Darbadar's poem that is regarded as
Sindhi nationalism’s anthem (in Pakistan):
“Wathi har har janam warbo, mitha Mehran mein milbo
(We will be born again and again until, my sweetheart, we meet in our
own land of Mehran)”
PS: Sindh province is also referred to as Mehran locally and hence the reference.
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