The Bhavan celebrates Republic Day with a special honour to the Indian High Commissioner

The B ha van, London cel ebr ated India’s Republic Day on 9 Februar y and was joined by HE Vik ram Doraiswa mi, the High Commissioner of India to the UK as their Gue st of H onour

The event began with a traditional Sanskrit prayer by Executive Director Dr M N Nandakumara, after which the Chairman Subhanu Saxena gave a welcome address He spoke about the importance and quality of leadership in today’s world He stressed on the leadership that unites He also spoke about how Indian Classical Arts create and nurture these values and help in bringing communities together

He highlighted the partnership with the Indian High Commission and requested the High Commissioner to become a Patron of The Bhavan, which he gracefully accepted

This was followed by a speech by Lord Navnit Dholakia OBE PC, Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats and Patron of The Bhavan, who spoke about the history of the institution, and how it was one of the first institutes in the UK that identified Indian cul- ture He praised the power and contributions that the NRIs have made to Britain and to India India, he said, has grown and developed leaps and bounds since becoming a Republic and now makes global contributions Like all the other speakers, he also echoed his unending love for India

Virendra Sharma MP in his speech threw light on the Indian Constitution, and how the country has respected it over the decades since it was first written while sharing a few lines from it He proceeded to highlight the beauty of Indian culture and teachings and the essence of our ancient ‘ parampara ’ (tradition) which holds strong till today

Cllr Daryl Brown, Deputy Mayor of Hammersmith and Fulham, shared her delight in the continued friendship of the Hammersmith and Fulham borough with The Bhavan and promised to continue supporting The Bhavan’s activities in its incredible work of spreading Indian culture in the UK

The main address of the evening was delivered by the

Guest of Honour, HE Vikram

Doraiswami He began by speaking about the importance of India’s Republic Day and the Constitution, and then emphasised on the responsibilities and rights of being a citizen

He said, when India gained independence and became a Republic, the average longevity of a man was 32 years, literacy rate was at 23%, and various diseases were common It was assumed that India was too large and too complicated a country to survive The Republic Day is significant because it provided Indians the right to govern themselves, and they have made great strides since then The day established who wielded true power in India – its citizens India has made tremendous progress in various fields including tech, medicine, arts, etc The High Commissioner also spoke briefly about the Magna Carta in the UK His Excellency added about the main qualities of being a good citizen - truthfulness, justice,