u/EndCrafty4813

I am not here to say the entire movement is vague, although it partly is. But remember that most of the participants are very young people with minimal political exposure. So this movement can go irrelevant very soon.

I am saying, do not hold hopes over this necessarily becoming the coming of some revolutionary party. But still, count it as the inception of the idea of dissent being normalized.

Political parties aren't built in a week or a month, they take months and years of brick by brick building. Even if it turns out that only a handful are willing to actually carry forward the chain of ideas this movement has started, that is still a plus.

Our goal isn't immediate victory, so if you or any of your friends get disheartened at any developments that hinder us voicing our opinions, tell them to not lose hope, and play the long game.

Jai Hind!

Disclaimer before my opinions : I am an atheist. I come from a Hindu background. Hence my experiences are based upon my Hindu experiences. I do acknowledge dogma and bigotry in all other religions

Anytime I present any of my beliefs about religion or god, far right people start talking about how glorious their religious past is and that I should be proud of it.

When I tell them I am only born-Hindu. I could very well had been any religion. I could even have been an alien if I was not born on this planet. They get very upset. Some Hindu people who are religious don't care much. But most of the Hindu guys who quote on quote claim they are religious, they just won't shut up how "you are losing your Hindu identity".

When I tell them I am an atheist, and I selectively partake in cultural Hindu stuff like festivals, or poojas and stuff (and for food lol) they get offended. They start telling me I am a fake Hindu, I don't have the right to take part in these things.

When I tell them that if your religion is supposedly so inclusive and loving, who are you then to come and tell me what I can and cannot do ? Aren't you the fake Hindu here, because you masquerade as a religious saint but are actually act like a tribalist?

Then they start abusing me, that I am pro-Pak, anti-India, anti-Hindu and all the usual jargon I have gotten used to.

"Grow a beard"

"Khatna kra le na"

"Jihadi"

And icing on top is, my long time girlfriend is a Muslim. She wears a hijab too. In my early days of getting to know her, I had all the typical biases, why do you wear this, isn't this oppression and all. So she told me that her family doesn't force veil. She started wearing hijab out of choice, when she found out how much women are hated for it. She is religious, but changes her opinions and stance on what makes sense to her. She said "If people are so offended over me wearing a cloth on my head, I might as well wear it as a form of rebellion."

And I personally loved that notion. She doesn't go around telling her Hindu and Christian friends to "be modest" or "cover up" as everyone believes Muslim women would. She has opinions, she shares it where she thinks the person listening has any intellect to comprehend it.

I try my best to never let the mention of her get into any conversation I am having with hardcore Hindu or hardcore Muslim guys.

The hardcore Muslim guys try to portray her as immoral, without being direct. The hardcore Hindu guys believe all my opinions about life or religion are propagated through her lens.

And its bs to me.

Like. Neither of these people even know her, or barely any girl. Both of these type of guys act like major incels. They instantly label a girl they don't like as "slut" and whine that their being single is not because of their personality and thinking but because good girls are very rare.

So, everyday, I would have to listen to 1-2 people being absolute xenophobes about anyone that is not their caste or religion. And its so hypocritical to me.

The pro-Hindutva guys whine about pro-Palestinian Indians not speaking about anti-Hindu violence, meanwhile these pro-Hindutva guys come and laugh at dead baby figures of Palestine. "Israel is doing God's work" they say.

I once shut a twerp like that saying I care about atrocity regardless of the person's origin. They still justified the killing of kids if it is muslims.

I am just simply tired of living in a place. Like mentally tired. Where if I say "killing children is wrong regardless of where they were born or who they were born to"

I am shut down by a crowd of people forcing me to feel bad for it. As you might have guessed, my end goal is to move out of India. But I just think. What is happening here. Where are we going ???

India was advertised as this large country of welcoming people as I grew up. Where is all that welcoming nature ???