We, the people of India: The Preamble is a reminder of the country we were meant to build

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4 hours ago

Recently, during one of my quiet morning walks, a stranger approached me. He reached into his wallet and pulled out a small laminated card: the Preamble to the Indian Constitution. He reminded me that I had handed it to him over a year ago at a bus stop.
At the time, he had taken it absentmindedly, much like one accepts a flyer from an advertiser, fully intending to discard it later. But this card was sturdy, so it stayed tucked away in his pocket. A few days later, his wife found it while checking his shirt before doing the laundry. Curious, she read it, and so did he.
For the first time in his life, he encountered those opening words: 'We, the people of India.' They struck him with unexpected force, he said. He had never read the Preamble, nor had he realised how profound, concise and powerful it was. 'Why isn't this sung like the National Anthem?' he wondered aloud.
Before hurrying off to his tailoring job, he thanked me – not just for the card, but for making him aware of something he now saw as essential.
This encounter stayed with me. It reaffirmed a belief I had long held: that the Preamble is not just a legal introduction but the moral compass of our democracy. On India's 78th Independence Day, it is worth reflecting on why these words matter more than ever.
The power of 'We, the People'
Perhaps this is the moment to bring the Preamble back into our everyday conversations – not as a relic, but as a living compass. The Preamble's opening phrase is revolutionary. It declares that the Constitution derives its authority not from kings, colonial rulers, or elites, but from ordinary citizens. It reminds us that this democratic project was freely adopted by us – not imposed. That we, not they, are the true custodians of this nation.
It is a radical assertion of popular sovereignty – the idea that governance exists by the consent of the governed. The words 'justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity' are not decorative ideals but binding promises.
Yet, how many of us truly engage with these principles? How often do we pause to consider that 'We the people' includes all Indians – regardless of religion, caste, gender, or economic status? In a time when exclusionary politics, economic disparity and shrinking freedoms dominate headlines, the Preamble serves as a reminder of the India we were meant to build.
Ripple effect
During the fevered run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the air was thick with anxiety. The rise of religious majoritarianism, the erosion of constitutional values and the spectre of authoritarianism loomed large. It was easy to feel helpless. But then I thought of the fishermen I often write about – how even the smallest net, when woven with care, can catch the tide's change.
So I began printing and distributing laminated Preamble cards – leaving them in tea shops, handing them to strangers, slipping them into the hands of autorickshaw drivers and shopkeepers. By election day, over 4,000 copies had found their way into pockets and homes.
Most were accepted politely, some ignored – but one, at least, reached a man who, a year later, would tell me how it changed his perspective.
India's paradoxes
India in 2025 is a nation of paradoxes. We celebrate technological leaps while religious intolerance hardens into violence. We marvel at skyscrapers while ignoring the workers who build them. We debate free speech while journalists and activists face silencing. Through it all, the most vulnerable – farmers, fisherfolk, laborers – continue to sustain the nation with little reward.
In such times, the Preamble is both a compass and a call to action. It reminds us that democracy is not just about elections, but about everyday choices: voting with conscience, speaking up for neighbors, refusing to let prejudice go unchallenged. As BR Ambedkar warned, 'Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated'.
Ordinary acts
The man who stopped me that morning was not a politician or activist. He was a tailor, an ordinary worker – yet the Preamble had stirred something in him. That is the power of awareness.
Change does not always roar. Sometimes, it whispers: in the sharing of an idea, in a moment of solidarity, in the quiet insistence that justice and fraternity are not negotiable. As Mohandas Gandhi once said, 'Almost anything you do will seem insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.'
In uncertain times, as we mark 78 years of freedom, let us remember: the Preamble is not just a document. It reminds us that India's future will not be determined solely by its rulers, but by its people – by our choices, our courage, and our care. It is a mirror. It shows us the India we are – and the India we could still become.