Letter from Abnashi Ram to I.S. Sekhon
DESCRIPTION
Letter from Abnashi Ram to I.S. Sekhon, discussing a mutual friend (“Bagga”) who is “fed up” with India; Ram claims to feel the same way, adding that everyone in India either wants it to become the United States without any constructive program to make it that way, or wants it to become the USSR without suffering any of the hardships that allowed its creation. He also discusses Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s “royal welcome” in the US, and laments that though he wishes to return to California soon, it will be “some time yet” before this is feasible.
ADDITIONAL METADATA
Type: Correspondence
Creator: Abnashi Ram
TRANSCRIPTION
9th November, 1949.
Mr. I.S. Sekhon,
P.O. Box ?
U.S.A.
Dear Sekhon,
Since I left you, I have covered quite a distance. I arrived in Bombay and tried to meet Bagga, but unfortunately missed him. From here i went to Calcutta and then to Hongkong and returned again here instead of coming to U.S.A.
Of course Bagga have you firsthand information about India and I hope now he is happy there with his wife and away from this country. I really wanted to see him but he was fed up with the whole show here and I am not very far from the way I feel right now. It is our motherland, people have more food, clothes, education, and everything than they ever had, but everyone seems to be dissatisfied and that old spirit of doing something has vanished. Everyone wants the Government to do everything. According to the present set-up, the Government is the people, but the people don’t care to do anything; neither they want to labour, nor they want to work and to my amazement through some miracle, still there is law and order and the Government is going on. You can call this dissatisfaction a sign of progress or otherwise, but certainly one thing I notice is that everyone wants to make this country either America, but they have no constructive programme that U.S.A. went through for 150 before they got what they have now, or they want to become Russia without suffering and going through the destructive side of what Russia went through. Right now they are all sitting practically stagnant and I wonder what is coming next.
Nehruji received certainly a Royal welcome in U.S.A. Yourselves being there must have heard and seen firsthand, but here we are all happy about it. You recall the days when we used to collect quarters and nickels to raise enough funds to advertise a small paragraph about the existence of Gandhiji and his work and our money was used to be turned down from the newspapers and nobody would care to hear us. What a difference today? Times are changing and people are changing here too. Morally and ethically I am afraid they are going to worst, but on the other hand they seem to be keeping up with the rest of the world.
Well, I am longing to return back to California, but it will be sometime yet. Everything moves very slowly here and there is hardly a chance to make a honest rupee here and it seems a difficult role, but I have faced many more difficulties before and let us hope things come out best, All I cherish now is to make this mission successful and even with no money, I can walk with honor and dignity. I would be satisfied with a small garden, in California, with a little farm, a few chickens and a few books and I might say, hell with the rest of the world. Let time tell if it is possible. All i am doing is trying my best.
How about letting me know the picture on your side and also Sunga’s trip here back and a few things here and there and the little gossip that we used to have. I hope you and Lupe and all your friends are enjoying the best. Further I hope you have a little baby in the family to cheer you up. With best regards and hoping to hear from you. By the way, how is the crop this year and what are the prospects from it?
Yours sincerely,
Abnashi Ram.
Mr. I.S. Sekhon,
P.O. Box ?
U.S.A.
Dear Sekhon,
Since I left you, I have covered quite a distance. I arrived in Bombay and tried to meet Bagga, but unfortunately missed him. From here i went to Calcutta and then to Hongkong and returned again here instead of coming to U.S.A.
Of course Bagga have you firsthand information about India and I hope now he is happy there with his wife and away from this country. I really wanted to see him but he was fed up with the whole show here and I am not very far from the way I feel right now. It is our motherland, people have more food, clothes, education, and everything than they ever had, but everyone seems to be dissatisfied and that old spirit of doing something has vanished. Everyone wants the Government to do everything. According to the present set-up, the Government is the people, but the people don’t care to do anything; neither they want to labour, nor they want to work and to my amazement through some miracle, still there is law and order and the Government is going on. You can call this dissatisfaction a sign of progress or otherwise, but certainly one thing I notice is that everyone wants to make this country either America, but they have no constructive programme that U.S.A. went through for 150 before they got what they have now, or they want to become Russia without suffering and going through the destructive side of what Russia went through. Right now they are all sitting practically stagnant and I wonder what is coming next.
Nehruji received certainly a Royal welcome in U.S.A. Yourselves being there must have heard and seen firsthand, but here we are all happy about it. You recall the days when we used to collect quarters and nickels to raise enough funds to advertise a small paragraph about the existence of Gandhiji and his work and our money was used to be turned down from the newspapers and nobody would care to hear us. What a difference today? Times are changing and people are changing here too. Morally and ethically I am afraid they are going to worst, but on the other hand they seem to be keeping up with the rest of the world.
Well, I am longing to return back to California, but it will be sometime yet. Everything moves very slowly here and there is hardly a chance to make a honest rupee here and it seems a difficult role, but I have faced many more difficulties before and let us hope things come out best, All I cherish now is to make this mission successful and even with no money, I can walk with honor and dignity. I would be satisfied with a small garden, in California, with a little farm, a few chickens and a few books and I might say, hell with the rest of the world. Let time tell if it is possible. All i am doing is trying my best.
How about letting me know the picture on your side and also Sunga’s trip here back and a few things here and there and the little gossip that we used to have. I hope you and Lupe and all your friends are enjoying the best. Further I hope you have a little baby in the family to cheer you up. With best regards and hoping to hear from you. By the way, how is the crop this year and what are the prospects from it?
Yours sincerely,
Abnashi Ram.
PROVENANCE
Collection: Abnashi Ram Materials
Donor: Roshan and Raj Sharma
Item History: 2015-07-23 (created); 2023-01-06 (modified)
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