Ahimsa – An Indian American’s Poetic Tribute to Gandhi’s Non-Violent Nationalism

On Gandhi Jayanti, a poet, from across the seas in the US, invokes the non-violent spirit of the Mahatma.

Nidhi Thakur pays a tribute to Gandhi on his birth anniversary.

(Image: Erum Gour/The Quint)

Video Editor: Rahul Sanpui

(This article was originally published on 2 October 2021. It has been reposted from The Quint's archives to mark the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.)

As India celebrates the 152nd birth anniversary of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, across the seas, in the US, a poet invokes the non-violent spirit of the Mahatma.

A writer and poet based in the United States, Nidhi Thakur points out that while it is easy to celebrate Gandhi and his legacy each year by paying shallow tributes, it is also quite easy to waver from the very path that he followed.

Recounting the principles preached by Gandhi, Thakur gently nudges us to accept the challenge of non-violence, emphasising the difference between patriotism and violent ’nationalism’.

Watch her recite the poem in the video above.