DAY 1: EXPLORING LIBERTY THROUGH WORDS

The Hum Hindustani workshop commenced on 1 November 2025 at the Multipurpose Hall of Delhi Public School, Coimbatore. The two day programme aimed to engage students in exploring the idea of liberty and belonging through poetry and art. The session was inaugurated at 8:00 a.m. with a warm address by Dr. Seema Malik, Academic Advisor, who emphasized the importance of creative freedom in education. This was followed by a bouquet presentation to the distinguished facilitator, Ms. Samina Mishra, an acclaimed author and storyteller known for her reflective works on identity and empathy.

The opening activity invited students to introduce themselves and share what made them feel a sense of belonging to India. This interactive beginning set a tone of introspection and inclusivity. Ms. Mishra then guided the students to reflect on two contrasting experiences in their daily lives where they felt free and where they did not across their homes, neighbourhoods, and schools. These reflections provided a powerful foundation for understanding the layered nature of freedom.

The participants were then divided into six groups of four, each tasked with composing an eight line poem encapsulating their personal and collective ideas of freedom and constraint, concluding with a line expressing their vision of liberty. This exercise led to an exchange of perspectives that revealed how deeply students connected with the concept of independence, fairness, and social harmony.

During the session, Ms. Mishra also played two episodes from her acclaimed Hum Hindustani poetry podcast series, which inspired the students to craft metaphors for liberty ranging from open skies and flowing rivers to unlocked doors and fearless voices. The session closed with a collective reflection, leaving students inspired to explore freedom not merely as a right but as a lived experience.

DAY 2: INTERPRETING LIBERTY THROUGH ART

The second day of the workshop, held on 2 November 2025, expanded the poetic ideas of Day 1 into visual and artistic expression. Students were encouraged to translate their written poems into artworks that symbolized their interpretations of freedom, constraint, and individuality. The creative process brought forth vibrant depictions of equality, inclusion, and self-expression, each artwork serving as a visual dialogue on what liberty meant to the young participants.

A central theme of the session revolved around the question “Is freedom the same for everyone?” This thought provoking inquiry sparked meaningful discussions on social justice, privilege, and empathy. Students demonstrated remarkable depth in connecting their experiences with broader societal realities, recognizing that liberty is both personal and collective, shaped by context and compassion.

The workshop concluded with a group reflection and the recitation of Mahmoud Darwish’s poem “Think of Others”, which beautifully encapsulated the workshop’s essence empathy, coexistence, and shared humanity. The poem served as a reminder that true liberty extends beyond oneself and thrives in the consciousness of others’ freedom.

CONCLUSION

The Hum Hindustani workshop offered students a platform to engage intellectually and artistically with the theme of liberty. Through poetry and art, they not only expressed their individual voices but also wove together a collective understanding of what it means to belong, to question, and to be free. The two day experience left participants with a profound appreciation of liberty as both an inward journey of self-awareness and an outward commitment to empathy and equality.

The students’ imaginative expressions, whether in verse or in visual form, reflected their strong grasp of the idea that freedom is not uniform but shared, and that it flourishes when paired with understanding, respect, and hope for others. The Hum Hindustani programme thus succeeded in nurturing thoughtful, creative, and compassionate citizens, each carrying forward a renewed vision of what it truly means to be Hindustani.