5 National Heroes Who Always Did Seedhi Baat

Go back to the lecture, where the speaker spoke about everything except the main point. How did you feel? Like me, did you wish that they improve their communication and stick to simple stuff? The straightforward approach would have been so much more effective.

‘Seedhi Baat’ is a tense-agnostic concept. People have used this approach from historic times to tomorrow to get things done faster. If you go back 100 years, our freedom fighters adopted this phenomenon during the independence movement.

Read on to see ‘Seedhi Baat’ in action by some of our most-respected national heroes.

Mahatma Gandhi

Having launched three massive movements over three decades (The non-cooperative movement, the Civil Disobedience Movement, and the Quit India movement), he was the face of India - so much so that Time Magazine named him Person of the Year in 1930.

He achieved all of this through simple, truthful communication. In fact, not only is his autobiography called ‘Experiments with Truth’, but he also placed great importance on direct communication. Whether it was the Dandi March undertaken to reverse the salt tax or negotiations with the British government, Gandhi used 'Seedhi Baat' to communicate effectively.

The most practical example of his seedhi baat approach with the British was in 1922. Upon arrest, he famously remarked, “In fact, I believe that I have rendered a service to India and England by showing in non-cooperation the way out of the unnatural state in which both are living. In my opinion, non-co-operation with evil is as much a duty as cooperation with good.”

Subhash Chandra Bose

While Subhash Chandra Bose is best known for encouraging people to fight, and be ready to give their lives for freedom, something from his 1944 speech will highlight his no-nonsense attitude.

To all the audience members, he openly insisted, “We should have but one desire today-the desire to die so that India may live the desire to face a martyr's death, so that the path to freedom may be paved with the martyr's blood.”

He was practical with his Seedhi Baat approach and publicly stated, “Without arms and a modern army, it is impossible for a disarmed people to win freedom in this modern age.”

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Two incidents in Vallabhbhai Patel’s life show us the degree to which he’d perfected straightforwardness. As a kid, he saw his maths teacher struggle with a problem and frankly blurted out, “Sir, do you not know how to do it?” much to the amazement of the class.

When the teacher said, “Do it yourself and be the teacher,” he went to the board, solved it, and proudly sat on the teacher’s chair!

Another instance of seedhi baat was post-independence. When the UP congress seemed to revolt against then UP Chief Minister Pt. Govind Vallabh Pant; Sardar Patel convened them all in the Vidhan Sabha hall and loudly commanded, “Those who want to leave are free to go.” When no one moved, he said this two more times before disciplining them for plotting dissidence against a dedicated freedom fighter.

Bhagat Singh

While we all have heard ‘Inquilab Zindabad’ in films or read about it, Shaheed Bhagat Singh shouted these words at the top of his voice as he bombed the Central Assembly Hall, Delhi - clearly communicating his intent and backing it up with action.

But this thirst for independence was not blind. While Sukhdev and Rajguru had convinced their fellow freedom fighter Durga Das to run away with money on the night of this wedding, Bhagat Singh stopped them. He asked Durga Das to return to complete his marriage ceremony. The money was part of the wedding gifts, and Bhagat Singh knew that it would pain the family to see such an embarrassment take place.

Chandra Shekar Azad

There are two things that we can learn from this national hero.

The first is to be clear in the promises you make to yourself and keep that word. He had promised himself that the police would never catch him. Seedhi baat. And he kept it. When surrounded by over 80 sepoys, he chose to shoot himself and end his life than risk capture. “Dushman ki goliyon ka hum saamna karenge, Azad hee rahein hain, Azad hee rahenge.” He was just 24 years old when this happened.

The second is being so passionate about your goal that you’re willing to sacrifice yourself. We may call him Azad, but he was born Chandra Shekhar Tiwari. When he was presented before the magistrate after joining the non-cooperation movement as a 15-year-old, he famously said, “My name is Azad.” He let go of his name and his identity for his goal.

Like our national heroes, Seedhi Baat is also a guiding concept for many organizations and companies. Using this simple mantra, leaders have successfully helped their teams achieve success.