Life of a Fauji Brat

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[{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1513530644870","data":"For most, the life of a BRAT (Born Raised and Transferred) AKA the unassuming Army\/Navy\/Air Force kid in your class, led to more than just a few curiosities about their way of life. Was there any room for pleasure amidst all that rigid structure? Perhaps they were real brats, enjoying all those perks an army ranking afforded them? Did their parent(s) sleep with guns under their pillows? As we tend to with any community that seems to live behind closed doors, existing within realms and structures that appear so different from our own, it was these kinds of prevalent misconceptions about the BRAT life that prompted our inquiry into the real experiences of this community. In an era where the defence community is often a media target (many times, the scapegoat for political agendas and the object of contempt; on rarer occasions, abusers of their own power) it\u2019s easy to forget the individuals that make up the whole. Men and women who must stay away from their own children for months on end, in an effort to protect the country.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nWhile I compiled this article through the lens of army kids\u2019 observations, things became a lot clearer. The defence environment really does tend to be independent of our own in many ways, yet the nomadic nature of the fauji life gives BRATs a profound social understanding of people and cultures as opposed to regular civilian perspectives. Underneath the pleasure of army privileges is often a constant battle with the fear of not being able to see their loved one who is out sacrificing their safety for the nation, not to mention the challenge of being separated from their army parents for months at a time. The BRAT community is more diverse than most, but their hearts are in sync with their commonly-shared experiences of love and loss in the cantonments \u2013 their minds distinctly resilient, having been raised in an environment of selfless duty.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nI cannot thank the forces enough for teaching me the art of humbleness, adaptability, and treating everyone with equality.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nMy favourite part of being an Air Force kid is telling my civilian friends about the places in the country my father has been to, places that one only ever does read about in Geography textbooks. Growing up as an Army BRAT is, I believe, an opportunity only a few lucky ones get. I changed seven schools and eight cities as a Fauji BRAT. During this period I grew up in small and big towns alike, attending convent, government, defence and private schools and forming close friendships with people across economic stratum and religions. This experience has taught me more about this country, its different people and cultures than any form of theoretical learning ever can.<\/p>\nA sense of decorum and discipline is instilled in you early. Though fauji parents are not super strict \u2013 but they tend to live life with discipline and punctuality. Cantonment life, in general, with amenities like football grounds, swimming pools, gyms, the mess bar and that occasional bungalow house are perks I thoroughly enjoyed. Though, what I loved the most were fauji parties - trust me no one knows how to throw a classy yet crazy party like officers and soldiers do! In my personal experience, there isn\u2019t anything I have particularly disliked about the fauji lifestyle.<\/p>\nA sense of equality. It\u2019s a golden rule of the fauj and it\u2019s instilled in my consciousness. I feel the separation of religion from a profession, in the forces is one of the reasons that could have contributed to my tilt towards atheism. While growing up with many strong women around me, female officers and equally brave wives and widows of officers has made me a feminist.<\/p>\nStepping out of the defence environment was quite strange for me, even though I had many civilian friends growing up. When I came to Hyderabad for my intermediate and undergraduate studies,  I found the lack of a political opinion, or worse, a highly uninformed opinion about national politics and the armed forces highly disconcerting. People seemed to be more interested in how much of subsidy I could get while buying alcohol from the Defence canteen than what my father actually did as an Air Force officer! Eventually, I made my peace with it. Though the funniest thing I had to adapt to was being \u2018fashionably late\u2019, a norm I don\u2019t quite understand or like to follow. While in the defence environment punctuality was a given, in the civilian world I often find myself alone at parties when I turn up on time, at times even the host is busy taking a nap!<\/p>\nHome is the cantonment, the fighter jets flying over our houses and our parents in uniform. Home is the parties and the parades, the salutes and the air shows. Home is where the Air Force sends us, plain and simple. Everything else is just a home away from real home.<\/p>\nJai Hind!<\/p>\n"}]

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