I must confess, the headline made me pause. It announced with great fanfare that Indians will no longer need a transit visa while changing flights in Germany. No more paperwork if your aircraft stops at Frankfurt or Munich and you merely walk from one gate to another. This was described as a diplomatic breakthrough, a sign of growing global respect, almost as if history itself had shifted a few inches in our favour.

Let us take a moment to absorb the enormity of this achievement. We are now trusted enough to sit inside an airport terminal without a visa. We can buy overpriced coffee, browse duty free perfumes and rush between gates without the fear of immigration officers peering suspiciously at our boarding passes. Truly, civilisation has arrived.

What makes this even more touching is that such a concession was apparently secured during a high profile meeting between the German Chancellor and our Prime Minister. One imagines long discussions, serious faces, translators leaning forward, files being opened and closed. And then, after all the gravitas, comes the big win. Indians can now change planes.

In most other circumstances, this would be considered basic airline convenience. Something their own airlines like Lufthansa should have  lobbied for, because it brings them more passengers and smoother connections. And, oh yes, something that quietly exists for dozens of nationalities without press conferences or chest thumping.

But here, packaged like a grand diplomatic trophy, held up for applause by prime time anchors who speak in exclamation marks.

And that is where the sadness creeps in.

Not because the concession is bad. It is fine. Useful even. But because we have trained ourselves to clap loudly for crumbs and call them banquets.

Scraps are presented as milestones.

Titbits are dressed up as triumphs. And we are told to feel grateful.

With most television channels now functioning as enthusiastic cheerleaders, and most journalists understandably cautious about sounding critical, perspective has become the first casualty. Every handshake and hug abroad are sold as masterstrokes. Every minor administrative easing is projected as proof that India now commands awe and fear across the world.

Let me be clear. Respect is not measured by how easily you can walk through an airport terminal. Trust is not demonstrated by allowing you to sit between flights. Real respect is when citizens can travel freely, when visas are waived for entry, when your passport opens doors rather than merely corridors.

We are a nation of immense talent, economic weight and cultural depth. Surely, we deserve more than to be dazzled by transit privileges? Surely, we can wait to applaud until Indians are trusted enough to visit countries without suspicion, paperwork and interrogation?

Until that day arrives, let us keep our claps in our pockets. Let us read headlines with a raised eyebrow. And let us remember that dignity is not found in scraps and titbits, no matter how brightly they are wrapped…!

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