History/Herstory: A classic story and a bloody fruit

Eversince I stepped into my twenties, I developed this crazy fascination for history. Alas! This love for history came 6 years too late. I mean, where was it when I was just trying to mug up the conquest of the Mughals and invasion of the British to no avail? Life is funny I tell you. So, getting back to my history fanaticism. Often, I would be reading or watching or maybe even using something and it would strike me- 'I wonder when people started using it?' or 'Would'nt it be fun to see what medieval people used to think about this?'

Like, the other day I was watching Romeo and Juliet, and later started searching about other famous love stories in history and, of course, came across several. One of them was a mythological tale of starcrossed lovers that actually inspired the ever famous Shakespeare's tale of Romeo and Juliet.

This roman mythological story also explains how, presumably, mulberry got its dark bloody color.
Mulberry, which I thought was foreign to India, is in fact the very fruit  I used to pick from the trees of my neighbour's backyard as a child.
We Indians call it 'Shatoot'. If you have eaten this fruit, you would know how it is the one of the sweetest and most delicious fruits ever.

So here it is...read on..

Pyramus and Thisbe

Once upon a time, when the fruit of mulberry used to be white, there lived Pyramus and Thisbe in the city of Babylon, in the houses that shared a wall. As children, they used to play endlessly with each other. And when they grew older their childhood companionship changed to all consuming love for each other. But unlike the two lovers, whose love grew each day, the unpleasantness between their parents grew to such bitter animosity that the two young hearts so attached to one another, were forbidden to see each other.

Defying the wishes of their parents, they continued to meet each other in secrecy. But then, days would go when Pyramus couldn’t behold the beautiful face of Thisbe, and days would go by without Thisbe hearing Pyramus promise his love to her. Soon they found the common wall to their adjacent houses. It had a crack in it, which allowed the two lovers to exchange words through the wall.

Thisbe by John William Waterhouse

On one of the glorious days of gods, while Pyramus and Thisbe sat against their respective side of the wall, a pair of ruddy birds flew together overhead against the bright blue sky. The birds kept on flying and together they disappeared into the horizon. Looking at the birds, Pyramus and Thisbe couldn’t help but ponder at their plight. A long while they sat there by the wall, where the gloom of each soul seeped through the crack in the wall and into the soul of another. Fed up of their misery they decided to flee together. On that night they decided to meet by a mulberry tree at Ninus’ tomb. Once her family was asleep, Thisbe sneaked out wearing a veil. She reached first at the tomb and sat by the mulberry tree where she was to meet Pyramus. Suddenly, she heard rustling in a bush nearby and saw a lioness, with jaw bloody from a recent kill, emerge out of it. Thisbe ran and hid herself in a cave she saw some distance afar. While fleeing, Thisbe dropped her veil which the lioness shredded with her bloody teeth before wandering away from the tree. As Pyramus arrived at the tomb, he became increasingly distraught  Thisbe anywhere and found his very suspicions delivered when he saw the torn, blood stained veil. Thinking that his beloved was killed by a beast, in his grief stricken state, he took his own life in a true roman fashion, by falling on his sword. He fell at the foot of the mulberry tree and his blood was spattered on the white fruits of mulberry.

When Thisbe thought it was safe, she came out of the cave and walked back to the mulberry tree, eager to meet Pyramus, and tell him what had happened with her. But what greeted her was the mangled body of her lover, under the shade of the mulberry tree, where she was suppose to meet him. Thisbe held the lifeless body and cried to the gods of her loss. She prayed that the fruits which were stained with her darling’s blood be turned red in the honour of their ill fated love. She mourned for hours, and so overwhelmed was she with her loss that she plunged the same sword through her heart which stilled the heart she loved dearly, leaving the tomb filled with the echo of her sorrow.

Pyramus and Thisbe at the mulberry tree by Jacopo Vignali 

The death of the lovers and Thisbe’s laments evoked the gods and the fruit of the mulberry was turned red in the honour of the two lovers, who were united only in their death.


Sob, sob. That kids was tonight's story. Now, good night and sweet dreams.

Girrrl Power!

India has come a long way from being one of the backward nations at the time of its independence to its imminent global position in the world today. It goes without saying that behind a progressive nation is the progressive minds of its citizens. To call the people of a country progressive, which is otherwise known for its conservativeness is a big feat, but I wouldn't take back my words. Though, I have to say that this broad mindedness is not an absolute phenomenon. Indians may be ready to take bold steps when it comes to their businesses but their social life is still ruled by their old fashioned beliefs of the gone era. And the leash of customs and traditions is the tightest around the necks of Indian girls. Be it big city or a small village, deep down, it is still the thinking of most that girls are best fit to stay at home and bear children. You go to a house in a small town and you’ll find that the freedom females have in every aspect of their life, from the type of clothing to wear to the choice of career, is nonexistent.  If these bounds were set up by the parents who were illiterates, who haven’t seen or known any better way to live and think, then to an extent you might understand. But, what is absolutely shocking is that a lot of this hugely prevalent gender discrimination is by the well educated doctors and teachers of our society. So, the young boy can go out to America or Europe for his education and job, but god forbid if the girl wants to study in a college which is outside of the 10 kilometer radius of her house. I understand that parents want to keep their daughters safe from the big bad world, but they go about it in the wrong way. By confining them they are sending out the message that you are weak and can’t cope with the outside world. This thinking does nothing but encourage discrimination and horrors inflicted on women all over the country. If our own parents won’t teach us how to survive the difficult world out there how would we be able to know any better? Moreover, this reinforces the notion that female is the meeker gender and men have the right to dominate them in whichever way they want. With these kinds of beliefs shaping our society, we might as well be living as Neanderthals, not in the 21^st century global India.

Girl empowerment plays a large part in attaining gender equality

Having vented about the unjust ways in which girls are treated, it needs to be mentioned that we girls don’t just sit back and let others decide our lives. Some of us, in their small ways, and some with their big bold steps, fight male chauvinism every day. Be it a big city girl or a girl in the dusty remote village, each one faces bigotry in their homes, offices, in markets, on roads, in play fields and daresay even in politics. The most effective solution to eradicate this illness from our society is for all the girls to claim the beautiful gift our constitution has granted us- RIGHT TO EQUALITY AND FREEDOM. Each one of us has to be a Sonia Gandhi or a Kalpna Chawla or a Chandra Kochhar in our own way to set an example for ourselves and for others. As the former president of Chile and the head of the UN Women, Michelle Bachelet said, "When you see women playing an important role, you not only change the mindset of girls who see that there is another possible future, but you also change the mindset of men."

This was an inspirational poster for american workers in 1943 but is now used to promote feminism.

On a lighter note here is a song for the girls (yey to us!) and all the chauvinists out there (boo to you!).

P.S.- This post was the outcome of a visit I recently took to a small town in India, where I saw, first hand, gender prejudice being played out; a well educated father manipulated the career and life of his daughters.

Me, Dips and pups

Photo: Courtesy Google Images

 
One day after our classes were over we decided to walk from the school to the nearest metro station. It was a warm and pleasant December afternoon, perfect to walk a distance of one to two kilometers. Just a few hundred meters from our school gate there was a small roadside stall which was run by a poor middle aged couple. It sold cigarettes, candies, chips, tea and a few other eatables. Right next to the stall was a small compound bounded by high walls from three sides and by a black gate in the front. It was an abandoned piece of land with wild bushes growing near its corners. As we were passing it Dips and I were forced to a stop by the cuteness of six little puppies inside it. Now is probably a good time to mention that I have a slight phobia of dogs, origins of which can be traced back to a particular day of my infanthood when a certain dog decided that my leg was just as delectable as a chicken leg and sunk its teeth in my soft, chubby flesh. Since then I believe in admiring these God’s creatures from a distance, but Dips believes you can’t pass a puppy without playing with it.

And here we had puppy power of six. So you can imagine how it was nearly impossible to convince her to move from there. Add to this the fact that those sweet little puppies looked absolutely helpless and hungry, even my heart didn’t allow leaving them like that but there was little I could have done given my phobia. That’s when messiah of puppies came to rescue. She marched to the eatery stall and bought a packet of bread for the puppies. While I kept telling her to just throw the bread to them through the bars of the gate she felt it was cruel and utterly unforgivable to do such a thing. Thus, against my protests she opened the gate of the compound and was immediately surrounded by the adorable cuties. One by one she broke the pieces of bread and fed them. She even persuaded me to come a little closer, though not too close, and give them bread myself. However, all I could manage was a throw, followed by a squeal when a puppy came a little too near me.

“Seriously Umang how could you be scared of puppies? They are the sweetest thing ever!” she said.

“I won’t argue that. But I would rather enjoy their sweetness from a distance,” I replied.

In response she shook her head in mocking disgust.

“Can we go now? We are getting late,” I said. The way the puppies were jumping to catch bread from her was making me uneasy.

“Just a minute. I still have some pieces left. This black one keeps snatching bits I give to the one with white and brown patches. He is such a sneak.” I laughed.

“Yeah that black one does look cunning. It’s good though. He would need it to survive on the streets,” I said.

At that very moment she looked at me with a troubled expression. I knew what she was thinking. If it was up to her there never would be an abandoned pup in sight because she would adopt every one of them.

“You know it’s not fair that these harmless babies have to live here like this. Soon it would get cold. What will become of them? How will they survive?”

“You can’t really do anything. You already have a pet, can’t take them home as well.” She looked so unhappy. I added, “Don’t worry; their mom must be near by. She would keep them safe and warm. C’mon now, we have to go.” I extended my hand to her.

Reluctantly she came out of the circle of puppies around her and took my hand. I squeezed her hand and she squeezed back. With a sad face she closed the gate of the compound keeping the puppies from coming out after her. After making sure the gate was secured properly she turned to me, “we are coming back here next week so that we can wrap them in clothes I am going to make for them,” she said resolutely, daring me to contradict.

With a sigh I gave in.

“Alright, but don’t expect me to cloth them. I’ll just stand here at a safe distance while you do all the dirty work,” I said as we started walking, leaving the pups behind for now.

“Agreed! Though, sooner than you know it you’ll be joining me in the dirty work,” she said with a big smile.

“Yeah, just don’t bet on it.”

Playlist: Misty

While travelling from my house to college I experienced two things Delhi is famous for- its foggy winters and traffic jams. Being in one of my lazy moods I didnt mind either the traffic moving at snail's pace or the fog settled all over Delhi causing the jam. I just enjoyed my slow motion morning sitting in my warm, cozy cab and listening to the songs(listed below) which set the perfect relaxed ambience.

Photo: Courtesy Google Images

Mood music:

• All I Need - Within Temptation
• Eternal Flame - The Bangles
• Heart on Fire - Scars on 45
• It Ends Tonight - The All American Rejects
• Cruisin' For Love - Kursaal Flyers
• Only One - Alex Band
• She Will Be Loved - Maroon 5
• Somewhere Only We Know - Keane
• There She Goes - The La's



Italian Obsession

I don't know when or how exactly it happened, all I know is that one day I realized I was in love with Italy. Funny,considering how I have never even been there. I blame it all on the books and movies which have created such a romantic picture of this beautiful country that I couldn't help but fall head over heels for. My friends have asked me why Italy? And I tell them why not? What's not to love? The world famous Italian cuisine, the soulful Italian language, the rich culture of Italy, Italian shoes,bags,wine,castles,cathedrals,vineyard....you can never have enough of this country. It would be a while before it can happen but when I finally make my trip to Italy it wouldn't be short of a month because just like Rome your Italian experience can't be completed in a day.

Here are some of the must haves in your Italian itinerary:

 

• Sit in the gondolas at dusk and cruise along the canals of Venice.

·    Stand in the courtyard of La Casa di Giullietta or the House of Juliet and gaze up at the balcony which inspired the most romantic scene of all time!

La Casa di Giullietta

     

·    This one I am literally dying to do: eat the true Italian pizza (specifically pizza margherita) from the very place the story or rather the recipe originated-Naples.

Yummy pizza margherita

  

·    Visit the beautiful museums of Florence, housing the works of great artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raffaello among many others. It doesnt matter if you dont know who Rafaello is or who made that nude marble guy. You just admire the incredible beauty of it all. 

Uffizi Gallery,Florence 

Michelangelo's David

·    While buying a vineyard would need some really heavy pockets (loaded with gold coins preferably), you  could satisfy yourself by tasting wines in Chianti, Tuscany and exploring the gorgeous landscape around town.

Vineyard in Chianti,Tuscany

Chianti,Tuscany

·    Hit the most fashionable streets in the world. Where else? Its Milan baby! 

High streets of Milan

·    Also if you are in Milan you absolutely cannot miss the magnificent Milan Cathedral or as the Italians call it Duomo di Milano. And trust me when I say magnificent!  

The gothic architecture of Duomo di Milano

·    The Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, St. Peter’s basilica, if you don’t wander around the eternal city of Rome,  your Italian experience is not complete.  

The Colosseum

On an evening in Roma

*Now this may not completely be an Italian song but it sure does have the Italian essence and a very great Italian singer/actor singing it.Enjoy the song.

On an evening in Roma-Dean Martin