Garam Samosa

Hello Readers!!  I recently watched a movie called Manikarnika which is based on “the life of Rani Lakshmibai, one of the key leaders in the Indian Rebellion of 1857.” After watching this movie, I have so much on my mind. Before I start I would just like to say that under no circumstances do I know the whole story of Rani of Jhansi and the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and there are major facts and events missing from the summary I have provided below. Also under no circumstances was it my intention to offend anyone, if I have done so I am truly sorry and I hope you can forgive me. On top of that, under no circumstances is this the Indian Rebellion of 1857 more important than any other historic events that occurred in India or in the world. My aim was to get what was on my mind out and since that is one of the main reasons for this blog page, I used this medium to do so.

My Thought on the Movie

This movie is amazing, I love the casting, the acting, the storyline, the songs, the scenes, everything. The movie was obviously exaggerated for cinematic purposes but aren’t all movies? This movie made me want to cry so many times. The movie managed to make me feel so many things at the same time: happy, sad, proud and motivated. I have so many mixed emotions that I am still experiencing. It is definitely worth the watch so if you get a chance to watch this movie, watch it in the cinema. Just keep in mind that the use of the green screen is quite heavy so there are a bunch of scenes that are quite fake.

The Real Story of Rani of Jhansi

Rani of Jhansi’s birth name was Manikarnika. At age 4, her mother died. Manikarnika, given the nickname of Manu, was educated and well above other children her age. She was trained in shooting, horsemanship, fencing and mallakhamba. When she came to the age, she was married to Maharaja of Jhansi, Raja Gangadhar Newalkar. After the marriage, Manikarnika was given the new name of Lakshmibai. Sadly her first child, a son named Damodar Rao, died at the age of 4 months and shortly after Maharaja of Jhansi fell ill. Therefore the royal couple decided to adopt another son, Anand Rao, who was renamed to Damodar Rao.  Maharaja of Jhansi died the day after the adoption. The fact that Damodar (Anand) Rao was adopted the Britsh East India Company didn’t allow him to claim the throne. And since there was no male heir to the throne, the Britsh East India Company annexed the state to its territories. However, when Rani of Jhansi heard about this she said that “Mein meri Jhansi nahi doongi” (I shall not surrender my Jhansi).

In 1857 a large part of the Indian army rebelled against the British authorities. The British were setting high taxes, disrespecting Indian traditions and peoples and so much more. The rebellion leads to a massive bloodshed of both Indian and British soldiers and sent shockwaves throughout colonial Britain. One of the aims of the Britsh East India Company was to get Rani of Jhansi to bow her head down to them. Under no circumstances did this happen. The British attacked back and Rani of Jhansi was grievously wounded. Since she did not want her body to be captured by the British she told someone to cremate her. The story of her death varies slightly but this is the most common one I found. India gained Independence on 15th August 1957.

This is just a short summary of the story. There are major details that are not part of the summary above. If you would like to know more please research into the story. It is an interesting and sad story. The majority of the information is from the movie and Wikipedia.

My Thoughts on Everything Above

Since I am a Fiji Indian, I have never ever felt any connection as such to India. Until Friday night where I watch the movie Manikarnika and did so much research to find out the truth. I have always wondered so many things about the British invasion. It literally makes me cry knowing what the British did the Indians. From eating beef (this is actually a big thing in the Hinduism culture) to extremely high taxes to forcing slavery and so many other things. In some ways, I thank the British for sending out a whole bunch of labourers across the world to remote/not well-known islands. This is due to the fact that Fiji was one of the islands and due to evolution the race Fiji Indian was “made”. Regardless, it makes me sad that one can do such things to another.

Again, under no circumstances do I know the whole story of Rani of Jhansi and the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and there are major facts and events missing from the summary I have provided below. Also under no circumstances was it my intention to offend anyone, if I have done so I am truly sorry and I hope you can forgive me.  On top of that, under no circumstances is this the Indian Rebellion of 1857 more important than any other historic events that occurred in India or in the world. My aim was to get what was to get what was on my mind out and since that is one of the main reasons for this blog page, I used this medium to do so.

Just a few translations:

• Rani = Queen
• Maharaja = King

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As always, thank you for being the Samosauce to my Garam Samosa!!!

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