Why India should remember its soldiers with a ‘genda’

This year Diwali will be preceded by Armistice Day—November 11—the day the First World War ended at 11am, exactly 105 years ago. Armistice Day soon came to be known as Remembrance Day to commemorate the 9 million soldiers who died in World War I but has now evolved into Remembrance Sunday—the second Sunday in November—and includes all (mostly Western) armed forces personnel who died in the World Wars, and other major conflicts since then. And its symbol is the poppy, the blood red flower that people now wear during the weeks preceding Remembrance Sunday. It has become the poetic symbol of the lives lost in World War I thanks to the overwhelming response to the evocative words of the Canadian doctor Lt Col John McCrae’s In Flanders Fields, which he wrote soon after the funeral of Lt Alexis Helmer who died aged 22 in the Second Battle of Ypres in Belgium in the spring of 1915: In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields. In the century since its debut as a remembrance symbol, the poppy is now an indispensable part of armed forces ceremonies, with November 11 being the day for Commonwealth nations. In the US, the Friday before Memorial Day (the last Monday of May, honouring military personnel who died in service) is observed as National Poppy Day. Armed forces charities in many countries sell poppy badges to raise money for the welfare of veterans and their families. Every year millions of people in western nations contribute to veterans’ welfare by buying poppy badges. And wearing them in the weeks before Remembrance Day (and Remembrance Sunday) in November have become a popular gesture of remembrance. The role of Indian troops in those wars is only now becoming more widely known. But does wearing poppies really commemorate the 7,000 Indians who died in Flanders? Hardly, because today’s Indians don’t know. A total of 5 million Indian soldiers fought in both World Wars, and nearly 1.5 lakh of them lost their lives. They fought as British Indian troops, participating in all major theatres of war in Asia, Europe and Africa. They discharged their duties so valiantly that many were awarded the highest military honours including over 40 Victoria Crosses. Remembrance Day is observed in India but remains confined to the armed forces, who never fail to remember their fallen comrades. There are Commonwealth graves in India and in other battle theatres abroad where Indian ambassadors, wearing red cloth poppies on their lapels, also participate in commemoration ceremonies. But over a billion Indians remain unaware of them. For instance, few know there is a place in France that is “forever India”: the Neuve-Chapelle Indian Memorial commemorating 4,742 Indian soldiers (including Gorkhas) who died there during World War I. That memorial, designed by Sir Herbert Baker, has a circular enclosure inscribed with their names, with a column carved with the Star of India and the Imperial Crown and topped by a lotus capital. It also has carved stone tigers, and two chhatris and the inscription “Their name liveth for evermore” in English and French. The column bears the words “God is One, His is the Victory” in English, Devanagari, Gurmukhi and Arabic. Few Indians visit it now, sadly. Even some memorials in India are hardly known either. Very few Bengalis—otherwise famously well-informed—know that in the heart of Kolkata in College Square, there is a memorial to 56 Bengali soldiers killed in Mesopotamia in World War I. The white cenotaph designed by William Ingram Keir carries the inscription, “In memory of members of the 49th Bengalee Regiment who died in the great war 1914-1919. To the glory of God, King and Country.” A section of Indians has had mixed feelings about commemorating deaths that were the consequence of India being railroaded into world wars by its colonial overlord, so Remembrance Day has never become a people’s event. But those men were Indians who laid down their lives and deserve to be remembered by their compatriots. And, of course, soldiers who died defending independent India also need to be remembered far more widely than they are currently. It is time that Bharat as a nation remembers all our armed forces personnel, whether the World Wars or other battles, that too with a universal symbol of honour and respect. The grand but serene National War Memorial in New Delhi set in the verdant expanse behind India Gate with the names of every Indian soldier killed in battle inscribed on plaques, is the perfect focal point for a National Remembrance Day, whether on November 11 or another date. And an Indian commemoration deserves an Indian flower, more so as poppies do not grow wild in our fields or battlefields. Back in 2016, this columnist made an appeal to adopt the orange marigold as that flower, not only because that shade is revered in India as the colour of sacrifice but because it is the common person’s flower, used for every auspicious occasion. In the past seven years, several others have also mooted the idea of wearing a marigold in remembrance. There are more ‘Indian’ flowers, of course, as the marigold arrived from Mexico just 350 years ago. But varieties of white jasmine such as chameli, juhi, bel, the golden yellow kannikona or cassia, the Parijat or shiuli flower, red hibiscus, ixora or Rangan, the arka or crown flower as well as the Aparajita or shankhapushpam cannot really be worn as a badge. The lotus has a specially exalted place in the Indian floral pantheon but is exclusively offered to deities. Thus, the suitability of marigold or genda over all these other floral ‘candidates’ as our special flower of respectful remembrance is obvious: it is familiar and has a distinct shape with instant recall. In a relatively short period of time, it has become dear to all Indians, who consider it to be a symbol of reverence, suitable for a gamut of rites, rituals and celebrations. Most importantly, it is affordable and remains available all through the year and around the country. Imagine, on a designated Remembrance Day—Rashtriya Smaran Divas—the green lawns around India Gate and the National War Memorial being bedecked with saffron/orange marigolds in tribute, like the red poppies of Flanders fields. And imagine more than a billion ordinary Indians echoing that sentiment by wearing a genda on their lapels on that day. Hopefully the Prime Minister and the Government of India will consider starting this much-needed tradition. The author is a freelance writer. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.

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