The Indian subcontinent is the arena of myriad illustrious historical
phenomena. The great Moguls, the British Raj–all the big shots of
history have made this land full of legends and myths. There is little
doubt as to whether these rulers have exploited this land or not but
there is no denying that all these kings and emperors have gifted their
subjects with many stories to tell. These stories have different tastes:
some of them are stink of torture and blood, some have been sweetened
with prosperity and love and some stories are really spicy with hot and
funny facts and figures.
Bengal was famous for its fertile land and for an amazing product called Muslin, a very finely weaved cloth produced from cotton fibre. It has been said that muslin clothes were so delicate that a 50 metres of muslin can be put inside a match box. The Muslin was cherished not only by the Mogul royals but by the aristocrats around the world also. The Mogul emperors and their aristocrats loved muslin as their lavish ceremonial garment. Sonargaon and its surrounding areas was the main production centre of the muslin. The artisans had been producing muslin since antiquity. Even the ancient historian Herodotus said that this cloth was cherished in Roman and Egyptian court. By exporting this marvellous product the people of Bengal became very wealthy. Tavernier, a French traveller, visited Dhaka during the 17th century and described it as one of the most prosperous cities of the world. But misfortune was on its way. Bengal was to be deprived of its pride soon due to her unscrupulous rulers.
The Suicidal Move
The weakening Mogul empire was torn apart by infighting and greed of the aristocrats. While doing business under Mogul rule, the British merchants already identified the secret of Mughal treasures: the Golkonda mine, the only diamond mine in the world at that time, the muslin of Bengal, the fertile lands that grow food crops and the indigo plantation. Now they wanted full control. The British had a keen eye on the affluent Bengal and had sent a soldier of fortune, Robert Clive to grab it. Robert Clive, once a simple clerk of the British East India Company, had made attempts to commit suicide twice. In the battle of Plassey, the sun of independent Bengal and its ruler Siraj ud Daula had finally set by Clive’s diplomacy and Nawab’s treacherous courtiers. Clive started to exploit the treasure of Nawab and the Bengali land lords like hungry hyena. He emptied the granaries and vaults of Bengal, leading the country to a fatal famine that had cost around two million lives. Then he returned to England with ship-loads of booty. But the British government was horrified by his enormous loot from Bengal (some say it was thrice more than the Queen’s property). All of his booties were confiscated and he was scolded openly in the parliament for his greed and misrule. Dejected, he committed suicide and this time he was successful.
Clive died but this land had to pass 200 years of exploitation under British rule before it was finally liberated. They colonial rule had plundered many of our invaluable resources, and it had stopped the muslin production by chopping off the fingers of the artisans to impose their clothes on our culture. They not only ruled our land but they had also conquered our culture and livelihood.
Hope for the Fate
The rise of the nationalistic spirit of self determination compelled the mighty British Raj to quit our beloved land. The same goes with the oppressive Pakistani rulers. But history does repeat itself sometimes. If our leaders continue their whimsical way of ruling their citizens like the way the Sultans and later Moguls did, our fate will not be better than our forefathers. Admirers like Alexander will cherish our land but oppressors like Clive will always be upon us. Like muslin we are going to lose our garment industry once again. But this time it is our own people who are oppressing the workers– the present day artisans.
It’s high time to raise our voice against every kind of oppression to save the nation; the country and its people’s fate won’t change otherwise.
French Queen Marie Antoinette in Muslin dress, Salon de Paris 1783. A conqueror was shaking the world with his mighty army. His empire
covered almost the entire known territories of the ancient world.
Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia were under his sword.
During his Babylon campaign he was told about a huge, continuous ‘sea’
that flowed in a ‘circle’ around the land. He was dying to explore the
wealth and marvels of this mysterious but prosperous land. The legendary
conqueror was Alexander the Great and the mysterious but prosperous
land was India. Finally, after a long tiring journey he reached India
with his exhausted army. He was the first man from Europe to set foot on
Indian soil. He regarded Indian Ocean as that legendary sea and
sacrificed a thousand bulls to Poseidon, the Greek god of the ocean. He
was amazed by the splendour of this land under the Mayurian Empire. His
astonishment knew no bounds when he saw Chandragupta Mayurya, the
Emperor, guarded by a stout force of female cavaliers. Alexander also
imported Indian gods and sculptures to the rest of his empire. After his
death it took 1177 years to restore the link between the subcontinent
and Europe until Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed in Calicut in
1498.
Sultan’s Dream
Sands of many springs were blown away from the Indian heartland. Kings rose and fell. Finally the mandate of this land was handed over to the Muslim invaders from Afghanistan and Turkey. The dynastical rise and fall of Muslim rulers brought the Tughluq Sultans to the throne. Muhammad bin Tughluq, famous for his innovative but unrealistic ideas, was one of the Turkic Sultans who came to power. His first game with his subjects was the increase of taxation in the Doab plains (fertile land between Ganges and Jamuna). The taxation was so unbearable and arbitrarily fixed that it broke out the first labourer and farmer upheaval in the Indian sub continent. Facing the mass upheaval he cancelled the taxation. Soon he found another idea to experiment with his subjects. He decided to transfer his capital to Deogir (Daulatabad) from Delhi to strengthen his grip over south India. He ordered all the citizens of Delhi to be transferred to the new capital. Famous globetrotter Ibn Batuta, the then Chief Justice of Delhi, described that those who were hesitating to leave Delhi were thrown away by the catapults of the Sultan’s army to the direction of the new capital Daulatabad. After removing the capital, Sultan soon realised his fault. He saw that he was losing control over northern India. So he decided to re transfer his capital again to Delhi deporting hundreds and thousands of his citizens. Another of his weird experiments was to introduce the token currency. He introduced bronze coins which were of the same value as silver coins. This experiment brought a new crime in India–production of counterfeit currency. The mass production of counterfeit coins led the sultan to abandon this new project.
The Magnificent MuslinSultan’s Dream
Sands of many springs were blown away from the Indian heartland. Kings rose and fell. Finally the mandate of this land was handed over to the Muslim invaders from Afghanistan and Turkey. The dynastical rise and fall of Muslim rulers brought the Tughluq Sultans to the throne. Muhammad bin Tughluq, famous for his innovative but unrealistic ideas, was one of the Turkic Sultans who came to power. His first game with his subjects was the increase of taxation in the Doab plains (fertile land between Ganges and Jamuna). The taxation was so unbearable and arbitrarily fixed that it broke out the first labourer and farmer upheaval in the Indian sub continent. Facing the mass upheaval he cancelled the taxation. Soon he found another idea to experiment with his subjects. He decided to transfer his capital to Deogir (Daulatabad) from Delhi to strengthen his grip over south India. He ordered all the citizens of Delhi to be transferred to the new capital. Famous globetrotter Ibn Batuta, the then Chief Justice of Delhi, described that those who were hesitating to leave Delhi were thrown away by the catapults of the Sultan’s army to the direction of the new capital Daulatabad. After removing the capital, Sultan soon realised his fault. He saw that he was losing control over northern India. So he decided to re transfer his capital again to Delhi deporting hundreds and thousands of his citizens. Another of his weird experiments was to introduce the token currency. He introduced bronze coins which were of the same value as silver coins. This experiment brought a new crime in India–production of counterfeit currency. The mass production of counterfeit coins led the sultan to abandon this new project.
Bengal was famous for its fertile land and for an amazing product called Muslin, a very finely weaved cloth produced from cotton fibre. It has been said that muslin clothes were so delicate that a 50 metres of muslin can be put inside a match box. The Muslin was cherished not only by the Mogul royals but by the aristocrats around the world also. The Mogul emperors and their aristocrats loved muslin as their lavish ceremonial garment. Sonargaon and its surrounding areas was the main production centre of the muslin. The artisans had been producing muslin since antiquity. Even the ancient historian Herodotus said that this cloth was cherished in Roman and Egyptian court. By exporting this marvellous product the people of Bengal became very wealthy. Tavernier, a French traveller, visited Dhaka during the 17th century and described it as one of the most prosperous cities of the world. But misfortune was on its way. Bengal was to be deprived of its pride soon due to her unscrupulous rulers.
Lord Clive meeting with Mir Jafar after the Battle of Plassey, Francis Hayman, c. 1762.
The weakening Mogul empire was torn apart by infighting and greed of the aristocrats. While doing business under Mogul rule, the British merchants already identified the secret of Mughal treasures: the Golkonda mine, the only diamond mine in the world at that time, the muslin of Bengal, the fertile lands that grow food crops and the indigo plantation. Now they wanted full control. The British had a keen eye on the affluent Bengal and had sent a soldier of fortune, Robert Clive to grab it. Robert Clive, once a simple clerk of the British East India Company, had made attempts to commit suicide twice. In the battle of Plassey, the sun of independent Bengal and its ruler Siraj ud Daula had finally set by Clive’s diplomacy and Nawab’s treacherous courtiers. Clive started to exploit the treasure of Nawab and the Bengali land lords like hungry hyena. He emptied the granaries and vaults of Bengal, leading the country to a fatal famine that had cost around two million lives. Then he returned to England with ship-loads of booty. But the British government was horrified by his enormous loot from Bengal (some say it was thrice more than the Queen’s property). All of his booties were confiscated and he was scolded openly in the parliament for his greed and misrule. Dejected, he committed suicide and this time he was successful.
Clive died but this land had to pass 200 years of exploitation under British rule before it was finally liberated. They colonial rule had plundered many of our invaluable resources, and it had stopped the muslin production by chopping off the fingers of the artisans to impose their clothes on our culture. They not only ruled our land but they had also conquered our culture and livelihood.
Hope for the Fate
The rise of the nationalistic spirit of self determination compelled the mighty British Raj to quit our beloved land. The same goes with the oppressive Pakistani rulers. But history does repeat itself sometimes. If our leaders continue their whimsical way of ruling their citizens like the way the Sultans and later Moguls did, our fate will not be better than our forefathers. Admirers like Alexander will cherish our land but oppressors like Clive will always be upon us. Like muslin we are going to lose our garment industry once again. But this time it is our own people who are oppressing the workers– the present day artisans.
It’s high time to raise our voice against every kind of oppression to save the nation; the country and its people’s fate won’t change otherwise.
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