Nearly 86 years old now, she fondly recalls how Surmewalas would sit in a line outside the Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Chandni Chowk, in those early years of Independent India. This brass surmedani was one of the first purchases my grandmother made there.
My grandfather recalls his mother, Snehalata Majumder to always be well dressed and adorned. Some of my family members even remember her being weighed against gold during her marriage. I never met my great-grandmother in person, but when I wore this bracelet, which once belonged to her, I was overwhelmed.
For many, medals and other service memorabilia might just be pieces of metal and cloth till the time one realizes the history and the struggle that is undertaken to earn them. The courage and sacrifice of my ancestors is embedded within these medals; each disk, each ribbon is laced with their ambition and dedication.
This lehenga was given to my paternal grandmother as part of her wedding trousseau in 1930 and dates back to that time, most likely having been made in Varanasi. It accompanied her when she got married and moved to Ajmer, Rajasthan from her natal home in Indore. Many decades later, she presented this lehenga to my mother, who then brought it to her home city, Jodhpur.
During his days in Lahore, communal tension began rising in the wake of an imminent independence and possible partitioning of the land. To protect himself, Mian Baljit Singh bought this sword. But apart from that, I believe that it was also considered as a symbol of status and style.
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