171 YEARS OF - Horizons Guyana

ISSUE # 4 2009
FREE
Guyana’s East Indian Immigration & Heritage Magazine
171 YEARS OF
East Indian Heritage
Celebrating 171 Years of Indian Immigration
8
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Contents
Editor’s Note
5
Shivnarine Chanderpaul –
8
The Tiger Within
An Exploration Into
The History and Heritage of
East Indian Indentureship
14
Ramlila
19
Acting in the Olden Days-
26
Ramadan
28
Remembering & Continuing a Legacy
A grandfather shares his
memories with his grandson
A month of blessing and mercy
GOPIO - 20 Years
34
31
2 - Horizons 2009
The Sari
34
Women Singers and
Musicians of Grove
42
PitaPyaree
44
The longest running ‘in fashion’
female garment in the world!
47
Celebrating 171 Years of Indian Immigration
57
Guyana’s oldest living artiste
All about Mehendi
47
Badam Latcha
51
South Africa
54
An Irresistible & Memorable
Sweet Treat
Holi, IPL and Indian culture
Gandhi Monument in
Guyana
57
Kitchen Utensils
59
Surviving Indentureship
Onkar Singh
62
62
Celebrating a Musical Icon
Prakash Gossai
67
Cow’s Milk Tales
69
Milk Recipies
74
Tribute to a Musical Legend
69
67
74
3 - Horizons 2009
Editor’s
Note
Indian History, culinary delights and surviving kitchen
implements,
sports(Shivnarine
Chanderpaul-The
Guyanese Tiger and Cricketing Hero) and music icons, ladies
with enormous talent who have broken barriers and
created history, even a cow’s milk tale! Ladies with an
interest in fashion will be delighted to find a segment
dedicated to the ultra glamorous sari including ways
to drape this sensuous garment to create a buzz when
attending the next big event. As you scan the pages of
Horizons, take a walk in the Promenade Gardens to see
the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, plan your trip to South
Africa for Holi or visit Guyana to enjoy a fresh look
at the recently revived Ramlila, and while you are at it
don’t forget to get the intricate deep red hues of the
mehndi on your hands!
H
orizons magazines have been published for four
years and the response to these colorful, glossy
and informative publications has been tremendous
locally and overseas. Eagerly awaited by those with an interest
in history, each Horizons magazine has provided a window to
haunting stories previously untold of our ancestors’ struggles,
enterprise, triumph and hardship. Vivid snapshots of culture,
interesting traditions, mouthwatering recipes and food,
beautiful multihued clothing and grand festivities leave readers
wanting to dive into present day celebrations in Guyana replete
with facets of all of the things handed down by our foreparents
to today’s generation.
This issue of Horizons explores a diverse array of subjects;
the arts and its players, a fascinating exploration of East
Four years of sharing history, culture and traditions
with pride has left me with a quiet sense of satisfaction
of being one of the voices of an eventful past of the
East Indian Immigrants and a promising progressive
future of their descendants. I would like to thank all
the writers for bringing aspects of their lives into sharp
focus; sharing with Guyana and beyond through these
pages thus ensuring that their history and heritage is
documented for future generations to stumble on and
delve deeper. Remaining through the years of change
and the tides of time is a solid foundation of courage,
determination and a passionate zeal to hold on to
traditions and a way of life rooted in strong beliefs
while forging new paths and scaling boundaries. It is
a rich legacy which deserves to be saluted created by
people worth emulating. Thousands of footsteps beckon for
descendants to follow as they discover new horizons.
My wish as editor of Horizons is for us to share our different
cultures and beliefs working towards a greater understanding
of each other as we build, develop and unite communities
and countries and ultimately bring the world closer as one big
family!
V. Persaud
Dr. Vindhya Vasini Persaud
Editor
5 - Horizons 2009
Celebrating 171 Years of Indian Immigration
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Contributing Writers
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R.K Sharma
Al Creighton
Sheikh Mohammed Ul Hack
Pitamber Persaud
Deodat Persaud
Lisa Seeram
Lokesh Singh
Sean Devers
Reepu Daman Persaud
Kumar Kisson
Dr. Prem Misir
Rakesh Rampertab
Ian Kisson
Chandrouti Sarran
Ravi Singh
Photography
Dwayne Hackett Trishala Persaud
Sean Devers
Amy Chanderpaul
Kumar Kissoon
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Hema Persaud
National Trust
Ian Kissoon
Carl Croker
Ivor Fields
Rakhee Dharmo
Lisa Seeran
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6 - Horizons 2009
Shivnarine Chanderpaul
Tiger
the
By: Sean Devers
F
or all his International accomplishments, few really know Shivnarine
Chanderpaul, the talented left-handed
Guyanese with 8, 576 Test runs for the West
Indies and 17, 364 at the First-Class level.
When a 19-year-old Chanderpaul walked out
on his home ground Bourda against England
in 1994 for his Test debut, few would have
imagined that the youngest Guyanese to play
Test cricket would have become the 2nd
highest West Indian run-scorer in Tests 15
years later.
The 35-year-old has now passed illustrious
players like Sir Garfield Sobers and Sir Viv
Richards on the list of West Indian Test runscorers and lies only behind Brain Lara, who
retired with 11,912 runs from 131 Tests.
Chanderpaul (121) is one of only eight West
Indians and the first of East Indian decent
within
to play 100 Tests and although arguments
regarding if he is a better batsman than
predecessors George Headley, Sobers,
Richards and fellow Guyanese Clive Lloyd,
Alvin Kallicharran or Rohan Kanhai will be
endless, statistical evidence puts him in the
annuals of the great West Indian batsmen.
Ranked number four in the ICC’s Test
ranking after relinquishing the number
one position, Chanderpaul rarely agrees
to interviews but don’t mistake his almost
introverted demeanor for weakness.
The ICC Cricketer of the year says he is not
sure how he got the nickname ‘Tiger’ but
rumor has it that it was because he sprang
up in tiger-like fashion to challenge one
of the tallest and most feared fast bowlers
in the West Indies team during a dressing
room disagreement.
8 - Horizons 2009
Shiv Chanderpaul with his father, wife and two sons
Shiv, who was given Guyana’s 3rd highest
national award (CCH) and had a Street in
Georgetown named after him this year, now
resides in Miami with Amy and their 15month old son Bradley.
His eldest son, 13-year-old Brandon (from
his first marriage) still lives in Guyana and
his father Khemraj plays a major role in his
upbringing.
Shiv, who is in England on a professional
County contract with Durham, also owns a
Restaurant in Jamaica.
Born August 16, 1974 in a fishing Village
called Unity on the East Coast of Demerara,
approximately an hour’s drive from
Georgetown, Chanderpaul developed a
passion for cricket when he was not yet out
of Primary school and was a permanent
fixture in the Village’s senior team before he
was a teenager.
His father, Khemraj, was his first coach and
told him to work hard to be great and to try
to always make runs since ‘you are only as
good as your last innings’.
Khemraj, who still scores centuries in local
over 40-cricket, was a hard task master as
he prepared his only son for a career as an
International batsman.
Watching Khemraj work with Brandon
brings back memories of his days with little
Shivnarine.
Brandon, who played for the Georgetown
under-15 team this year, is already showing
his father’s appetite for batting long.He is a
solid left-hander who bowls spin with both
arms. He is also an above average student at
a Private School in the City.
For all his fame and fortune, Chanderpaul’s
inability to finish his sojourn at the Cove &
John Secondary school could be a reason
why he shuns the spotlight and keeps away
from the media.
Missing school to play cricket was a normal
occurrence for young Shiv. “As soon as the
teacher back turn, she don’t see me again.
She’d look out the window and see me on
the ground playing. My sister used to pick
up my schoolbag and bring it home.” He
remembered.
His father knew even then that Shiv had
what it took to become a millionaire and live
a very comfortable life from cricket. Both
father and son understand the importance of
education and little Brandon has to balance
academics and cricket.
9 - Horizons 2009
Growing up in the ‘country’ Shiv never
had proper facilities to hone his skills but
his father ensured he utilized what he had.
Guyana’s first indoor facility should be
completed at LBI in November.
Barley taller than his bat, Shiv would bat for
hours with almost the entire village bowling
at him and when he made the Guyana under19 team in 1992, his daily sessions on the
uneven pitch near his home, the concrete
strip or on the brown sand of the beach just
behind where he lived, intensified.
“I think my father gave them a c­ hallenge to
hit me and everybody wanted to,” he says, “I
had to defend myself. They threw concrete
balls, it hurts when they hit you.” Shiv
explained “I couldn’t tell my dad anything.
He said if you want to play cricket you’ve got
to be tough.”
With the most ‘open’ stance in International
cricket, Shiv possessed a very orthodox
stance when he was a youth player and only
changed it when he became experienced,
comfortable and confident with his batting.
As a boy cricket was his ‘tea, breakfast and
dinner’ and even now Shiv says he loves
batting more than scoring runs. The Coaches
will tell you that once you spend time in the
middle you will score runs. Shiv’s sister
was a top female cricketer before she
migrated to the USA.
“My father used to pelt me with a compressed
rubber ball on the sand at the water’s edge
where the ball would take off very fast. We
played on the concrete for bounce and then
the beach for pace. I’ve been doing all this
preparation since then. My father pushed
me. He wanted me to be able to go out and
fight, grab it and do whatever you have to
do to make it go your way. This was the
mentality he instilled in me.” Shiv disclosed
“Sometimes he still tries to tell me things like
you shouldn’t get out or I have to try and
score a little bit quicker.” He added.
The first time I saw Shiv he was about 9
and playing in an under-19 match for DCC
against my club Malteenoes. He came out
to bat last with a pillow under his shirt as
a chest pad. Our fast bowler -Colwin Cortwas on and we told Shiv that we did not like
to see blood and we would have to close our
eyes when he was struck on his head.
unsuccessful period for him and the team.
Shiv resigned as Captain in April 2006 in order
to concentrate on his batting. In fourteen
Tests he won one and lost ten with three
draws. In sixteen one-day internationals, he
won two and lost fourteen.
He batted for about 8 overs. He did not score
much but we could not dismiss him.
Although he cited lapses of concentration
in batting as the reason to step down, many
felt it was also the lack of support he was
getting from his players, many of whom did
not go to Sri Lanka in 2005 when he opted
to lead the team when the senior players held
a strike after a feud with the WICB.
I have played with and against Shiv in first
division, senior Inter-County and National
trials matches and while he might not be
academically inclined, he has a wonderful
cricket brain and can assess a situation in the
middle more than most batsmen.
Shiv hates interviews and is very suspicious
of reporters. “I don’t like to chat much. I’m a
private person….I’m reserved, not o
­ utgoing.
I don’t trouble anybody. I had some bad
experiences with ­interviews. I said something
and they changed it up and made it look bad
so after a while I decided to hell with it.”
Since then he has kept to himself.
Without the headache of leading a weak
team minus Brian Lara who had retired,
Shiv scored 744 runs at 57.23 in the 200607season with six fifties and two consecutive
hundreds and continued his great run to be
named ICC Cricketer of the year 2008.
Shiv does not get involved in the politics of
the game and said that his job was to bat
and that was the reason he did not join the
strike in 2005. He was however one of the
striking players after another WICB/WIPA
flare-up just before the home series against
Bangladesh resulting in a 2nd string team
being sent to South Africa for the Champions
Trophy although the ‘senior’ players had
again made themselves available.
Shiv came to the City to play for GCC
to enhance his career but unlike fellow
Guyanese Test player Ramnaresh Sarwan
who came to Georgetown from Essequibo
Island Wakanaam, he never truly developed
the ‘Georgetown mentality’ of going to clubs
or socializing after matches and never really
fit into the extroverted life style.
Despite his single minded approach to batting
‘forever’ his lack of great communication
skills did not make him an ideal leader, and
after becoming only the 2nd player to score
a double century on Captaincy debut in 2005
against South Africa, he quit the job after an
For a man who loves to bat more than
anything else (he has 32 not outs in Tests and
38 in ODIs) the temptation must have been
great to play against Bangladesh. He declined
to comment on the contract issue and was
10 - Horizons 2009
(he took 19 Tests and 15 fifties to do so)
Shiv has notched up 21 hundreds including a
brutal 67-ball ton at Bourda in 2003 against
Australia (the 4th fastest Test century).
Interestingly, Shiv says he did not really enjoy
that hundred. “I was surprised at myself
when the guy announced I scored 100. I was
like, huh? But I would have preferred to bat
for longer and for that reason I didn’t enjoy
it as much.”
Shiv has been batting ‘long’ since his teenage
years when he made a double century against
Young England in 1993 and he also has the
only triple century (303* against Jamaica in
1996) since sponsored Regional First-Class
cricket began in 1966.
off to England to play County Cricket while
his teammates were not playing any highlevel cricket to prepare for their possible
return to the International level.
Captaincy is not something he enjoys and he
just wants to bat. “When I gave it up it felt
like a big weight off my shoulders,” he says.
“As a captain you have more responsibilities,
you have to say more things, you have to be
more open, you can’t be quiet, you have to
try and get involved in everything. At times
it can make you stressed out, doing these
things over and over.
Indomatie Goordial), Guyana’s President
Barrat Jagdeo and the President of the
Guyana Cricket Board, Chetram Singh, Shiv
still loves batting and has a bowling machine
in his yard in the USA. He says retirement is
not in his thoughts at present and is hoping
to be around from at least another 3 years.
After struggling to get his first Test century
“You don’t have time to focus on your own
game, it’s too much. There was a point where
I couldn’t actually focus on my batting. I was
worrying about things, not winning, all these
things play up on your mind and you just
can’t get things right.I had a run for a year
and I knew things weren’t going my way and
it wasn’t good for West Indies cricket so I
wanted to let it go and give somebody else a
chance.” Shiv stated.
Lara’s retirement has forced Chanderpaul
into the role of the team’s premier batsman
and his response with the bat has been
magnificent. “I guess if I think about it,
after Brian left it was about having more
responsibility. It is now more mine to make
the younger players understand that this is
what it takes.” he explained.
From the same Village which produced 2
West Indian cricketers (Colin Croft and
11 - Horizons 2009
His physical inability to stand up to the rigors
of long innings robbed him of plenty runs,
especially when he was younger.
Because of his dogged style and high
percentage of ‘not outs’ some including
England’s Kevin Pietersen, have accused
the consistent left-hander of ‘playing for
himself ’.
“You can’t assume or think someone’s just
playing for themselves. I don’t know where
he gets his stories from … I can’t be playing
for myself when I’m in Trinidad trying to
save a match. Scoring 140 and I’m playing
for myself ?” Chanderpaul exclaimed with
disgust.
“What he said just motivated me more.
It definitely made me better at what I was
doing. If people come at me I just want
to make sure that I can be out there even
longer. You get angry and you just want to
grind somebody out there longer, that’s how
I do my job.”
Shiv is ranked 4th in Tests and 3rd in ODI
and has been nominated for the ICC ODI
Cricketer of the Year Award.
Off the field, Shiv, a devout Hindu, has
matured a lot in the last decade and is now
more a family man. He tries to take Amy with
him on tours as much as possible and misses
especially her cooking when he is away.
Playing in a West Indies team, Shiv still does
not naturally ‘fit’ in. He does not subscribe to
late-night clubbing, drinking and entertaining
female fans who hang around the hotel and
one of his early challenges was overcoming
the cultural difference in the West Indies
team. Shiv tries to attend the temple to pray
when playing in countries with a Hindu
culture.
“I don’t eat beef or pork because of my
religion, so I’d turn up at the ground and
not know if there would be any food for me.
You’d have a tough session and sometimes
there would only be rice or a bit of bread”
he revealed.
When Shiv was told by a reporter that the
Jamaica Olympic team take their own chef
with them when they travel he was amazed.
“I wish we had that,” he quipped. When he
played for Durham last season he had to
manage with his own cooking. “I try,” he said
with a grin. “I don’t know if it’s cooked too
well, but I try.”
Shiv, who rarely gets to spend time
with his eldest son (he took him to
the home games against India this
year) also showed his domesticated
side by describing how he prepares
Guyanese dishes like cook-up rice and
metemgee to an English reporter.
“It’s like a soup,” he said about the
Metemgee, “with coconut milk. You
put ­provision and maybe chicken or
whatever meat you want. Then you
just boil it until it’s finished. Then
you put some dumplings in it. We call
that metemgee.”
“You need plenty of patience to
cook Metemgee,” he informs. That is
something Shivnarine Chanderpaul
has that in abundance, just ask the
many exhausted bowlers who have
toiled against him in International
cricket.
12 - Horizons 2009
An Exploration Into The History and Heritage of
East Indian Indentureship
T
he period of Indentureship that arose after
the abolition of Slavery has been the subject
of hundreds of books, journals and papers.
These writings present a clear record of that period
in our country’s history, and a study of them would
allow the reader to develop an understanding of the
experience of the first peoples of East Indian origin
to settle in British Guiana.
This article presents interesting extracts
from a cross-section of texts related to the
East Indian Indentureship experience and
is intended to encourage greater reading on
this subject.
The First Crossing: The Diary of
Theophilus Richmond, Ship’s Surgeon
aboard the Hesperus, 1838 – 1838, edited
by David Dabydeen, et. al.
“The half a million who left India for the
Caribbean between 1838 and 1917 were the
bravest among the millions who inhabited
By: R.K Sharma
the populous states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
Bengal and Madras from whence most of
the immigrants came. For a rural people
to whom the land is sacred Dharti Mata
(mother earth) the decision to leave would
have required enormous courage. For many
it would have been a choice between leaving
or staying to certain starvation in flood or
drought-prone villages neglected by British
administrators. For thousands of others,
indentureship provided an opportunity to
escape from British vengeance in the wake
of the Great Revolt of 1857.”
Centenary History of the East Indians
in British Guiana 1838-1938, by Peter
Ruhomon.
“On the 5th of May 1838, the first vessel to
arrive from India, after a voyage of 90 days
from Calcutta, was the Hesperus, followed
later, in the same month, by the Whitby, with
14 - Horizons 2009
their precious cargoes of living human souls,
numbering 406, and appropriately referred
to by Mr. R. Duff, an Immigration Agent of
the Colony, as “the advance guards of the
race destined to have so great an effect on
the future of British Guiana”.”
“Thus commenced Indian immigration
which, in the words of James Rodway, “was
destined to revolutionize the whole Colony
and become a most important factor in its
progress.” Of the 170 souls embarked on
the Hesperus, consisting of 155 men, 5
women and 10, children, 156 were landed,
12 having died on the voyage of 90 days and
2 accidentally drowned. Of the 267 souls
embarked on the Whitby, which occupied
a period of 114 days in sailing, 263 were
landed, 4 having died on the voyage. These
immigrants, whose introduction was entirely
due to private enterprise, were distributed
over Plantations Vreed-en-Hoop, Vreed-enStein, Anna Regina, Bel Vue, Waterloo and
Highbury.”
The Introduction of East Indian Coolies into the British West Indies,
by Edgar Erickson, in the Journal of Modern History Volume VI
Number 2, June 1934.
“On the whole, after the disastrous first year, the initial experiment with
East Indian coolies in British Guiana was quite successful. The honourable
treatment of the coolies which the absentee proprietors had promised
was not, in some cases, carried out by the agents in charge of the estates.
..Disclosures, which were subsequently substantiated by subsequent official
investigations, were made in 1839 by the British Emancipator and by John
Scroble, the representative in British Guiana of the Anti-Slavery Society,
concerning the sickness and inhumane treatment of coolies on the Bellevue
estate of Andrew Colville and the Vreed-en-Hoop estate of John Gladstone.
In the latter case a driver had freely used the cat-o’-nine tails on the backs of
coolies and had cleansed the wounds with salt-water.”
“In Parliament Lord Brougham on March 6, 1838 introduced a bill to repeal
the order in council of July 13, 1837. …. In conformity with that decision
the government of India suspended all coolie emigration from India on
November 28, 1838, and directed the governments of the presidencies of
Madras, Bombay and Bengal to investigate the question of coolie emigration.
Six years lapsed before emigration to the West Indies was again permitted.”
The Coolie, His Rights and Wrongs, Notes of a Journey to British
Guiana, with a Review of the System and of the Recent Commission
of Enquiry, by Edward Jenkins, 1871
“With between forty and fifty thousand wards in the colony, distributed over
the one hundred and fifty estates that spread along the sea-shores and river
banks for hundreds of miles; with the names, ages, estates &c., of every one
of them to be kept duly registered; with four or five thousand additional
per annum arriving to be disembarked, identified, allotted, registered;
with semi-annual visits to be paid to every estate, and re-indentures to be
granted to immigrants whose time has expired; with constant apparitions of
discontented individuals, and occasional irruptions of large bands on strike;
with investigations to be made into complaints either of officials or of the
labourers – the office of the Immigration Agent General may now be said
to be second to none in the Colony in the amount of work to be done, as it
certainly is second to none in importance.”
A History of Indians in British Guiana by Dwarka Nauth, 1950
“Government soon realized that the repatriation of Indians would entail a
severe loss to the colony’s labour supply, and efforts were made to induce
them to remain in the colony by offering grants of land in lieu of return
passages. With that object in view, land settlements were established at Huist
Dieren in 1880, at Helena and Bush lot in 1897, at Whim in 1898, and at
Maria’s Pleasure in 1902”.
East Indian Rice Growers in British Guiana, 1895 – 1920, Paper
presented to the Ninth Conference of Caribbean Historians, Panel on
the Development of the Peasantry, Barbados 3rd – 7th April, 1977, by
Leslie M. Potter, Ph.D
“Although East Indians had grown rice in British Guiana since at least the
early 1860s, most of the cultivation was on small patches of land for
15 - Horizons 2009
society, where one’s allegiance often goes
instinctively towards one’s own ethnic or
religious group, it is a factor of even greater
significance. It is a barometer of a particular
section’s progress, it sustains a sense of
achievement and suggests possibilities for
advancement, it establishes patterns of
behaviour considered worthy of emulation
by the less privileged and it encourages
effort.”
“A more rational explanation of the basis
of Indian middle class achievements must
recognize their thrift, the contribution of the
joint-family, their astounding entrepreneurial
skills, their unremitting industry often to the
exclusion of even mildly-extravagant social
diversions, and their will to improve the
material and educational position of their
children. Rice cultivation, cattle rearing, rice
milling, money-lending, and commerce in
the rural areas, initially, were the means by a
competence was earned, a measure of selfconfidence achieved, and a sound financial
base established. This was the foundation for
commercial activities in the urban centres –
Georgetown and New Amsterdam. By the
1920s Indian businesses were well advanced
in rural and urban British Guiana.”
“To record the achievements of many of
these Indian families in British Guiana
would require a special study; only a
brief sketch could be attempted here:
immediate subsistence only. During the
1870s the acreage slowly expanded with
increasing movement of East Indians away
from the sugar estates. The extreme north
and south sections of the Essequibo Coast
were the most important districts, but there
were also scattered acreages in Berbice and
between the Mahaica and Abary creeks.”
Tiger in the Stars – The Anatomy of
Indian Achievement in British Guiana
1919 – 29, by Clem Seecharran
“The development of the rice industry
in British Guiana from the 1890s was the
single most important achievement of
the Indians in the colony. It was a rare
milestone in Caribbean economic history –
a section of the peasantry, with little official
encouragement and often in the face of
vigorous official discouragement, created and
sustained an economically viable industry in
an environment dominated
by sugar monoculture. It was
primarily on the basis of rice
cultivation that many Indians
in the villages were able to
minimize their dependence on
the sugar plantations: each acre
under rice on the ecologically
hazardous, malarial coastland,
constituted a small victory
on the road to economic and
cultural self-confidence.”
“The emergence, in any society,
of a middle class, whether in
business or the professions, is
a major development socially
and economically. In a plural
16 - Horizons 2009
Jugdeo (Jagdeo, Jagadev) family of Mora
Point…described as representing ‘the high
watermark of an Indian Enterprise in
British Guiana’….he was the first man in
the Colony to successfully use machinery
in cultivating rice… Jugdeo also owned
a rice mill, a steam thresher and a motor
launch. In 1916 he imported a ‘Catepillar’
tractor, through Sandbach Parker and Co., to
transport his padi to the threshing point. The
Daily Chronicle noted that the arrival of the
tractor created a sensation in Georgetown.
Sheotahal (Seetahall, Seetohul) (1848-1924)
arrived in the colony in December 1869
on the ship, St. Kilda, accompanied by his
brother, Rambarran. (His ship number was
202). He was indentured to Plantation Port
Morant. He remained there for a couple of
years after he had completed his indenture.
With his small savings he acquired a property
at Cromarty, where he began to rear cattle,
sheep and goats. Through obsessively hard
work, a frugality bordering on miserliness,
and a sharp business mind, he accumulated
considerable savings. Sheotahal subsequently
bought Friendship, a portion of Cromarty,
half of No. 36, Wellington Park, Tarlogie and
No. 49 – an impressive collection of estates
on the healthy, wind-swept Corentyne Coast.
This enabled him to expand his lucrative
stock-rearing activities even further. When
he died in March 1924, aged 76, he was
reported to be ‘the wealthiest East Indian in
the colony’.
Hanoman (Hunooman, Hanoomansingh)
1864-1935) was taken to British Guiana
as an indentured labourer in 1873, aged 9
(ship number 3130). He accompanied his
aunt, Latchee (ship number 3303) in the
ship Mofussilite. Hanoman’s parents died
before he left India. He was of Chhatri caste
and came from Ramnagar, near Benares, in
UP. Both he and his aunt were indentured
to Plantation Everton, East Bank Berbice.
After leaving the estate, Hanoman worked
as a shepherd and a shovelman; he later
served as a butler to Manager John Haly
at Sea Well, East Coast Berbice. Through
hard work, thrift and a consuming ambition
for independence, he was, with his small
savings, able to open a shop at Cumberland
Village, East Canje, Berbice. His success in
business enabled him to buy No. 9 and No.
11 Estates on the East Coast Berbice. By
1925 Hanoman was reportedly the owner of
a substantial stock of cattle, sheep and goats,
and a supplier of milk to residents in New
Amsterdam. He also leased a section of his
estate to small rice growers.
What emerged from the lives of many
Indians in the 1920s was a robust tendency to
endure, to make sacrifices, to spot potential
areas of gain, and an amazing frugality
which attracted the admiration of numerous
contemporary observers. By the 1920s a
rural Indian middle class was established
throughout the coastland of British Guiana:
rice millers, shopowners, cattle farmers, rice
growers, coconut cultivators, money-lenders,
milk distributors, jewellers, and bus owners
who entered the transport business. Often
several of these activities were carried on
simultaneously by the same family.”
“In January 1934 Governor Denham
informed the Colonial Office: ‘..in spite of
the general depression, I think that there
is no doubt that the East Indians have
improved their economic position in relation
to other races in the colony….It may well be
said that the progress which the East Indians
have made in recent years is the most striking
feature of the economic and social life of the
colony.’”
“Humanly speaking, the Indians have been
the salvation of the Colony, for by the
continuous stream of labour that they had
afforded, she has risen sphinx-like, from
the prostration and ruin into which she had
sunk.” – A Member of the Court of Policy.
Remembering and Continuing a Legacy
By: Reepu Daman Persaud
19 - Horizons 2009
Actors: Omkaar Tiwari & Pretima Prashnajeet
Ramlila
R
A tribute to father (Reepu Daman) and Grandfather (Pt. Durga Prasad).
Dr. Vindhya V. Persaud with cast of Ramlila 2009
amlila moves me emotionally. Not
only because I am conversant with
the story, but because my Father, Pt.
Durga Prasad, who hailed from Pratap Garh
was the first person to initiate the Ramlila in
the then British Guiana.
father went to India to bring the costumes.
The champion harmonium player at that
time was Hari Persaud of Diamond, my
father’s foremost chela (disciple). I must
mention that in those days, there were no
loudspeakers.
I was a very young boy at the time and
probably unable to evaluate the depth of the
performance. But anyone familiar with the
Ramcharitmanas would appreciate the efforts
to summarize what has been described as the
drama of life – The epic Ramayan.
Ravan, a key role was performed by my father
who chanted simultaneously as he acted.
All the roles were important and the actors
were carefully chosen to ensure that they
truly reflected the persona of the character
they portrayed. The Ramlila opened with
In those days, all the actors were male.
Consequently it behoved the producer to
teach the varying roles to men who were
expected to bring out the feminine qualities
of Seeta, Kowshalya, Sumitra, Kaikayi,
not excluding Mantra and Surpnakha. I
remember distinctly the men, pertinent
to the role they played, crying like women
and acting their particular parts with all the
feminine characteristics and attributes.
Sanskrit invocation. When the mantras were
chanted, there was absolute silence from the
audience.
In a single presentation, the audience
witnessed actors portraying Vashisht Muni,
Vishwamintra, Valmiki, whose individual
and collective presence in the Ramayan were
vital. They performed with statesmanship,
pertinent to their respective roles.
It is not my intention to chronicle the details
of Ramlila, but to allow you the opportunity
Pt. Durga Prasad (Right Sitting) proforms in early Ramlila
When my father staged the Ramlila, there
were no cinema shows, no auditoriums.
They used rice factories as the venues. Every
show was virtually sold out at a price of one
penny per person and attendances reached
500. The costumes were unbelievably rich
and attractive and the music was played by
the best available musicians at that time. My
20 - Horizons 2009
Ramlila was authentic when presented in
those days and lasted for long periods. In
subsequent years, emerging Hindu groups
attempted Ramlila. But, the standard was
not maintained and in more recent times,
Trinidad is known to have offered their
version of Ramlila during Nav Raatra.
This article will be remiss if it did not record
with the profoundest appreciation the most
recent production of Ramlila in dance and
drama which was held at the National Cultural
Centre, Georgetown on April 11, 2009.
The production won the admiration and
commendation of all. While I congratulate
the Director/ Choreographer Dr. Vindhya
Persaud, I must not omit to equally recognize
the young people who so ably performed in
the show. It was described as spectacular,
superb and fantastic, surpassing all previous
efforts to stage Ramlila.
Ramlila has returned to the stage and was
enhanced by modern electronics as you
would have seen in the latest Dharmic
Sabha’s presentation.
to stretch your imagination into our history
to a time when our foreparents presented one
of the greatest Hindu dramas which lasted
in excess of a month with performances
held in different parts of the country. The
dialogue was in Hindi and the actors lived
within the code of Brahmcharis. Among the
performers/singers at that time, were leading
Pandits from Guyana. The last performance
was in Buxton.
THE REVIVAL OF
RAMLILA
By: Al Creighton
The performance tradition of Ramlila
returned to Guyana with the production by
the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha at the
21 - Horizons 2009
National Cultural Centre. That seems to have
been the 2009 edition of the annual theatre
performed by the Nritya Sangh, the dance
company and cultural arm of that Hindu
organisation. That group has established a
consistent theatre with annual shows called
Naya Zamana with a mission to instruct
and promote the culture among the “new
generation.” This year that aim was achieved
through the decidedly successful staging of a
dance drama that belongs to a noble ancient
tradition.
This production was the grandest, the most
spectacular, most thoroughly staged and
competently performed, perhaps the most
meaningful and the best theatrical work to
be done so far by this group. Directed by Dr
Vindhya Vasini Persaud and choreographed
by her and Trishala Simantini Persaud, it
confirms the capacity of this cultural outfit
for the production of classy and professional
theatre. They took on an ambitious dance
drama from the Ramayana.
Ramlila is one of the most interesting
traditional folk festivals in the Caribbean
and is quite remarkable for its spectacle,
creative skills, as a communal theatrical work,
as a religious celebration, for its religious
teaching and as instruction in and promotion
of values. Of all the Caribbean territories
to which it was brought by the indentured
immigrants from North India, it has best
survived in Trinidad where it is still vibrant
as an annual festival in the villages west of
Chaguanas in Central Trinidad.
The Ramlila, ram-leela or ramdilla play is
performed with the reading of a narrative
while the elaborately costumed actors mime
and dance the story. Rama is the reincarnation
of Lord Vishnu who in answer to a plea
for help to rid the world of evil, decided
to be re-born as Prince Rama, son of King
Dashrat and Queen Kaushalya in Ayodhya.
The story is long and complex, but the main
plot of the play is centred on the exile of
Rama from the kingdom, the adventures of
his wife Sita and brother Lakshman who go
with him into the forest. The main action
surrounds the abduction of Sita by Ravan
(Rawan/Ravana) the demon king of Lanka
and the great battle waged by Ram with the
help of Hanuman to defeat Ravan and rescue
Sita. It ends with Ram’s return to accept the
throne in Ayodhya.
This is the ancient theatrical tradition that was
revived on stage in Guyana by Dr Persaud
and the Hindu Dharmic Sabha. It was a
formal stage production of the dance drama,
not the outdoor version in the folk tradition.
And it was a judiciously trimmed, well
organised, succinct two-hour performance,
not the usual village production that runs to
can achieve this brand of cultural expression
while also performing its other purpose,
which is religious instruction on the themes
of Hinduism.
The script used for this production was the
one commonly used in Ramlila performances.
It was taken from the work of the saintly
Gosvani Tulsidas (1543-1623) poet and
philosopher of Uttar Pradesh who, although
a scholar of Sanskrit, was famous for writing
almost 40 hours stretching over nine or ten
nights. But it was a very instructive show of
what this tradition is.
Exactly when the large-scale performance
of Ram-leela faded out in Guyana has not
been accurately documented, but a return to
this epic drama by the Hindu Dharmic Sabha
demonstrates a way in which an institution
like this can properly and meaningfully
preserve a theatrical form and contribute to
the expressions of the culture of a nation. It
22 - Horizons 2009
in dialects of Hindi which the populace could
understand. He wrote the story of Ram in
verse in the epic Ramacharitamanasa (the
lake of the deeds of Ram), but this was his
translation from the original work in Sanskrit
by Valmiki, the famous Ramayana.
The miming was confident, disciplined
and interesting to look at, and was part of
the overall scheme of choreography. In
between there were good sequences of
dance, in particular the dance of the golden
deer Tony used by Ravan in the capture of
Sita; the dance and performance of Omkar
Tewari as Ram and Pretima Prashnajeet
as Sita; and the demoness Surpnaka.
These were complemented by convincing
acting and miming by Avinash Mangal as
Lakshman, and the commanding presence
of an appropriately portrayed Ravan by
Mohamed Khan. To those may be added
the performance of Poonam Balgrim as
Manthara, Kaikeyi by Ananda Lachman and
Hanuman by Elton Prashad..
Notably, there was all-round effective
performance even in such minor roles as the
Rakshasa girls who tormented Sita while she
was Ravan’s prisoner. The performance was
President Jagdeo, Prime Minister Sam Hinds & Pt Reepu Daman Persaud
excellently supported by Trishala Persaud’s
costuming which was detailed, meticulous and
a great part of the splendour and spectacle
of the production. Another factor in the
outstandingly colourful presentation was the
set which also enhanced the grandeur.
The significance of bringing this play to the
stage becomes greater because of the multiple
23 - Horizons 2009
gains. It served the religious purpose of the
Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha in spreading
the Hindu gospel in a very attractive way. The
audience was exposed to another important
piece of theatre from India. What is more
important than that is its treatment of a story
and theme which are also central to a cultural
form that now belongs to the Caribbean and
that many might have heard of but never
Singers: Suchitra, Gaitri, Rekha, Sookrane
had the opportunity to see since it has
vanished from Guyana.
However, even more than that, too, is
the message of good triumphing over
evil in Ram’s victory over Ravan, and the
encouragement of faith, faithfulness and
virtue in the story of Sita, and the human
values that are relevant to the whole audience.
Then, of supreme importance, is that it gave
memorable entertainment while doing all of
those.
(Excerpt from Stabroek News)
24 - Horizons 2009
Harry Kissoon withhis son, Ramchandra and the only other surviving member of drama group.
Acting in the Olden Days
Harry Kissoon
A grandfather shares his memories with his grandson
Y
ou should learn Hindi” the words of
my grandfather Harry Kissoon, born
on the 13th August 1926. Described
by many as a “reservoir of knowledge”, at
age 83 he is full of life and always up for
the chance to share all he knows with his
grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We
would all somehow try to avoid him because
of the prolonged deliberations, but growing
up now in a world where morals and values of
society are degenerating, we have now learnt
how imperative his stories and teachings are
to us for a better today.
Harry Kissoon is not from India, but the
only child of a direct descendent of an East
Indian Immigrant, his mother Ramkalia
Kissoon. She was instrumental in his
upbringing as a singer, musician and actor;
he was a part of numerous cultural events
such as The Ramlila (story of Ram enacted
in dance and drama) and Pooranmaal. He
had such an interest in what he did that he
said “I can remember on the Wednesday
By: Kumar Kisson
the 29th of November 1942 when I
got married to Jasoda, I left her home
alone that night to go and perform for
a function in the village”.
According to Grandfather Kissoon,
“we use to perform POORANMAALit was a musical, dance and drama
recital which was done in many villages
for small gatherings (bottom house,
cow pens or under the trees in the
back dam) or special occasions such as
weddings. We later started to do other
productions enacting stories from the
Ramayana in the 1940’s… We did Sita,
Bali Dhan and Tulsidas.”
Displaying a fantastic memory, he
reeled off the years of the plays- “In
1942 we did Sita, 1943 Balidhan and
somewhere in the 1940’s Tulsidas. We
did these 3 productions at Queens
College.”
26 - Horizons 2009
Harry Kisson Today
The Author - Ramlila 2009
National Cultural Centre. I am very proud of
them and will continue to guide them in their
every step.”
Asked about his favorite memory of being
apart of such events? He smiles for a while
knowledge and memory for his age I asked
him as customary for his secret of life. He
said “I continue to practice to do things the
way I was brought up, we had to rise every
morning before the sun rises, eat lots of
vegetables and fruits and I read everyday.”
He said he is happy having lived a full and
meaningful life and advised the younger
generation to make education a vital part of
life and make smart decisions “make your
bed comfortable because you have to sleep
on it”
As always when spending time with him I
always feel invigorated by his wisdom and
aspire to follow in his way of life.
He explained that they did not do the entire
Ramayana but focused on a particular
part or character. For example, Sita was a
play focused on the life of Sita. The plays
were done in the form of dancing, singing
and drama. The stage had several different
colored lights so actors wore mostly white
costumes and stood under the different color
lights so they would appear as if they were all
in different colors. “Our costumes (we called
them Phowshack) were designed and sewed
by the ladies that came from India.” Kissoon
reminisced.
Thinking back to the old days and his years of
acting, my grandfather credits Matura Singh
for Balidhan, Doodnauth Vidya (the first
hindi teacher in Guyana) and Mrs. Ratnami
Devi Dixit a true follower of Gandhi for the
play Sita.
What is your advice to the up coming
generation who aspire to continue this
tradition brought to Guyana by our fore
parents?
Harry Kissoon – “Hindi is a must…I think
every Hindu should learn Hindi so they
can read and understand their scriptures.
Hinduism has every ingredient for a happy
and prosperous life.The younger generation
must continue this tradition; they will
educate others about the great teachings and
at the same time educate themselves. I am
proud that I have passed on a tradition of
performing arts to my children who have also
taken up the challenge to continue this. Only
recently my Grandson and Great Grandson
were a part of Ramlila production held at the
Kissoon’s Great Grandson, Ramlila 2009
and says candidly –“singing and acting back
in the days at wedding
house for the people.”
Apart from his cultural
life, Harry Kissoon had
several other missions in
life. A few of them were
to provide for his wife
and seven children and
to have a comfortable
lifestyle; as such he
was employed with the
Mayor and City Council
as a senior foreman
in charge of several
projects.
“I was in charge of
keeping Regent Street
clean, every night we
would wash and hose
down the road.”
At age 83 he still has
this mind-set about life
as he does most of his
chores and has several
flourishing gardens at his
home in Campbelville
where he has spent most
of his life.
Enthralled by his agility,
27 - Horizons 2009
Kissoon, his son and actor from
Pooranmaal
Ramadan
A Month of Blessing and Mercy
R
amadan is a month of blessing and
mercy. But above all, it is a month of
spirituality, a month of experiencing
Allah (SWT) eternal love for His (SWT)
creatures. A blessed month in which it’s
beginning is mercy, its middle forgiveness,
and its ending freedom from the fire of hell.
If the beginning of Ramadan is mercy,
its middle forgiveness, and its ending
emancipating from the fire of hell its effect
should be thankfulness. It is remarkable to
note that after mentioning the fast and some
of its rulings, Allah (SWT) mentions the
believer should express thanks. Allah (SWT)
ends those verses in Sura Baqara by stating,
“in order that you complete the designated
days (of fasting), and to glorify Him in that
He has guided you; and perchance ye shall
give thanks.” (Chapter 2: verse 185)
By: Sheikh Moeen Ul Hack
Knowing that Allah (SWT) has opened the
gates of His (SWT) Mercy for us during this
blessed month, that He (SWT) has chained
the Satan, knowing that He has multiplied
every good deed we have done countless
times, should we not express our thanks?
skies, eager to sight the new moon. For that
new moon is the precursor to the coming of
the day of festivities, rejoicing, thanksgiving,
and reflecting; the day of EID- one of the
two days Muslims all over the world celebrate
each year.
Now that the blessed month of Ramadan
is coming to an end, its passing should not
witness the end of our exertion in worship.
We should continue our night prayers, and
we should fast voluntarily each month. The
religion of Islam is the personification of
everything virtuous, the embodiment of
all goodness. Don’t let your part of this
goodness be that it begins and ends with
Ramadan.
Eid celebrates the sending down the word
of Allah (SWT), the Quran, and its triumph.
It rejoices in the dawn upon mankind of a
new era of light and peace. It celebrates the
end of the dark, cold night of ignorance and
the coming of a warm spring of justice and
equality. It gives thanks for the harvest OF
THE richest blessing of Allah (SWT) for
soul and intellect, for mind and heart, for
living and conduct.
As the sun sets on Ramadan, multitudes of
hopeful euphoric eyes become glued to the
On this Eid day, we will enjoy the blessing
of an abundance of food. We should never
28 - Horizons 2009
forget those who literally knew no Iftar. For
many Muslims, daily existence is a continuous
fast. We should constantly be thinking of
meaningful ways to improve their situation
and remember every blessed moment to give
Shukr (thanks) to our Supreme Creator for
the many blessings that were bestowed upon
us.
Remember those who have rights over us.
Remember to exchange gifts with each other
as this strengthens relationship with families
and friends.
We should further know what it means when
we say that the end of Ramadan is deliverance
from the Hell fire. Ibn ‘Abbas (Radiyallahu
‘anhuma) relates that the Prophet (SAWS)
said, “Every night of Ramadan at the time
of Iftar, Allah liberates a million people form
the Hell fire. When Jumu’ ah arrives, hourly
he liberates a million people from the Hell
fire, all of them deserving to be punished
therein. When the last day of Ramadan
comes, he liberates on that day alone, a
number equal to the number that he liberate
from the beginning of the month.”
As Muslims, we are charged with the duty
of leading humanity in the highest form of
moral excellence and upright conduct. Let us
learn not only to love one another in Allah’s
(SWT) name, but also to be cognizant and
share the pain of our fellow worldly citizens.
Human beings have been created different.
Yet, as the Qur’an reminds us, our genesis is
the same (chapter 4: verse 1). Our challenge is
not to eradicate or conceal these variations; it
is to learn to live with them. The richness of
our diversity aids us in ways we are incapable
to understand.
My dear brothers and sisters, let us return
to the Islam of the Qur’an, the Islam of
love, tolerance, broad-mindedness, justice,
integrity, egalitarianism, democracy, equal
rights for all and freedom of expression.
Lets us learn to distinguish between the voice
of our Supreme Creator and the voices of
those who claim to speak on behalf of him
(SWT). If the distinction becomes distorted
then we will have failed to discern between
Qur’anic and historic Islam.
I remind you of the President Bush’s
message to us last Eid-ul-Fitr, “I encourage
Americans of all faiths to join in building
a culture of service that demonstrates the
true character of our Nation.” This my dear
brothers and sisters can only be realized if
we start with our selves then extend it to our
families, relatives, neighbors, community, and
then to the nation.
I remind you and myself that our Beloved
Prophet Muhammed (SAWS) was sent with
the highest moral standard; as Muslims and
citizens of the United States of America we
have an honorable duty to aid demonstrating
the true character of our nation, one of
peace and moral excellence.
I pray that Allah (SWT) except all our various
forms of worship during this blessed month,
aid us in our personal retrospection, finds
us worthy of His (SWT) rewards, show us
evil as evil and help us to stay away from it,
and show us good as good and help us to
gravitate towards that which is beneficial for
our souls.
29 - Horizons 2009
GOPIO
20th Anniversary
Celebration
“…Since its inception 20 years ago, GOPIO has
made remarkable progress as the global organisation
representing the interests of over 25 million persons
of Indian origin living outside of India. As the
number of persons of Indian origin living in other
countries continues to increase, GOPIO’s role
becomes more important and timely as it continues to
reach out to persons of Indian origin living in more
countries…”
By Prem Misir
T
he Crowne Plaza Hotel in New York
provided the centerpiece for the
Global Organisation of People of
Indian Origin (GOPIO) 20th Anniversary
Celebration, from Thursday, August 20
through Sunday, August 23, 2009; the
GOPIO’s theme was “People of Indian
Origin: Strengthening Global Connections.”
GOPIO was born in 1989 at the first
Convention of People of Indian Origin
(PIO) where it endorsed 23 Resolutions,
including the PIO Card and Dual Citizenship
for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and PIOs
from the Government of India.
GOPIO filed human rights violations
petition to the United Nations for the PIOs
in Fiji in 1990 and for those in
Sri Lanka in 1992, among
a host of other significant
accomplishments lobbying
to promote the NRI/PIO
interests.
Prime Minister of India Dr.
Manmohan Singh observed
in his message to this
Convention that “…GOPIO
has emerged as a leading
organisation providing a
unique platform for the vast
Indian overseas community
for promoting their interests
and realizing their aspirations.
31 - Horizons 2009
It has contributed significantly in the process
of engagement between the Government of
India and the Indian Diaspora. The bonds
between the motherland and the people of
Indian origin across the globe are valuable
and precious...”
Our own President Bharrat Jagdeo in his
message observed that “…Since its inception
20 years ago, GOPIO has made remarkable
progress as the global organisation
representing the interests of over 25 million
persons of Indian origin living outside of
India. As the number of persons of Indian
origin living in other countries continues
to increase, GOPIO’s role becomes more
important and timely as it continues to reach
out to persons of Indian origin living in
more countries…”
Prime Minister of
Mauritius Dr.
Navinchandra Ramgoolam observed: “…
Whatever the country they have settled in,
people of Indian origin have made it a point
to preserve and promote their rich cultural
heritage. I am glad to note that the GOPIO
is allowing Indian culture a significant space
within its program activities. Indeed, no
development can be considered complete
without the cultural dimension…”
Some of the Sessions covered themes
as: India & the Global Economy; Indian
Diaspora – Prospects and Challenges in
the Emerging Global Economy; Diaspora
in India’s Development; India’s Diaspora in
Social development – What Could We Do?;
Energizing the Global Indian Diaspora;
Living/Pioneers – Global Perspective on
Indian Elders; The Global Indian Diaspora:
Then and Now; The Next Generation;
The Global Indian Diaspora: Inter-Ethnic
Relations; The Global Indian Diaspora: The
Family unit Including Women and InterGenerational Issues.
Some of the participants included the
following: Lord Diljit Rana, House of
Lords, Great Britain; Hon. Basdeo Panday,
Opposition Leader, T&T; Hon. Logie
Naidoo, Deputy Mayor, South Africa; Dr.
Arvind Panagariya, Professor of economics
and Jagdish Bhagwati Professor of Indian
Political Economy, Columbia University;
B.C. Gupta, Financial Commissioner and
Principal Secretary, Government of Punjab,
India; Aruneshwar Gupta, Former Advocate
General of Rajasthan; Dr. Raj Warrier,
Vice Chancellor, Manipal University, India;
Professor Chandrashakhar Bhat, Former
Professor, University of Hyderabad;
Professor Parmatma Saran, City University
of New York; Professor Mohan Gautam,
Leiden University, Netherlands, Yesu
Persaud, Caribbean Council of Europe;
among many ‘distinguished’ others.
There is growing need to have a working
32 - Horizons 2009
relationship of Overseas Indians with India,
amid a fiercely brutal economic globalization
process; and given, too, that India is fast
emerging as a global economic super power.
As Nehru said, each Indian takes a piece of
India to the new abode. However, any chance
of limited political and economic networking
among Overseas Indians, notwithstanding
their many notable accomplishments,
guarantees a reduced prevalence of their
culture in the major institutions of multiracial
societies; the reduced prevalence drives a
wedge between India and Overseas Indians.
And GOPIO, among its several mandates,
ensures that this limited prevalence has no
sustainability.
GOPIO has recognized the contributions
of the GOPIO family of East Indians
in Guyana and their contributions to the
struggles and development of Indian People
and their culture in the Guyanese society.
GOPIO Annual Awards in recognition of
their personal individual contributions to the
Guyanese society. Some of the Guyanese
Nationals of East Indian origin who have
been awarded by GOPIO to date as follows:
H.E. Bharrat Jagdeo – President of Guyana
– for his contribution to Political Leadership
Over the years many Guyanese stalwarts
of East Indian heritage have been invited
to participate in the Annual Conventions
of GOPIO and have been recipients of
H.E. Dr Cheddi B Jagan – President of
Guyana – for his contribution to Political
Leadership
Dr Yesu Persaud – for his contribution to
business and industry
33 - Horizons 2009
Pt. Reepu Daman Persaud – for his
contribution to Political Leadership (1989).
The Sari
The longest running ‘in fashion’ female
garment in the world!
By: Dr. Vindhya Vasini Persaud
34 - Horizons 2009
35 - Horizons 2009
Models: Taruna Tiwari, Gina Arjoon, Nadira Balram & Roshini Boodhoo
F
lattering to all female forms, the
sari is a sensual unstitched garment
that has survived generations of
women and continues to reign as the piece
de resistance in many female closets as a
classy option for any occasion.
Many myths and legends surround the
origin of the sari but perhaps the most
whimsical and alluring as the sari itself is
this charming folktale:
“The Sari, it is said, was born on the
loom of a fanciful weaver. He dreamt of
Woman. The shimmer of her tears. The
drape of her tumbling hair. The colors
of her many moods. The softness of her
touch. All these he wove together. He
couldn’t stop. He wove for many yards.
And when he was done, the story goes,
he sat back and smiled and smiled and
smiled.”
This seemingly artless tale has been
interpreted in so many ways where weaving
is seen as a metaphor for the creation of
the universe. The sutra or spun thread was
the foundation, while the weaver or holder
of the thread was viewed as the architect
or creator of the universe. Delving deeper
into its history, one unearths that the first
recorded evidence of this versatile piece
of cloth was in the Mahabharat some 5000
years ago where an infinite length of cloth
or sari offered protection to Draupadi, the
wife of the Pandavas. Further, the word
sari is an anglicized version of the original
Sanskrit word ‘sati’ which means strip of
cloth.
One cannot think of India without the
multi hued saris that festoon its cities
and villages, so it comes as no surprise that
the sari is the national female dress of that
country which has been worn since the 1st6th century. However, with the relentless
fashion tides, the sari is no longer confined
by the borders of that ancient land but has
swept onto the fashion menus across the
world. Through immigration, migration and
the zealous marketing of Indian fashion
designers. The sari has not been spared by
designers who have experimented with
colours, textiles, designs, dyes and Yes!
Even ways of draping this exquisite 6 yards
wonder. Why not when this six (6 yard)
unstitched garment can be draped in just
about a zillion ways!
Saris have graced the feminine silhouettes
of many celebrities world-wide including
Bollywood and Hollywood actresses and
still remain the choice of working women
in India. Whether worn to the office,
celebrating festive and religious occasions
the traditional yet chic sari is guaranteed to
turn heads as the wearer sashays into the
room. Beautiful, comfortable and probably
the oldest garment invented in India, no one
is immune to the graceful and enchanting
Indian apparel designed just so as to cover
the vital assets of a lady, yet flaunt them
enough not to reveal too much. That is the
essence of a sari!
The innate versatility of the sari lends to
its transformations and modifications by
generations of artisans. Saris are available in
36 - Horizons 2009
different materials like cotton, various types
and qualities of silk, georgette, chiffon, tulle
and many more. Their price range starts
from as low as just a few dollars for simple
saris to over several thousand dollars for the
more exclusive designer pieces. Yards and
yards of exquisite fabric, attractive prints
and threadwork, different textures, plain
saris, Mysore silks with borders, printed
saris, and embroidered saris allows the sari
to have a timeless appeal to women holding
its own against ever changing fashions. The
embroidery on saris are done with zari,
resham (silk) thread, using beads, stones,
dubka, and more. States of India are famous
for distinctive types of handwork done
painstakingly by artisan families as well as
specific types of fabric- embroidered
37 - Horizons 2009
38 - Horizons 2009
zardozi, Chikan work of Lucknow, Banarsi
silk saris, Ikat of Orrissa, Baluchari of West
Bengal, Paithani of Mahaarastra, Bandhini
of Gujrat, Kota Doria of Rajasthan, Madhya
Pradesh’s Chanderi and Kanchipuram Sari
- Tamil Nadu. Specific colours may be worn
for different occasion based on religious
belief, state and tribe- reds, yellows and
greens and yellows symbolizing fertility are
choices of the North Indian and Bengali
brides, widows opt for whites or pastel
unadorned saris, married women of Bengal
sport a thick red border on a heavy cream
or white sari. Modern ladies simply choose
colours, fabrics and design based on their
peculiar taste, the nature of the occasion
and frequently the sari that is flattering and
elegant to their frame and complexion.
Have you been bedazzled or entranced by
the graceful, demure yet sensual Indian
woman in a sari? It is totally understandable.
Draping the sari is an art that can take some
getting used to. Proper draping of the sari
is very important. A simple inexpensive sari
can look smashing if it is draped properly,
whereas an expensive one can look flat if
not draped well. The sari is worn with a
long underskirt or ‘Petticoat’ and a ‘Blouse’
for the upper body. If the variety of fabrics
and designs were not enough to boggle the
mind, there are many styles of draping the
sari. Various regions of India have their own
unique style of wearing the sari. The Gujarati
style of wearing a saree requires the pallu to
be draped artisticallyfrom the right shoulder
in the front rather than over the left shoulder.
Sarees with eye-catching magnificent pallus
are best worn in this style. The Bengali
style of wearing a sari has no pleats and
the pallu has a bunch of keys that falls over
the shoulder. The Coorgi style of draping a
saree involves tying the pleats in the rear and
a small portion of the pallu is placed over the
shoulder. The Maharashtrian nauvari style
of draping a saree involves wearing the nine
yards of fabric in a style that is traditional to
the region. In Tamil Nadu, certain sections
of society wear the nine-yard saree in a wrap.
The Nivi style worn in Andhra Pradesh
allows the pleats to be passed through the
legs and tucked into the waist at the back
allowing free movement. The quintessential
wrap involves the wearer draping the pallu
(the bordered end of the sari) over the left
shoulder.
39 - Horizons 2009
Today’s woman with her distinctive sense
of style can choose to wrap the sari as she
pleases, or even wear a ready-made sari much
like donning a long pleated skirt. Females
have an the opportunity to wear eye-catching
cholis- with sleeves, sleeveless, halter styles,
backless or with embellishments such as
mirrors, embroidery , sequins or whatever
takes the fancy of the wearer providing
a perfect complement to dazzling saris.
Ultimately the occasion determines which
sari is pulled out of the wardrobe or bought
from the rack in the boutique.
With the increasing number of Indian
boutiques dotting the Guyanese landscape,
the frequency of travel by fashion savvy
Guyanese women as well as the influence of
Bollywood and current fascination with the
Indian soaps on television, many Guyanese
women are draping the stylish and enduring
sari for events casual or formal.
Whatever the current style trends, the sari,
always in vogue, will no doubt appeal to your
fashion senses.
Draping a Sari
The sari draping process is divided into a step by step guide. There are various wraps of
the sari; this version is the traditional one. You will need a matching petticoat /long slip,
a choli(blouse) and a sari.
Step 3 - Pleat and throw the palla over the
left sholder. It should stop at the knee.
Step 1 – Fasten the waistband of the Step 2 - Bring the saree from the left around
petticoat firmly at your hips or waist. Starting
in front, tuck the top edge of the saree from
the right side of the petticoat’s waistband to
the left side. Keep the bottom edge even at
the desired length, preferably floor length.
the right side of your body in a smooth neat
wrap tuck in again. Bring the pallow around
the back
Step 4 - Holding the saree firmly, Gather
Step 6 - Carefully tuck the pleats inside the
petticoat above or below the belly button,
making sure to keep them together at the
point where they tuck in at the waistband.
You can use a pin to secure the pleats to the
petticoat, by pinning through them on the
inside.
Step 5 - Make as many 4 inch pleats as
possible. Line them all up on top of one
another and make sure that they are all even
at the front. Now hold the whole stack of
pleats in place, lining up the bottom edge
with the previous wrapping.
40 - Horizons 2009
about 1 yard of saree into the pleats.
Pleating takes both hands, with the right
hand holding the pleats and the left guiding
the saree between the forefinger at one edge
and thumb and pinkie at the other edge of
your body. The first pleat should fold down
the center of your body. Make sure that the
pleats are falling straight down and even.
You can wear your sari pallav draped
loosely over the shoulder to showoff
the designs or keep the pallav in place
by pleating it and securing with a pin
on the left shoulder
There are limitless possibilities to
wearing a sari. Have fun!
41 - Horizons 2009
Women Singers
& Musicians of Grove
By: Rakesh Rampertab
“We forget; we have no idea of our past; it is part of the trouble. We came from culture
that has not been given much to self-examination or to historical enquiry. And it is
only today, after the old culture has more or less been lost, its value overthrown; it is
only today that people can begin to look at themselves.” —V. S. Naipaul, 1975
I
Elsie Sargeant
n the annals of East Indian music of
Guyana, the contribution of women
who worked on the plantations and
estates is unquestionably extraordinary.
For generations, a group of women from
Grove, East Bank Demerara—all members
of a weeding gang, made some of the most
remarkable folk music. While this essay
attempts to celebrate two of them—Elsie
Sargeant popularly known as “Dougla”
Elsie and Kassri Narine, called Kathy (kaytee)—it also honor in spirit, their multitalented supporting cast, all of whom have
since died; Sundarie, “Polo,” Sumintra aka
“Lada,” Budnee, Dulari called “Sardaren,”
Kawalpatie, and Sajaan Ramotar. Each was
a singer in her own right, and many were
efficient on the dholak (drum).
“Dougla” Elsie was born to an
Indian mother and a Black father in the early
twenties, in Plantation Diamond (Diamond)
on the East Bank of Demerara, bedrock of
East Indian culture before its inhabitants
migrated from the logees to Grove next
door. As her mother died shortly after Elsie
was born, the child came of age under the
tutelage of a grandmother who came from
India. Young Elsie started singing early,
but would become most notable after her
marriage, and move to Grove in the fifties.
Essentially a folklorist like many
musicians of the old, she lacked any formal
education (music or otherwise), but knew
how to sing between vernaculars and was
familiar with the Hindu culture practiced
locally. Apart from having the most distinct
voice among her companions, she played
the dholak, damru (small hand-drum),
harmonium, and knew the homogenous
lingua franca used on the plantations. To
interpret the life of this cultural pioneer is
not easy, because Elsie the musician evolved
hand-in-hand with the very culture of Indian
music which, incidentally, metamorphosed
due to the indenture experience, and was
further complicated by its overlapping with
the world of Western music. Thus, in playing
music for the community from weddings
to “nine-day” birth rituals to religious
ceremonies, these estate-employed women
existed between traditions.
Because historians have largely
ignored them, the depth of skills and their
intricacies remain subdued, hidden. On one
hand, traditional Indian songs (e.g., bhajans)
were done closer to the Indian music scale,
Elsie Sargeant
expressing a variety of raag (melody) and at
differing taal (rhythmic cycles). On the other,
their “rhyme songs” (that is, songs done in
Anglo-Indian dialect) were sung in a Western
scale and this led to substantial improvisation,
pushing East Indian music into a region that
was, arguably, neither East nor West.
42 - Horizons 2009
Recently, I listened to a number of
songs by these women from Grove, recorded
by Peter Kempadoo and Marc Matthews in
the early seventies. Thirty years later, it is
altogether, a mesmerizing display of musical
talent and feminine energy. The setting is
raw with no acoustics to capture or purify
sounds, and the instruments are rudimentary;
there is a relentless dholak, backed by the
undying presence of dhandtal and manjiras
(or kartal; cymbals), and occasionally, tali
(handclapping). The harmonium was set
very low. While Elsie (who had an extensive
repertoire of songs; a different type of song
for differing occasions) was mostly the lead
singer, she did not always lead. In fact, at
least four of the women lead at one time or
another.
While hearing the recordings today
suggests some primitiveness, there is hardly
a sense of trepidation, of mishaps between
keys by these estate women who, undeniably,
were at ease in the business at hand. One
is awed at the movement between music
scales, sub-genres of songs, and of course,
vernaculars—from a sohar or “birth song”
to a bhajan to an adamant anti-British East
Indian folk song (Elsie, lead vocal) sung in
Anglo-Indian dialect, to a medley of English
nursery rhymes (e.g., “Mary Had a Little
Lamb”) to which—yes, was added a Bhojpuri
refrain to the common quatrains that used
the a,b,a,b rhyme scheme.
From these recordings, KempadooMatthews would “cut” a record of Elsie singing
“Bangali Babu,” a song originally sung by a
musician from Portuguese Quarter, Berbice,
but which was truly popularized by Elsie. In
the up-tempo “Shivaji Mandir,” which seems
to resemble the intricate but traditional 14beat chowtaal, the women encourage us to
attend mandirs and sing the name of the
God; and “Garam Massala” (Elsie, lead
vocal) is a folk song that incorporated subtle
ribaldry—using spicy Indian food items
to describe the vivaciousness of “dis time
young gyal” regarding courtship. A Bhojpuri
recitation, which is customarily sung as
Elsie Sargeant aka “Dugla Elsie.”
A dulaha and dulahin enter under the maaro
(ceremonial tent) in a Hindu wedding, is heard
for a staggering four and a half minutes—all
vocals and no instruments.
One cannot exaggerate the role
of music in the life of Indians, where it has
surpassed itself as an art form, becoming
life itself. This was best exemplified by
these weeding-gang musicians whose “life”
belonged to the community. What they played
to the villagers, were often rehearsed in the
cane fields where saucepans and cutlasses
became dholaks and dhandtals. It seemed
unnatural, but underlying these recordings is
an intensity that is characterized by all these
years of impromptu versification. These
women were so devoted that they often
attended Friday night matikors and return
home after the kanghan on Monday. Elsie’s
son, nicknamed “Bongo,” one of her five
children and former member of the sixties’
Chandi Orchestra from Grove—laughed in
remembering his father Dalfus who “would
cuss” sometimes upon coming home to find
his wife gone.
“Oh Maninja”
Kassri Narine
K
assri Narine (aka Kathy), whose
house is just one block from
where Elsie lived, arrived last
year in a rare visit to Guyana
Kassri Narine
from Venezuela where she now lives. I met
her quite “accidentally” while researching
the music of Grove. Increased hardship
under the PNC regime and the murder of
her brother by bandits, led to her moving
across the border to spend her last years. The
idea that here was one of the community’s
legendary folk singers—seemed feeble when
it dawned upon me that neither music nor
history was on her mind. Perhaps it was
because the old “songster” (which is what
musicians of the old were referred by) was
very sick.
She was born in 1934 in what was
originally “old” Grove (before the nuclear
scheme was added), not far from where
the first Diamond-Grove mandir existed
(at the border of the villages). One of the
first mandirs in Demerara, it was here under
Pandit Durga (father of Pt. Reepu Daman
Persaud) that Hindu culture thrived—such
as, the first-ever staging of the Ramlila
pageant-plays, based on the Ramayana.
This community would have influenced her
tremendously, as it did Elsie.
Kathy had been singing since she
was in her teens, and was exposed to some
level of music at home since her brother, the
late Sugrim Gobin, was also a music talent.
Additionally, she had a chacha who was
famous for playing the enormous tadjah drum
at Diamond ground whenever fairs were held.
Arguably, Kathy was not as versatile a singer
as Elsie, but her skills as a dholak player was
indisputable. She was married twice and had
four children altogether. When I met her, she
rattled off a number of stanzas randomly
(despite being weak), before speaking about
the harsh conditions in which they worked
and sang—before the time of electricity, such
as when the villagers gathered at nights to
sing in the presence of jug lamps—making
what they called “jug music.”
In 1973, two of her songs became
records—one was “Oh Maninja,” a folk
anthem or “rhyme song” re-popularized by
Kanchan in the eighties. For the KempadooMatthews JARAI sessions, Kathy sang a
different (probably the earliest) version
of the song. The record that was made,
however, was done from a different session
in Grove at the home of Sugrim Gobin, in
a room constructed specially “for recording
music.” Of course, it was primitive—a mere
room with high, sealed walls to deflect car
engines and dog barks. Two of Grove’s
well-known talents played on that record;
Harrychan on dholak and Arthur Etwaroo
(aka Arthur Barber) on harmonium. To
capture the sounds from which a master tape
43 - Horizons 2009
was used to press the 45 records, Kathy used
a tape recorder.
In all of the folk literature to
originate from the East Indians, there is
almost no verse that is as poignant and famous
as the chorus of “Oh Maninja.” Unwisely, as
has been generally the case with East Indian
writings—not regarded as proper culture by
the guardians of Guyanese literature, these
lyrics have long been ignored;
“Oh Maninja! Oh Maninja!
Cane ah cut and price nah pay
a-tall, Rice and flour dear a shop
A wah you mean a-tall?”
The song epitomizes the appalling realities of
estate village life; there is stark poverty, rising
cost of living, hard labor for little returns,
thriftiness, brute estate management, and
despair.
“Me wuk hard in de backdam Till
me hand get wan ton When me
get a money Ee gan in de pan”
Grove lost its great music culture long ago
as it began to lose its music matriarchs. As
generations changed, musicians migrated
elsewhere or passed on; Arthur “Rock N
Roll” Budram left for the city and Leonard
Latachana (Chandi Orchestra) migrated to
Canada. Others like Ata Baba, Raymond
Bandhu, and the spirited women of the
weeding gang died. Chandi Orchestra that
toured Suriname disbanded and Sugrim
Gobin, who had made about a dozen records,
moved to Friendship—only to be murdered
by “kick-down-the-door” bandits.
After Kathy moved to Venezuela,
Elsie remained as the last of the musicians in
Grove.
Where hard life had failed, oldage eventfully wore her down until the
artist disappeared, leaving only the woman.
Abandoned by the sound-system technology
that had stormed away an oral tradition she
helped glorify, Elsie became a mere accessory
of the time. In 1993, the incredibly talented
“Dougla” Elsie died, leaving behind her
old dholak and a handful of exhilarating
recordings, remnants of an excitingly rich
past.
[Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in
Stabroek News on May 29, 2005, as part of an
onging series on Guyanese creative personalities,
edited by Dr. Vibert Cambridge.]
Pita Pyaree
Guyana’s Oldest Living Artiste
S
he dared to be different in a world
when women were relegated to the
periphery of life. She dared to be
different when the Indian woman
had no voice, no one to speak for her rights –
no forum for redress; she suffered, endured
and whatever satisfaction she gleaned from
life was because she dared to be different.
Pita Pyaree dared to be different and
it paid her a great dividend of satisfaction;
personal satisfaction to be able to master
certain art forms and public satisfaction of
entertaining others. Pita Pyaree dared to sing
and dance in public. Her daring brought her
a number of commendations which were
personal victories; those tokens she took in
her stride – she was modest but her exploits
meant more to the wider society, her exploits
helped paved the way for other female
artistes to chose the tabooed art forms and
make them into acceptable career moves.
But for the pioneer, Pita Pyaree, it was a
By: Petamber Persaud
long and hard road, no quarters asked, no
quarters given in a male oriented world (then
even in drama men appropriated the roles of
women). But from her first timid initiation
into the field of show business others saw
that special quality that would take her to the
top of her game.
Where did her singing career
start? Hum, yes, it started in the bathroom.
‘Betty’ as she was called then moving from
her birthplace in Essequibo to the city of
Georgetown was discovered by a relative
whom she boarded with to have a pleasing
voice. This led straightway into a competition,
a commercial competition for the product
‘Bayrum’ distributed by Jaikarran Drugstore.
Pyaree recalls with great delight – Governor
Lethem was one of the judges who gave her
the edge over the other competitors. That
was a great achievement for a young teenager
coming from the ‘Cinderella County’,
Essequibo.
44 - Horizons 2009
It was a flying start to her career.
She appeared every Sunday evening on
radio on the ‘Jaikarran Show’; in between
advertisements of the products distributed
by the company, Pyaree would entertain
listeners across the country – radio was in
the in-thing in the 1930s. She was paid the
princely sum of two shillings per show.
A flying start it was; by age 15 or 16, (At
ninety two it was difficult for her to confirm
certain dates and there is no written account
for this writer to do any cross-referencing)
she was off to Trinidad, a place with a large
population of Indians, transported from
India to a foreign environment trying to
assert their identity by way of their culture.
Here, one Atakari, trained her in finer
qualities of song and dance.
She returned to Guyana in 1940
fully prepared to fly to greater heights in
her career. Pyaree widened her stage of
entertainment, performing in cinemas, town
and city halls, and other performing venues
across the country. At that time, Vaudeville
shows were sweeping across the country and
she toured with many such groups made up
of local and international artistes.
Her fame spread to neighbouring
Surinam, another regional country with a
large Indian population. Pyaree recalls how
fortunate she was when she was spotted by
promoter, Mungra Barsati, who opened the
door for her to Paramaribo and its annual
‘Konfreyari’ – an expose of song and dance
held in Surinam; this outing ceased in the
1960s due to the strenuousness of touring.
During her touring days, she also performed
in Cayenne on and off for many years.
She continued her contribution
on the home front by presenting her own
radio show called the ‘Marmite Hour’ on
Radio Demerara. In this she recalls the help
she got from ‘Uncle Ayube’, Ayube Hamid,
who recently passed away. ‘Uncle Ayube’
was a constant source of inspiration and
mentoring.
Have you written any songs?
Yes, two that she can remember; one was
produced by Halagala and later recorded by
Kanchan named ‘Hayre Hayre Karamwa’
and the other by Halagala label, owned
by the recently departed Terry Nelson aka
Omar Farouk.
But despite all her contribution, Pita
Pyaree’s first major award came only recently.
In 2004, she was awarded the Guyana Folk
Festival Award by the New York based
Guyana Cultural Organisation. Then in quick
succession, on the home front, she honoured
by the by the Indian Arrival Committee in
2005 and by the Indian Commemoration
Trust in 2006. It was difficult to describe the
mood as she displayed her awards because
of a faraway look in her eyes that seem to
say she was reliving her heady moments on
stage long, long ago, a look that also seem to
say there were moments of regrets of things
left undone, things like writing and recording
more of her own songs.
Munia Tulsiram aka Pita Pyaree
was born on May 10, 1917, on the Essequibo
Coast. Her father was a musician and the
music at that time when the indenture
scheme came to an end resonated en toto
of India. After losing both parents, she set
out for the city of Georgetown at the tender
age of 13. Pyaree was forced to abandon a
background of music but her karma brought
full circle back to music leading her on to win
local and international attention. And who
was her consort? The late Pundit Tulsiram,
a musician, whom she lost in 2008.
Along the way, she lost a few
cherished things but she still has her voice
with which she worships the gods by singing
in mandirs now; a fitting way to end a career
lasting more than seven decades.
46 - Horizons 2009
Mehendi
47 - Horizons 2009
Models: Zahrah Alli & Suzie Jettoo
All About
H
ow often have you gone to weddings
and heard it said ‘the darker the
mehendi applied on the palms of
the bride- the truer the groom’s love.’
Where that adage originated from is anyone’s
guess but sure enough much effort is placed
on ensuring that the mehendi prepared
to adorn the bride’s hands must be of the
quality to ensure the darkest hue when the
bride makes her appearance before all on her
wedding day.
What is Mehendi?
Mehendi originated in India and the Middle
East and is the traditional art of painting the
body, especially the hands and feet with dye
extracted from henna leaves from Lawsonia
Inermis, a tall shrub-like plant that thrives in
hot and dry climates You may see it written
as mehandi, mehendi, henna, al-henna, and a
myriad other names and spellings.
The leaves used to produce henna powder
are harvested when the plant flowers, and
the pink and cream coloured flowers are
also used to make perfume, scented oils and
incense. To produce the finest quality henna
powder the leaves are air-dried, out of direct
sunlight, in order to preserve the staining
properties. The dried leaves are then ground
into a fine powder, ready for preparing henna
paste. The dried powdered leaves can be
stored in perfectly good condition for years,
as long as henna powder is kept out of the
light. Exposure to light destroys the lawsone,
effectively ‘bleaching’ the henna powder and
rendering it useless for staining purposes.
Traditional Uses
Mehendi has been used in India since the 12th
century. In Indian mehndi, a person applies
designs traditionally to a woman’s hands and
feet. In recent times, henna artists have come
to denote the art with the term “Henna Body
Art.” All of these words describe the same
timeless art form, body painting for festive
occasions.
Mehendi came into use because of its
cooling therapeutic effect in a hot climate,
and, in India, it was also a way for a bride and
groom to get to know one another before
an arranged marriage. The most auspicious
occasion warranting mehndi artwork is
the Indian wedding, where both bride and
bridegroom apply henna, as well as several
members of the bridal party. Mehendi on any
occasion symbolizes fertility. At the wedding,
henna artwork additionally symbolizes the
love between husband and wife, and the
stain’s long-lasting nature symbolizes the
enduring nature of their love. There are
numerous traditions that underlie the use
of mehndi, including wedding games and
legends. For example, the groom’s name is
usually written somewhere within the bride’s
mehndi; if he cannot find his name within
the intricate design, the bride is said to have
the control in the marriage.
For particularly auspicious occasions, men
apply mehndi as well. In Guyana, this trend
has caught on and the few local mehendi
artists are kept busy year round creating
unusual designs and applying them on the
bride and her female relatives and friends.
48 - Horizons 2009
With the increasing popularity of Hindi
Soaps and the longstanding fascination
that Guyanese have for Indian movies and
music, it is no surprise that there are lively
mehendi celebrations prior to weddings
that liberally utilize music interspersed with
lyrics pertaining to mehendi for singing and
dancing while the brides friends and family
adorn themselves and her with mehendi.
The not so adventurous may opt for more
modern stick on designs and tattoos that can
be removed quickly.
Henna can also be used as a cooling agent
even in deodorant. Henna oil or a thick henna
paste is applied on to the hair to prevent
greyness. It is used in many Ayurvedic
medicines too. Henna Oil is extracted from
within the flower of henna plant which is
then used for treating muscle pain, headache
and wounds. The outer portion of the
plant i.e, the bark, is used to cure jaundice,
eczema( skin disease), burns, ulcers, itching
and swelling.
THE ART OF APPLYING AND
MAKING MEHENDI
Ingredients
1 cup boiling water
2 tablespoons black tea or coffee
3 teaspoons sifted henna powder (do
not skip the sifting step!)
1 teaspoon eucalyptus oil
Lemon-Sugar Glaze
strained juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon sugar
1. Boil the cup of water and add tea or coffee.
Let it steep for a few hours. Strain to remove
any particles or tea material. Make a smooth
henna paste by sifting the dry mehndi /
henna powder to remove any debris. Put
henna powder into a plastic or glass bowl and
add eucalyptus oil, BUT DO NOT BLEND!
Slowly add the tea/coffee about 3 teaspoons
at a time to the powder and stir with a small
spoon. Use the spoon to press the powder
and water together. Allow to sit for anywhere
between 6 and 12 hours. Really!The longer
you let it sit, the smoother the mixture
will become as all henna particles become
absorbed. Note- to ensure maximum colour,
the henna powder should be green – this is a
sign of its freshness. (Alternatively dry leaves
in sunlight and crush to make a paste.)
49 - Horizons 2009
2. After the paste is ready take a plastic cone with a very fine key-hole
at the end. Pour the paste into the cone and tie the broader end with a
rubber band.
3. Hold the cone in the right hand and gently squeeze the paste on the
palm and start making patterns.
4. Keep the palm horizontal and let the patterned-paste rest on it till dry.
5. Leave it on for as long as it takes to get the stains deeper. Body heat and
warmth gets the mehendi darker.
6. When it is almost dry, soak a piece of cotton in sugar and lemon solution
and apply lightly on the designs so it further darkens to a reddish-brown
hue that can last for weeks. An important property of adding the lemonsugar solution is that it keeps the mehendi wet enough to continue going
into your skin. Just make sure not to add the lemon-sugar prematurely;
if you add it too early, your hard work may be destroyed if the design
smears.
7. After 4-6 hours wash off the hands with plain water.
8. Next, rub some baby oil, eucalyptus oil, or lotion on your hands to
remove excess henna and to improve the color of the mehndi. The oil
will additionally help to remove any stickiness caused by the lemon-sugar.
If you want to darken your stain immediately, you can put your hands in
contact of some heat source (hair dryer) or hover your hands over the
smoke of burning cloves. Otherwise, simply wait a day and your henna
design will darken to a brown. A word of warning: do not wet the area
with your finished henna design for at least twelve hours. Otherwise the
color will not come as dark as it potentially could. If you decide to leave
mehendi on overnight to get the maximum dark color, apply a lemon and
sugar juice before you go to sleep; allow it to dry.
There are distinct differences in both the styles of design and the artwork
itself from region to region. For example, henna artwork in Arabia tends
to include large, bold, floral patterns and the style of application tends
to adorn both the palm & back of the hands, whilst still leaving a good
portion of the skin showing. Whereas henna artwork from Rajasthan in
Northern India tends to include fine-line, intricate, paisley patterns and
the style of application tends to mainly adorn the palm of the hand,
completely covering the skin like lace.
Why not try out a few of the designs shown below- Good Luck!
Badam
Lacha
An Irresistible and Memorable Sweet Treat
O
ur childhood days are filled with
many exhilarating recollections;
many of which we only hope can
return someday. One passion that surely
remains with us to date is the scrumptious
dishes we enjoyed. Growing up in an Indian
family, one is incapable of escaping from the
delectable “seven- curry’ and “sweet meats”
that span across all generations. Naming a
favorite in the latter category is very difficult.
Perhaps, Badam Lacha as it inspired the
attached chronicle and gratifies my taste
buds. Clearly a bit of a misnomer as the
badam lacha of present day does not have an
ounce of almond (badam).
Badam Lacha is string like candy made in
different colors from flour, ghee and sugar.
Despite being a favoured delicacy among all
walks of life, this is the least cooked of all
the “sweet meats” owing to difficulties in
By: Deodat Persaud
preparation. Many resort to purchasing it;
thus making it the mostly sold “sweet meat”
according Bharrati Panchan of Ankerville,
Port Mourant and vendor attached to the
New Amsterdam Market for over 6 years.
Neeta, as she is referred to by her fellow
vendors, recalled that it was at the tender age
of nine, that her mother taught her the skills
of making badam lacha. At that time, her
mother was the lone seller of such products at
the Rose Hall Town Market. The knowledge
was imparted to her mother and “mausie” by
her grandmother. She confidently added that
it has become a family tradition to sell such
products and is optimistic that her daughter
will follow suit.
Mrs. Panchan said she is happy to share the
recipe with anyone and instructs that ghee be
melted in pan over moderate heat and flour
added while sifting to hot ghee. The flour
51 - Horizons 2009
is toasted until lightly golden and spread
on thin foil. In a karahi, a mixture of sugar,
water and essence is boiled until it becomes
thick and syrup like. The mixture is quickly
poured onto the toasted flour with quick
back and forth strokes. The sweet mix is then
stretched using a fork so that it gets floured
and is as thin as possible. Then it is cooled
slightly and sealed off. This process takes
about one and half hours and once sealed
has a shelf life of two-three months.
Earning a living for over 14 years using this
candy as a base for her “sweet meat” stall,
Mrs. Panchan always remain appreciative of
her ancestors who brought this profitable
creation to Guyana. Unlike her friends, who
after completing secondary education opted
to further their studies, she contentedly
prefers to continue in the vending path that
was made by her family. She enjoys Badam
Lacha for its quick return rate in profitability,
adding that her busy days are Mondays
and Saturdays. She humbly boasts that her
product is purchased and sent overseas in
large amounts.
While Badam Lacha may just satisfy our
craving senses, for Mrs. Panchan it is way
beyond what we can comprehend – simply
put “it is life for her”. This is a dish that
accompanied her from childhood to her
present state – a dedicated wife and mother
of two. She assures that there are absolutely
no regrets in selling this product. In earlier
days she suffered many burns in the process
of learning and failed on many attempts. In
some instances, she mistakenly poured lime
juice; she jokingly interjected or boiled the
syrup too much. She notes “it is the hardest
thing to make and the fastest thing to sell”.
To compound this difficulty she had to leave
her then Black Bush Polder home and travel
miles to reach the Rose Hall Town Market,
her first vending location. Her humourous
disposition is as enduring as the ancient
brass pot which was handed down to her by
her grandmother and which she still uses to
make her badam lacha.
Badam Lacha reconnects me to those days
when it was Friday at the Rose Hall Estate
Market- the only day it was being sold and
my father would buy this along with jalebi
and gulab jamun. I remember trying to stay
away from the gusty winds to avoid it being
smeared all over me. But this was impossible
as the joy lies in it being glued to one’s face.
Badam Lacha has over the years remained
in demand and continues to be one of the
most inimitable and unique blends. No one
can ever say that they have gotten enough
since it is not as regular as the other namkeen
consumed during our festivals. If there is a
need to reconnect to your fond childhood
memories, try Badam Lacha!
Holi Celebrations and the
IPL Match in Cape Town, South Africa
H
OLI, or Phagwah as it is more
commonly known in Guyana, is
my favourite of all the calendar
holidays and I eagerly look forward to the
celebrations each year. I enthusiastically
participate in the host of activities
commencing with Basant Panchmi (planting
of Holika), chowtaal singing, the Phagwah
Mela, Holika Dahaan (burning of Holika),
and of course culminating the celebration at
the Kendra on Holi day where the masses
converge to doused each other with abrak
and abeer in a hyped, vibrant, and colourful
atmosphere.
Holi 2009, however, was going to be different
for me. It was going to be the very first time
I would be spending this festival away from
home and my family, and missing all the
activities associated with the celebration in
Guyana.
I had arrived in South Africa just a few weeks
before Holi to begin a Master’s of Science
By: Ian Kisson
Degree programme at the University of
Cape Town. Some of my initial thoughts
of moving to Cape Town were the
deprivation of the spicy Guyanese food
and the Hindu religious observances.
As I did the pre-arrival research, I was
pleased to learn that there was a thriving
Indian and Hindu community in Cape
Town. More importantly though, I
learnt that it was in South Africa where
Mahatma Gandhi started his passive
resistant movement and where he lived
21 years of his life.
With Holi fast approaching, I visited a
couple of Mandirs in the city inquiring
of the programmes to mark the
celebration. It was unanimous that the
“Radha Krishna Temple” was the place
to be on Holi day so I visited the Temple
to learn of the programme. I was greeted
by the Temple priest who was also a new
resident to Cape Town. Coming from
India, he too was keen on having a good
54 - Horizons 2009
Ian Kisson in South Africa
puja as the children were busy playing Holi in
the background. Their screams and laughter
filled the air as they chase each other with
small vessels of water. The gathering joined
the priest in the rituals and then energetic
Holi renditions, done in Gujrati style
and accompanied by skillful and versatile
musicians, livened the atmosphere. The puja
continued with the lighting of the fire and
offering of grains or Hola, from which the
word Holi is derived. The women actively
participated by going around the fire as they
offered coconut water, throwing the nut into
the fire. With the women still standing around
the fire, the priest invited the husbands to
join and play Holi with their wives first.
There was much giggling and joy in the faces
of the couples as they affectionately applied
abrak and exchanged blessings. The children
joined in and it became quite a special
moment as the bond of families are renewed
and greetings are exchanged.
transformed into a festive frenzy of people
exchanging colours and greetings, and there
was a small gathering of youths who played
Holi the way we do in Guyana…drenching
each other with water, abeer, and abraak.
Before long, they were all covered with
purples, yellows, reds, greens, and pinks, the
colours of Holi. Apart from not spending
Holi with my family, I wasn’t missing home
for that moment.
With the fire taking shape, the men
surrounded the Holika armed with long
sticks as they tried to retrieve the roasted
coconuts. There was much excitement as
the proud husband brought in his “catch”
and the family ceremoniously receives the
coconut. The atmosphere was then quickly
Several weeks after Holi, the announcement
of the Indian Premier League (IPL) to be
played in South Africa brought another round
of excitement. A few of the preliminary
matches were going to be played at the
renowned Sahara Park Cricket Stadium in
Cape Town, and I was going to be there
IPL 2009
Holi celebration and invited me to attend.
Attired in a kurta suit and armed with my
camera, I arrived at the Temple just in time
for the daily aarti. Upon entering the large
compound, I observed what looked like the
Holika. Though it was a lot smaller than the
one in Georgetown, it didn’t matter as it I
was going to be part of Holika Dahaan and
became excited. The conch of the priest
summoned everyone inside and he led the
congregation in aarti. The mantras recited
and bhajans sung were all too familiar and
I felt at home. Glancing around during the
aarti, I noticed the Temple was filling quite
quickly.
Ladies at Holi Puja
After the aarti, the priest invited everyone
outside to take part in the Holi puja, rather
than the burning of Holika, as I later learned.
Mostly the women carried thalis with the
puja ingredients, and the Mahila Mandalee
was quite active in ensuring that everyone
who wished to partake in the puja had the
ingredients.
Mainly the adults gathered around for the
55 - Horizons 2009
There were more similarities than differences
in the celebration of Holi in Cape Town
compared to Guyana, and the differences
were appreciated. The performing of the
Holi puja predates the Prahalad story and the
burning of Holika, and it was how Holi was
first observed thousands of years ago. The
puja also allowed for the entire congregation,
including women, to be involved, and for
members of a family to perform this sacred
act together.
to watch this major world cricketing event
LIVE.
The matches were being played under the
Cape Town winter skies but despite the
cold, the stadium was packed with ardent
fans from near and far, including Bollywood
superstars and IPL team co-owners Shah
Rukh Khan, Shilpa Shetty and Preity Zinta.
The lineup of international cricket players
like Shane Warne, Kevin Pietersen, Brett
Lee, Sourav Ganguly and Dwayne Bravo
from our West Indies team thrilled the crowd
with fours, sixes and fall of wickets. These
uproars were complemented with spectacular
pyrotechnic displays and cheerleaders
dancing to spicy Bollywood tunes bellowing
through a surround sound system. The
Rajasthan Royals became the favourite team
for Capetonians but they failed in the end
to win the coveted prize. Nevertheless, the
experience of watching the IPL live was
unlike any other cricket match I have been
to. From the live bands, lighting and special
effects, cheerleaders, fireworks…it was
nothing short of a theatrical extravagance
amidst an exciting game of cricket.
The Mahatma Gandhi
M
Monument In Guyana
ohandas Gandhi became a legacy
to the world. The 2nd October, his
birthday is celebrated as a national
holiday in India known as Gandhi Jayanti
while the United Nations unanimously
adopted a resolution declaring the same day
as the International Day of Non-Violence.
Today, all currency notes in India have a
portrait of Gandhi on it.
In 1969, the United Kingdom issued a
series of stamps, while Guyana erected a
sculpture of him (the Gandhi monument)
to commemorate the centenary of Mahatma
Gandhi.
By: Lisa Seeram
The Gandhi Monument which is situated
inside the Promenade Gardens was erected
on the 2nd October, 1969. The statue which
was sculpted in India by R.B. Patel is made
of brass, weighs five hundred pounds (500
lbs) and cost $14,000 in those days.
The erection of the monument by the
Mahatma Gandhi Organization was made
possible through the support of the Lord
Mayor of Georgetown and City Council.
The statue was unveiled by His Excellency
the Governor General of Guyana Sir David
Rose to reveal a life size monument of
Painting of Mahatma Gandhi Statue from Promenade Gardens
Gandhi in his traditional wear of loin cloth,
sandals and walking stick. It depicts Gandhi
during the famous Dandi Salt March.
A spinning wheel is situated beneath the
statue which “epitomizes and symbolizes
an age of prodigious ferment recalling his
struggle against the pressure of the British
in India and the determined spirit of the
Gandhian Movement to pressure them into
acquiescence” . Attached to the wheel is an
aluminum band on which is inscribed in
English and Hindi one of the key quotations
of the Mahatma – “Truth & non-violence
are my God”.
The unveiling on the statue was followed by
a candle light parade through the city streets
to the Gandhi Youth Organization grounds
where there was a film show and devotional
singing . Every year after the erection and
unveiling of the Gandhi Statue, a ceremony
is held at the Promenade Gardens on
Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary. During
this ceremony, the statue is garlanded and
bhajans are sung.
About Mahatma
Gandhi
Mohandas Gandhi was born on Oct. 2,
1869, in Porbandar, a seacoast town in the
Kathiawar Peninsula north of Bombay. His
wealthy family was of a Modh Bania subcaste
of the Vaisya, or merchant caste. He was
the fourth child of Karamchand Gandhi,
prime minister to the Raja of three small
city-states. Gandhi described his mother
as a deeply religious woman who attended
temple service daily. Mohandas was a small,
quiet boy who disliked sports and was only
an average student. At the age of 13 he was
married without foreknowledge of the event
to a girl of his own age, Kasturbai. The
childhood ambition of Mohandas was to
study medicine, but as this was considered
defiling to his caste, his father prevailed on
him to study law instead.
57 - Horizons 2009
Gandhi in 1886
and concentrated on the “constructive
programme” until 1940 when he briefly
resumed leadership of the Congress at
a time when India had been declared
to be at war. This declaration, made in
1939, was opposed by the Congress,
which offered to support the war effort
provided it was given a firm guarantee
of independence. The rejection of such
promise by the colonial government
led the Congress to launch a Quit
India Movement (1942). This national
movement was ruthlessly suppressed
and Gandhi was kept in detention at
the Aga Khan Palace until 1944.
Gandhi was educated in Gujarat and
England, where he qualified as a
barrister. Unable to secure employment
in the Legal field on his return to India
he left for South Africa in 1883. In
South Africa he became involved
in number of struggles against the
authorities. During these agitations
Gandhi perfected the technique of
non-violent protest that he was to use
later in India.
Gandhi returned to India in 1915.
Immediately he joined in the task of
building the Indian National Congress
(Congress) as a mass movement. His
simple style of a white loin-cloth,
white shawl, and sandals appealed to
rural masses who soon gave him the
title “Mahatma” (great soul).
Gandhi’s political philosophy revolved
around three key concepts: satyagraha
(non-violence), sawaraj (home rule), and
sarvodaya (welfare of all). Whereas satyagraha
was essentially a tactic of achieving political
ends by non-violent means, sawaraj and
sarvodaya sought to encourage — through
social work, spinning of cotton, rural uplift,
and social welfare — ideas of individual and
collective improvement and regeneration.
Such regeneration, Gandhi insisted, was
necessary if India was to rediscover her
enduring historical and religious self and
throw off British rule.
In 1919 Gandhi persuaded the Congress to
launch a Non-Cooperation Movement (1919
– 22) that soon attracted the support of the
Muslim community.
During the next five years Gandhi devoted
himself to the “constructive programme” —
social work aimed at upliftment of the poor
and building Muslim-Hindu unity. Following
the Simon Commission (1927 – 30) and the
Nehru Report (1928), he launched the Civil
Disobedience Movement (1930 – 3) which
began with the famous Dandi Marcha and
the Salt Satyagraha. This movement was
suspended for a while as Gandhi participated
in the Round Table Conference (1931) in
London. During his visit to London he
stayed with the poor in the East End. But as
the conference failed to produce an outcome
satisfactory to Congress, the agitation was
resumed upon return to India. The failure
of the Round Table Conference led to the
announcement of the Communal Award
(1932) by the British government which
gave communal representation, including
untouchable Hindus, in provincial legislatures.
This award led Gandhi to undertake a fast
that led to the Poona Pact (1932) by which
untouchable leaders renounced separate
representation for remaining within the
Hindu fold.
Gandhi severed formal links with the
Congress in 1934 but remained its guiding
light. He moved to his ashram in Wardha
58 - Horizons 2009
Between 1944 and 1945 Gandhi
engaged in prolonged dialogue with M.
A. Jinnha, leader of the Muslim League,
for a political settlement that could
accommodate both the Congress and
the League. These discussions proved
fruitless and, as the end of British rule
loomed, Gandhi became increasingly
sidelined in the discussions about the
post-independence shape of India.
Gandhi’s last major act as a national political
leader was to fast for peace amidst growing
sectarian conflict between Hindus and
Muslims. Twice he fasted in Calcutta (1946
and 1947) to protest against the religious
killing that was taking place. After partition
in August 1947, Gandhi returned to Delhi
to help restore harmony among Hindus and
Muslims. Gandhi’s activities had aroused
much hostility among Hindu extremists. On
30 January 1948, Nathuram Godse, who was
the editor of Hindu Mahasabah an extremist
weekly, shot Gandhi at point blank range
while he was on his way to the evening prayer
meeting. He died instantly.
Gandhi is revered in India as “the father
of the nation”. Since his death he has
become the source of inspiration for nonviolent political movements such as the civil
rights movement in the USA and Northern
Ireland.
Critics of Gandhi have argued that his tactics
unnecessarily delayed the departure of the
British, precipitated the partition of India,
and led to the Hinduization of Congress
because of his over-emphasis on religion.
His defence of caste especially annoyed the
untouchable (outcastes) who were denied
political independence due to astute political
manœuvres. Few of Gandhi’s ideas were put
into practice by independent India.
Kitchen
Utensils
brought by the Indian Immigrants
I
ndian cooking evolved in a quieter world
where there was more time and help for
the kitchen. It would not make much
sense in today’s modern world to attempt to
mimic the cookware and tools that existed in
the original Indian kitchen.
A good cook knows clearly what kind of
utensil should be chosen for a certain kind
of food to keep both nutrition and taste. A
proper cooking utensil should be suitable for
heating on both thermal and induction heat
sources.
Cooking utensils are made of three substances
aluminum, lead and iron. 52% of all cookware
is made with aluminum. Cooking utensils
can be organized into several categories
depending on their function and the kind
of cooking that is desired. The categories
include preparation equipment such as pots,
pans, metal objects and spoons to be used
for protection from heat.
Many innovative and distinctive kitchen
utensils were brought by East Indian
immigrants to British Guiana in an effort to
continue their traditional style of cooking.
Just as many of their dishes have been
incorporated into the Guyanese diet and
national cuisine so too have many of their
utensils been absorbed into today’s Guyanese
kitchen.
By: Chandrouti Sarran
pan useful for roti (all types) and
chota or pancakes. A chulha
(mud type stove) in the olden
days would have housed side by
side roasting baigan (egg plant)
and fluffy swollen sada roti.
Like the modern versions of the
karahi, tawas too are made of
aluminum. A common request
from overseas Guyanese used to
be “bring a tawa and karahi when
you coming up nah.”
The tawa was versatile also in the
old days; the wires of an old iron
would be cut and the iron placed
on the tawa to be heated to iron
clothing.
The BELNA (rolling –pin) and
CHOWKI (board) have become
famous in anecdotes and songs.
New daughters-in law are judged
by their competency in wielding
the belna and churning out
round rotis. A picture of an irate
wife or mother –in –law waving
a belna is never far from one’s
mind when listening to some of
the more entertaining lyrics of
songs.
The KARAHI is a small or big cast iron
(circular) shaped pot. The orientation of this
utensils was carefully thought of because it
requires receiving maximum heat to be kept
in the utensils for deep-frying continuously
since it transmits the heat evenly. Today there
are many variations in the type of metal
used to make the karahi; aluminum karahis
are perhaps most popular. Persons whose
kitchens boast an authentic cast iron karahi
may have been fortunate to receive it from
an ancestor or purchased it decades ago.
Whatever, the metal type karahis are still the
choice when frying phoulouries, potato balls,
baiganies and gul gulas.
The TAWA is a good anodized flat circular
59 - Horizons 2009
The crock-pot is good for stews that need
a lot of slow cooking time. It retains the
flavours and lets the stew simmer without
attention. .
MOOSAR and OKHALI (mortar and
pestle) are good for the coarse grinding of
spices and herbs. LORHA and SIL are used
to grind spices, coconut chokha and pepper.
GORHARI or daal pot – this is used to
boil peas as a combination of a balanced
diet consisting of rice, daal and any other
vegetable to complete the meal. DAL
GUTNI is a wooden implement used to
crush split pea grains when making dal.
Large cast iron pots and karahis are very
visible at the cooking site for wedding and
large functions. Everyone is unanimous that
dal cooked at a wedding house in the gorhari
has a special flavour that just encourages one
to consume several cups before leaving.
Many substances can be absorbed from the
utensils into the food that is being cooked,
some of which are essential to human health.
Nutritionists recommend using the ironmade cookware for the purpose of keeping
good health. There is significant evidence
that iron pots increase the amount of iron
in our diet.
In the Indian Guyanese culture, young
dulahin (bride) was given utensils as a
tradition to continue the art of cooking for
one’s self and in-laws. Cooking utensils are
very important to a household because we
cannot live without eating. In fact, the utensils
that are used to cook food often do more
than just holding food. Women take pride in
collecting these utensils as it enhances their
kitchen corner and more importantly the
mode of preparation requires the correct
usage of pots and pans. Can you imagine
boiling rice in a frying pan?
Onkar Singh
Celebrating a Musical Icon
O
By: Ravi & Lokesh Singh
nkar Romeash Chandra Singh was born on September
7th, 1948 as the sixth of fourteen children to Radhay
Janki Singh and Jai Narain Singh of 65 Cross Street,
Alexander Village, Plantation Ruimveldt, East Bank Demerara,
Guyana. In his early years he enjoyed the colourful plantation
and village life with his siblings and was well grounded in the rich
Hindu traditions of his family and community.
Onkar attended Baird’s private school and then Central High
School in Georgetown where he and half of his siblings completed
their secondary education. In his younger years he played a lot of
cricket at the village, estate and school levels and was a reasonable
off spinner and a competent batsman. He captained the Ruimveldt
Estate under 21 Team which was successful in winning the East
Bank Estates competition. He and his brothers Khemraj and
Vickram represented Central High School at cricket. Onkar also
represented the school in both the Wight Cup and Chin Cup
competitions as well as Plantation Ruimveldt in the East Bank
of Demerara cricket competitions. Onkar had a special love for
cricket and one of his greatest thrills was meeting Rohan Kanhai,
Garfield Sobers, Peter May and Colin Cowdrey in 1961.
After leaving Central High Onkar attended the Guyana School
of Agriculture at Mon Repos and worked at Diamond Estate for
a short while as a trainee Agronomist. He was later admitted to
Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA to
study for a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture. His wife
Sita joined him in his second term, and was a tower of strength
during his period of study in the USA as he studied and they
raissed a family. Upon his graduation with a BSc in Agriculture
Onkar made a 180 degree change in fields and was admitted to
pursue a Masters Degree in Finance and on graduation started a
Onkar with his family
Ravi & His Father
62 - Horizons 2009
reputation as a musician and every Sunday
afternoon would be spent at Radio Demerara
as a lead musician for “Local Indian
Performers”, a popular radio show that aired
every Sunday at 2:30 PM. He and his brother
Vickram were members of the Gemini
Orchestra and they accompanied almost all
of the top Indian vocalists of Guyana at the
time including Gobin Ram, Mohan Nandu,
Beni Balkaran, Krishna Singh, Rookmin
Sitaram, Esther Haniff and others.
Onkar fell in love with the sound of the Sitar
while listening to a A 45” LP in Pandit Reepu’s
collection entitled “India’s Master Musician”
which featured India’s Bharat Ratna and the
man known as India’s Ambassador to the
world, Pandit Ravi Shankar. It was truly love
at first sound. Onkar was totally captivated
by Pandit Ravi Shankar’s command of the
Raag-Ragini system of North India and
would begin a life journey to master the
Sitar.
new life with his young family as a permanent
resident in Toronto, Canada.
As a youngster he took a great liking for
music growing up in a house which was a hub
for music and dance and was encouraged by
his mother who was herself a good musical
talent. She arranged for him and his brother
Vickram to be tutored in the harmonium and
dholak by Garbar – a musical icon of his era
in Guyana and that was the beginning of his
musical life which spanned over 40 years and
has touched lives all across the world. .
In Guyana Onkar went to all parts of the
country with his brother-in-law, the Hon.
Pandit Reepu Daman Persaud whom he
shared a close bond, as he read crowdinspiring Yagnas, this allowed Onkar to meet
and play music for and with many of the
musical greats of Guyana and at the same
time hone his musical talents. Even when at
the Guyana School of Agriculture he would
seek the elderly musical talents of the area
after school and get working sessions with
them to increase his knowledge and skill at
playing the dholak, tabla and harmonium
which was his specialty.
He developed a passion for classical Indian
In his early years of studies in the Sitar, he
spent time with Arvind Myakar and Gokul
Baksh. As Onkar migrated to Toronto,
Canada his Sitar studies continued under
Professor HS Adesh and Randev Pandit. His
next guru was Steven Oda who is a senior
disciple of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan of the
music and sought out the best available
expertise in Guyana at the time to increase
his musical prowess.The Onkar with his parents & siblings
Indian Cultural Center
became a second home
where he was registered
for classes with the various
teachers who came from
India.
The legendary VP Balsara
from India first set Onkar’s
hand on the keyboard
with the message that the
study of scales and paltas
(basic excercises) would
lead to proficiency over
all melodies and he then
dedicated countless hours
to the study of the Sargam
(the Indian scale system).
When it came to tabla,
Onkar had the fortune of
spending a great deal of
time with Pandit Sudarshan
Adhikari of the Mumbai
Film Industry.
While still in Guyana,
Onkar developed quite a
63 - Horizons 2009
With his Brothers
Onkar could further his studies. Partha Bose
bestowed unto Onkar a sitar hand crafted
by the master craftsman of India, the famed
sitar maker Hemen Babu.
As a performer, Onkar’s mastery of his
Sitar was shared in over 100 programs with
audiences who loved his music in Guyana
and Canada at places such as The University
of Toronto, Markham Theatre, the National
Cultural Centre, The Habour Front Centre,
The Minkler Auditorium, Roy Thompson
Hall, Vishnu Mandir, Tarana Dance Centre,
OSSICC (Ontario Society for Studies in Indo
Carribbean Cultutre), The Hospital For Sick
Children and The Government of Ontario.
His proficiency on the Sitar had reached
a professional standard and showcased a
maturity and resonance that was charming
and captivating.
Onkar In India
Maihar-Baba Allaudin Khansahib Gharana
of music. Onkar spent over 10 years with
Steve Oda learning some of the most famous
gats and compositions.
His most recent guru was a young master
sitarist from Kolkata, Sri Partha Bose with
whom he had a very close bond. For the next
10 years trips were made between Kolkata,
India and Toronto, Canada every year so that
64 - Horizons 2009
Beyond studies and performance, Onkar
believed in sharing his talent and spent
countless hours every week teaching students
of all ages the art of classical music. His first
student was his daughter Kirti, who found a
deep passion for the art of Kathak Dance.
Kirti’s competency and grasp over complex
Kathak rhythms can partially be credited to
With his Wife Sitra
her father. Onkar’s Son Ravi is the one person
who he has shared his music with more than
anyone. At the age of five, Onkar intiated Ravi
into Classical music and was the first to set
Ravi’s hand on the tabla. Onkar further took
Ravi to the legendary Pandit Sharda Sahai of
Benares Gharana with whom Ravi became
a disciple. Ravi’s own musical achievements
have reached a very high standard with tours
across the world and a busy teaching and
performance schedule.
Onkar’s philanthropic efforts lead him to
organize and promote Indian Classical music
through concerts under the umbrella of The
Vishnu Mandir. Dr. Budhendra Doobay who
is the leader of the Vishnu Mandir was a
close friend to Onkar approached him with
the request to fill the halls of Vishnu Mandir
with Classical Music. Based on this request,
Onkar founded the Shastriya Sangeet Group
of Vishnu Mandir (SSGVM). This group
had the fortune of hosting several top
quality Indian Classical Musicians including
Sri Partha Bose, Pandit Swapan Chauduri,
Shri Hemant Panwar, Shri Vineet Vyas, Shri
Balmiki Sharma and the legendary dynamo
of brothers from Benares, Pandits Rajan &
Sajan Mishra. Onkar’s efforts to promote
these concerts were a tremendous success
With his sister Vijai acting as
Prahalad
with jam packed audiences being exposed
to the rich cultural tradition that has been so
close to his own heart. At the Vishnu Mandir,
Onkar was also responsible for getting the
Sangeet Academy off the ground. He was
named the first “principal” of the academy.
His son, Ravi was the first tabla teacher at the
Sangeet Academy. Now the
institution is fully equipped
with a roster of active teachers
from India contributing to the
musical growth of youngsters
in Canada.
Onkar
Singh’s
musical
contributions and passion are
truly remarkable but what is
most noteworthy is that his
cultural achievements are
partnered with the highest
levels of academic distinction
and professional success.
Onkar’s professional life in
Canada was spent primarily
working as a Senior Executive
for the Bank of Nova Scotia
where he rose to the highest
executive level managing a
portfolio in the hundreds of
65 - Horizons 2009
millions of dollars. He did a short stint with
a development company as Treasurer and
Chief Financial Officer before returning to
the bank.
The most interesting remarks Onkar’s
colleagues share are less about his work and
new trails for the betterment of his family.
As he came abroad to Canada he was able
assimilate without losing his own cultural
identity and the community has benefited by
what he has passed on. His rich skills were
only matched by his pleasant nature and deep
warmth. When Onkar Singh died on March
19th, 2008, the Indo-Guyanese community
in Canada felt a tremendous loss. Luckily,
Onkar’s work was not in vain. The example
he has set continues to inspire and the work
he has done has created a better Canada for
those following in his footsteps.
With Shri Partha Bose
more to do with how much they admired
his character, values and ethic. Onkar has
shaped so many lives by the impact left in a
minute or in many occasions. He exemplifies
the lineage of hard working, industrious
Indo-Guyanese that came before him. In his
pursuit of academics, professional gain and
cultural promotion, he stands tall as a pillar
in the community.
Just like the generations before him who
crossed the “kala pani”, Onkar had to blaze
Onkar Singh has left a permanent mark
on the Indo-Guyanese community in
Canada and the larger Canadian mosaic
as a whole. Though his life has ended his
legacy continues with over 50 students who
actively perform music, his two children who
are heavily involved in various cultural and
social activities and the annual Onkar Singh
Memorial Scholarship provided to the Natya
Arts Council of Canada. In addition there
will be a permanent exhibit at The Canadian
Museum of Hindu Civilization entitled
“Music Of The Shastryas” where Onkar’s
life collection of rare Indian Music will be
made public effective September 7th, 2010.
Shri Prakash Gossai
P
A Tribute to a Musical Legend
rakash Gossai was born on April 25,
1953 at Handsome Tree, Mahaica
Creek, Guyana. He was part of a
large family and the son of Pandit Bissondial
Gossai and his wife Rewti Gossai. He
attended Cummings’ Lodge Government
School on the East Coast where he took his
GCE ‘O’ level examinations. After leaving
school, his first job was a teaching position
at Vryheid’s Lust Government School. He
later went to the University of Guyana and
graduated as the Top Student in the Faculty
of Natural Sciences. With an interest in
medicine, he worked at the Laboratory of
the Georgetown Public Hospital until he
migrated to the USA in 1983.
Having a keen interest in music and a melodious
singing voice, a teenage Prakash joined the
Mahatma Gandhi Youth Organisation in
Georgetown where he continued playing
the harmonium and developing his singing
skills. There he received musical guidance
and training from Darshanandji. In 1981
he competed in the annual Mukesh Singing
Competition and was declared the winner
with list of prizes including a trip to
Canada. In Guyana, Prakash also
attended many Yagyas with Pandit
Reepu Daman Persaud and a number
of Guyana’s top singers and musicians.
In addition to bhajan singing, he
usually played the harmonium as Pt.
Persaud chanted from the Ramayan.
Gossai also sang a number of film
songs and devotionals at satsanghs,
yagyas, melas, bazaars and cultural
programmes at Queen’s College. He
was also a regular performer on Radio
Demerara’s Sunday afternoon Indian
music hour shows appearing with
some of Guyana’s best Indian musical
talent to include the late musical
maestro Onkar Singh, his brother
Vickram Singh who played the dholak and
tabla, Gobin Ram, Mohan Nandu, David
Singh, William Balgobin and others.
He married Leila Singh from Pomeroon
in 1975, daughter of Sukhdeo Singh and
Roodranie Singh and they have two children
Arun and Pratiksha. Leila spoke very often
on Dharmic Sabha’s morning
radio programmes and
Shri Prakash sometimes
spoke or sang on those
programmes
in
the
seventies.
In 1983, Prakashji left for
Queens, New York in the
Recieving the Medal of Service
from President Jagdeo
67 - Horizons 2009
United States of America where he began
teaching Marine Biology with the New York
Board of Education where he interacted with
many Hindu youths. After discussions with
family and friends in 1984, he saw the need
for a Hindu grouping and together with other
Hindus started devotions in the basement
of a building on Stanhope St. in Brooklyn.
When persons scheduled to deliver religious
lessons did not show up, Gossai would fill in
with chanting or a simple katha. Eventually,
his reputation as a singer and the Mandir he
founded grew. In 1987, The Bhuvaneshwar
Mandir was founded and established in
Brooklyn, and was later relocated to a new
venue in Ozone Park, Queens in 2004. The
Mandir became recognised as one of the
foremost Indian-Guyanese Hindu temples
With his children Arun & Pratiksha
in the United States and became the regular
venue for Shri Prakash’s satsanghs and
services.
In 1992, he gave up his Science career to
follow a spiritual life. He recognized that
devotees from the West Indies did not
understand Hindi so he adopted the method
of explaining religious concepts in song
and simple language. He admitted, “It was
then that people started to understand the
meaning… so I believe that is what made me
very popular.” He did numerous recordings
and his CDs and Bhajan books are very
popular. His most popular and favorite
composition is “Aye Bhi Akela, Jaye Bhi
Akela – man comes into this world alone and
leaves alone”. Shri Prakash has also recorded
a number of Ramayan chantings and
discourses. He was an excellent harmonium
player and spent time teaching young people
at the Mandir. His popularity as a singer was
instrumental in him singing at many religious
gatherings, and Mandirs regularly invited him
to sing for fund raising ventures. The final
award of Lifetime Membership was given
by Devi Mandir in recognition for his fund
raising contributions to the Mandir.
In 1993, Shri Prakashji
went to India to
study with his Guru,
Brahmrishi Vishvatma
Bawraji Maharaj of
Pinjore, Haryana. India.
In the hermitage he
spent the better part of
the next year receiving
teachings from Swamiji.
Subsequent to the stint
at the Ashram, Prakashji
has traveled and lectured
widely, speaking to
capacity audiences in
many
temples and
other venues in the
United States, Canada, England, Trinidad
and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica, Venezuela,
the British Virgin Islands and has returned
several times to his homeland of Guyana.
On April 19, 2002 Shri Prakashji was
recognized at the Devi Mandir in Pickering,
Ontario, Canada for his contribution to
the Canadian Hindu community. He was
presented with an award from the Premier of
Ontario and the Honorable John Hastings,
Member of Provincial Parliament for his
contribution to the Hindu community in the
Province of Ontario, Canada. The Federation
of Hindu Temples also presented him with
an award for his dedication, commitment and
support to the Hindu Temples of Canada.,
In 2002, the Government of Guyana
presented Prakashji with the Medal of
Service award on the anniversary of Guyana’s
Independence, for his positive contribution
and commitment to his native land. In
2007, Shri Prakash was appointed Special
Assistant to the President in the Office of
the President and later on Chairman of the
National Council on Suicide Prevention,
established by the Ministry of Health.
Shri Prakash Gossai passed away in The
United States of America after being flown
out of Guyana with complaints of angina.
He was fifty six years old.
Since his passing and in tribute to his
memory, the Bhuvaneshwar Mandir in New
York, USA has been renamed the “Shri
Prakash Gossai Bhuvaneshwar Mandir”
and the recently constructed Health Center
in Mahaicony Creek, Guyana has also been
renamed the “ Shri Prakash Gossai Health
Centre – Mora Point” in his honour by the
Government of Guyana.
His untimely passing is a major loss to
his family, the Hindu Community and the
musical world of Guyana and Guyanese in
the Diaspora.
(Thanks to Arun & Pratiksha Gossai)
With Pt. Reepu D. Persaud & his Brother-in-Law
Onkar Persaud
Cow’s
Milk
Tales
By: Dr. Vindhya Persaud & Lisa Seeran
69 - Horizons 2009
T
here are still some people who can
remember waking up to that early
morning bellow of ‘Milk!’ and the
clanking of the assorted sizes of milk cans
perched precariously on the bicycle handles
of the village milkman.
Milkman or Uncle as he would have been
called would have been up at the crack of
dawn milking his cows. Warm milk would be
distributed in various pint and gallon cans
ready to be handed out to the customer. A
quick transfer from can to pot and soon the
pleasant aroma of boiling milk would waft
through the kitchen to the rest of the house.
The not so health conscious would rush to
scoop off the fatty but tasty milk cream that
covered the freshly boiled milk. If there was
a new born calf a lucky customer would be
able to buy or be gifted the special first milk
of the cow that had just delivered which
would be used to make ‘painoos’. Once
eaten, the flavour of this delicacy of curdled
milk with a touch of sugar and spice is not
easily forgotten, sweetish and tangy at the
same time.
Immigrants arriving in British Guiana were
persons of the Ahir caste; cowherders and
cattle breeders mainly originating from
Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Bengal. Ahirs
are also referred to in Bengali as ‘Goala’
or protectors of the cow. Possibly, it was
this knowledge of cattle and milk which
influenced some of the immigrants’ natural
Among the early batches of East Indian
70 - Horizons 2009
progression to that means of livelihood
when they arrived in British Guiana. Many
families have supplied milk for generations
to a particular community or village. With
the dependence of the population at large
and significantly the Indo-Hindu community
on milk not only for sustenance but religious
purposes, families involved in the milk
business prospered for many years. Visitors
from India to Guyana today often remark on
the similarity of cows wandering the streets
freely in Guyana.
With recent health trends and the promotion
of fat-free and skim milk in addition to the
easily available boxed and powdered forms
of milk, less and less persons have that daily
glass of cow’s milk. However, cow’s milk
is still required in abundance for festive
occasions to whip up elaborate sweet dishes
ranging from pera, ras malai and barfis to the
simple but delightful kheer(sweet rice or rice
pudding).
Unlike years ago when cow’s milk was readily
available in large quantities, the milkman or
woman must now be called well in advance
to book those gallons of milk necessary
for large events. Guyanese customers are
particular about the quality of milk and
would be overheard discussing whether ‘de
milk water down’.
Modern day cooking is all about time saving
and over the last few years there has been local
ready-made paneer (blocks of cottage cheese)
available commercially. Paneer is made from
cow’s milk and used in curries, stews and
other innovative dishes. Small companies in
Guyana have also been providing yogurt and
sour cream so less effort is made at home to
make traditional Indian style yogurt or dahi.
Dahi is used extensively in India a dessert or
with the addition of cucumber and spices to
make raita. Raita is a cooling accompaniment
to the spicy authentic Indian dishes. Cow’s
milk is also used to make ghee at home
or commercially in Guyana for religious
purposes and cooking in a limited way. Fresh
ghee is used for diyas at Diwali and pujas and
many elders still prefer to churn the fresh
cow’s milk for their very own pure ghee. If
one happens to be around then ‘chanchi’; the
crispy remnants of boiled ghee with sugar
can be had.
Some folks will tell you quite proudly- ‘ awe
grow pun cow milk and nothing ain’t wrong
with we’.
Lisa Seeram chattted with 67 year
old Sukhia Suhram, matriarch of
the Sukhram family of Vryheid’s
Lust
According to Mrs. Sukhram, her family
was involved in selling milk for over 100
years. It all started with her grandparents
and proceeded with their children one of
whom was her father, then her and now her
children. When her father and his siblings
were old enough, her grandfather would give
them milk to sell. They would ride all the
way to Georgetown to sell this milk which
was sold for 1 penny per pint. Today, it costs
about $70 to $80 per pint.
Mrs. Sukhram has been selling milk for 33
years and even her children are doing the
same. Her son Stanley has about 50 cows he
would walk and sell his milk. Her other son
Ramgeet owns about 40 cows and he would
ride and sell milk.
They all have loyal customers who have
been buying milk for decades and a few
other persons who would buy whenever
the need arises. Most of their customers
buy milk (usually in small amounts, maybe
a few pints) to drink and to give to babies.
Ramgeet however, said that some people
would buy lots of milk when they have
religious functions. Mrs. Sukhram stated that
at times she would donate milk to the Mandir
to make kheer.
khram
Mrs. Sukhram’s Son Sells
Mil
k
Sukhia Su
71 - Horizons 2009
Both she and Ramgeet stated that the business
is profitable and that is their source of income
for their families. Ramgeet said however, that
problems exist when there is excess milk because
many people do not buy cow’s milk. When the
price for feed is expensive and they raise the
price for milk, people do not buy because they
say it is too expensive.
Sharing one of her personal experiences with
me, Mrs. Sukhram said that at one time she was
sick with ‘gas under her heart’ and that a doctor
told her to use cow’s milk that it will help and
indeed it helped her. Also, she has no complaints
about arthritis in her knees because of drinking
lots of cow’s milk everyday. Her point is that
cow’s milk is very healthy for persons of every
age and would like to encourage people to
drink cow’s milk. She would also like to thank
her customers who are from Better Hope for
supporting her all these years.
Whatever the mode of transport, the
quintessential milk- can filled with rich creamy
cow’s milk will be seen around Guyana for
generations !
Pera
Cow’s Milk
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup cow milk
¾ cup sugar
Ghee
METHOD:
Boil together milk, sugar and ghee. Keep stiring until the
mixture leaves the side of the pot. Remove from the fire beat
well and when it starts to form make into little balls and flatten.
(To avoid mixture sticking to hands, wet hands in ghee.)
Kheer
Cow’s Milk
INGREDIENTS
1 Pt. Rice
1 gal cow milk
1 tbsp. ghee
spice, clove, nutmeg
sugar to taste
Optional: Raisins
METHOD:
Wash and soak rice overnight. Bring to boil one gallon cow’s
milk. Add one tablespoon ghee to milk. Drain off water from
rice and lightly crush with hands then add to boiling milk.
Add spice and clove and leave to boil until rice is very soft. Then add grated nutmeg and sugar to taste.
Optional: Raisins can be added if desired
74 - Horizons 2009
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