The Writing Thread ... ressurected ...

[guyguy]

... continued

As with the steelpan, Calypso music and songs had been invented by the Afro-Trinidadians. Calypso songs are social commentaries that are set to an up-tempo, rhythmic beat. Indo-Trinidadians created their own style of calypso-like music called “Chutney.” As the name implies, it is like the familiar Indian condiment, hot and spicy. In her paper, Amelia Ingram cites The Official Tourist Development Company of Trinidad, (TIDCO) as stating;

“Chutney is an up-tempo, rhythmic song, accompanied by the dholak, the harmonium and the dhantal. Originally, chutney songs made reference to deities and were offensive to religious leaders. Within recent times, the chutney has become extremely popular and new compositions are being written. Some of these contain calypso and soca rhythms. There is also some extemporaneous composition and accompaniment (especially in the growing number of competitions) may be provided by bands which include Indian, Western and African instruments”….
… the East Indian foray into party music has been taking T&T by storm. Chutney music uses East Indian folk tunes, movie tunes and even bhajans (religious songs), over a fast calypso or Soca based beat. Today English words are added to the Hindi and as the calypso element becomes stronger, the music is moving from a melodic Eastern core to a more harmonic Western base. Studio recordings with an eye on the party circuit have increasingly incorporated use of keyboards and drum machines programmed with tassa (the exciting drums used in the Muslim Hosay festival) rhythms.”

Having immigrated from throughout India, their food consisted of a confluence of diversity. From the sweetened dishes of the North to the spicy cuisine of the South, the Indians sought to retain their unique foods. Very few people in Trinidad had been exposed to these new dishes, and except for the hotness and spiciness, most Trinidadians took to the food. Over time, even these people and their descendants would become accustomed to the hotness and spiciness. Today, it would be improbable if “pepper sauce,” made from habañero peppers, was absent from a restaurant or home in Trinidad.

Eventually, the traditional Indian foods of the immigrants were replaced by local concoctions. Cost and availability of authentic ingredients were the contributing factors since they were either too expensive or simply unavailable. Except for special occasions like weddings and religious festivals, the Indian immigrant ate Sada Roti (a pancake like bread made from rice flour and baked over a flat circular piece of iron), and/or rice that was accompanied by Bhajee (spinach, boiled in water or cooked in oil), Tomato Choka (roasted tomatoes that was mashed and mixed with salt, pepper onions and garlic) and other vegetables. Meat was a rarity but fish was plentiful. Furthermore, Hindus did not eat beef and Muslims did not eat pork. Additionally, most Hindus were vegetarian. To those that did eat meat; goat, lamb and chicken were the meats consumed – most of which were raised by the immigrants themselves and cooked in curry. This too was new to the existing inhabitants of Trinidad.

Arguably, the best creations of new foods by the Indian immigrants are the Dhal Puri and Paratha rotis, and “Doubles.” Dhal Puri is a roti filled with ground lentils, geera (cumin) and fresh seasoning. This is the crème de la crème of rotis and was often reserved for special occasions. Paratha, is a roti made with a special folding (layering) technique resulting in a soft, light and tasty bread. In Trinidad, paratha is broken up into many pieces which is commonly called ''Buss-up-shot'' and eaten with many dishes.

Doubles is uniquely Trinidadian even though it is now available worldwide at specialty West Indian restaurants. An entry in Wikipedia gives the following description;

“Doubles is a common street food in Trinidad and Tobago. It is a sandwich made with two flat fried breads, called "bara" (hence the name "doubles") filled with curried chick peas, commonly called channa. Topped with a variety of spicy chutneys, this delicacy is undoubtedly the most popular food in Trinidad and Tobago.
The bread is a quick bread made of flour, baking powder, salt, and saffron, which gives the bread its yellow color. It is flattened to a thin round disk about 3.5 inches in diameter. It is then fried until golden brown and filled with the channa. There is no set recipe for the channa, which can be just curried or mixed with curry and dhal (yellow split peas).”

Marriages among the immigrants were arranged. Girls were married or betrothed at a very young age. My maternal grandmother, for example, was married off when she was twelve years old to my grandfather, who was sixteen. The arrangement stipulated that my grandmother would remain at her parents’ house until she “came of age,” around fourteen, when she’d be allowed to live with my grandfather and consummate the marriage.

Over time, the caste system of India slowly began to erode by the immigrants that worked on the sugar, coffee and cocoa plantations, and therefore, Indians began marrying whomever their parents chose, many outside their caste. However, marriage within one’s religion was strictly enforced and it would be rare to find a couple where one party was Hindu and the other Muslim.

Hindu and Muslim marriages were not recognized as being “legal” by the State until 1947. The reason was simple, though corrupt. Land ownership by Indians was deliberately recorded by the State in the name of the husband. When the husband/father died, the land automatically reverted to State ownership instead of it being handed down through inheritance to the next of kin. I can attest to this fact since much of the land that was purchased by my paternal grandfather was almost seized by the State when he died, instead of being inherited by my father. Fortunately, my father had recognized this possibility and had purchased all his father’s land from him for one dollar prior to my grandfather’s death.

Worse than inter-religious marriages were interracial marriages. Indians, regardless of religion, did not marry anyone from a different race. This practice also held true for the other ethnic groups such as the Chinese and those from Arabia. Eventually, Indo-Trinidadians and Afro-Trinidadians began to intermarry. Though frowned upon many years ago, today this practice is far more readily accepted. The progeny of these unions is commonly referred to as “Dougla,” which was meant to be derisive. This is rarely the case anymore and it is unusual to see an unattractive Dougla Trinidadian.

Educating the Indians was not in the best interest of the plantation owners/masters nor was it a priority for the British Colonial Government. They were interested in uneducated people who could work the sugarcane, rice, coffee and cocoa plantations. Besides, these indentured laborers were required to work six days a week, usually leaving their homes at 5:00 am and returning at 5:00 pm. There was no time for formal education and the owners/masters felt, rightly so, that the uneducated Indians would remain on the plantations throughout the five-year term of their contracts.

Neither my paternal grandparents nor my maternal grandfather knew how to read nor write English. An “X” or a thumbprint was used as their signature. Interestingly, they “signed” legal documents without being able to read and comprehend the contents and relied on the person proffering the documents to tell them what they contained. As one can imagine, many of these people were cheated and robbed.

My maternal grandmother learned to read as a little girl, but only Hindi, and that was gained from being taught by the village Pundit when she attended the Mandir on Sundays.

Missionaries of the Presbyterian Church from Canada arrived in Trinidad with the express purpose of educating these indentured labourers. Through this technique, they also hoped to convert them to Christianity, and succeeded in converting many. These missionaries started small schools near the plantations and villages. There was no charge for education and many parents, recognizing the value of an education, sent their children to school. Later on, in the 1940s, the Hindus and Muslims would form their own organizations and set up their own schools. These organizations succeeded beyond their wildest dreams at educating the Indian children.

Trinidad produced Indians of world renown. Sir V. S. Naipaul won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2001. Ralph Baney, a relative of mine, is a world famous sculptor and artist. Samuel Selvon, a great West Indian writer is of Indian ancestry. Another famous descendant of immigrant Indians was Dr. Rudranath Capildeo. Following is what Caribbean Icons in Science, Technology and Innovation says on its website;

“… Rudranath Capildeo changed his course of study, focusing on applied mathematics and physics. He was committed to understanding the nature of space and time and this sparked his interest in understanding Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity. This work led to several new theories, which had practical implications in aerodynamics and space. They included “The Flexure Problem in Elasticity” (Ph.D. thesis) and his study on the “Theory of Rotation and Gravity” named Capildeo’s Theory, which had applications in early outer space expeditions in the 1960s and 1970s…
… Not surprisingly, he proceeded to clarify and fortify Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity because he “knew it inside out, upside down and sideways.”

Capildeo was also a lawyer and politician who led the Opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP) of Trinidad and Tobago from 1960 – 1967.

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[guyguy]

... continued from previous post

The contributions of the Indian immigrant to the culture and fabric of Trinidad is inestimable. Their contributions on a global scale are outstanding. These are the people who rose from the depths of servitude to change an established society and create an indelible mark on a new one. What I have written so far is just a small sample of the significant contributions made by these people and their descendants. Today, the twin island state of Trinidad & Tobago is richer in culture because of these contributions.

Probably the Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago, Patrick Manning, said it best in his speech celebrating Indian Arrival Day in 2006 when he stated;

“As is well known, the journey of our East Indian ancestors across the Kali Pani was difficult and tortuous. They arrived here with very little material possessions and had to work under servile and demeaning conditions on the sugar and other plantations.
Today, as we commemorate their arrival, we therefore do so in acknowledgement of their struggle to survive and to forge an equal place and space in our national community.
We celebrate also in recognition of the contribution our East Indian community has made and continues to make to our beloved land. Further, we do so as an affirmation of our commitment to the recognition of all in our highly cosmopolitan society.”

To all the peoples of Trinidad & Tobago who have had their lives enriched by these early immigrants, and continue to have their lives enriched by their progeny, I wish you a Happy Indian Arrival Day.

[bigzack]

Capildeo was also a lawyer and politician who led the Opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP) of Trinidad and Tobago from 1960 – 1967.

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GuyGuy

Yuh sure that Rudranath was also a lawyer?

Ah know that his older brother Simbhoonath was a lawyer.

[guyguy]

Yep. He was a lawyer:

"Not only did Capildeo produce many significant mathematical theories and a book on Vector Algebra and Mechanics in 1967, he also studied law in London in 1956. Two years later he was admitted to practise as a Barrister-at-Law in Trinidad. He founded and led the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in 1960, and became Leader of the Opposition in the Trinidad & Tobago Parliament (1960-1967). With Dr. Eric Williams as Prime Minister, both men laid the foundation for an independent Trinidad and Tobago."

http://www.caribbean-icons.org/scien...h-capildeo.htm

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[bigzack]

Yep. He was a lawyer:

"Not only did Capildeo produce many significant mathematical theories and a book on Vector Algebra and Mechanics in 1967, he also studied law in London in 1956. Two years later he was admitted to practise as a Barrister-at-Law in Trinidad. He founded and led the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in 1960, and became Leader of the Opposition in the Trinidad & Tobago Parliament (1960-1967). With Dr. Eric Williams as Prime Minister, both men laid the foundation for an independent Trinidad and Tobago."

http://www.caribbean-icons.org/scien...h-capildeo.htm

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Well boy, I did never know that.

The man was more boss than I thought.

Thanks for that info pardner.

[vaio]

i thoroughly enjoyed your writings Guy, wish you would continue though.