Rebellion, frozen on stone

As the government prepares to celebrate the 150th anniversary of 1857, its essence as a subaltern uprising should not be lost

By Sanjay Kapoor

Many years ago when I was still in school in Lucknow, my father showed up home bearing a heavy, rough-looking but smooth-to-the-touch piece of stone that appeared to have been wrenched from a wall. Seeing me baffled by the reverential manner in which he placed the stone in our drawing room, he showed me the silver inscription on the stone, "This piece of stone has been picked up from the debris of Begum Kothi, sanctified by the supreme sacrifices of 1857's heroes. Begum Kothi was the scene of a great battle during the final capture of heroic Lucknow by the British forces. Two hours from the time of the assault on this position, over 800 hundred heroes laid down their lives in the inner court of Begum Kothi. The British commander recorded: 'This was the sternest struggle which occurred during the siege.' The piece was collected on August 11, 1975 by Bishan Kapoor and Retd General E Habibullah."

Further enquiry revealed that Begum Kothi, which was part of the people's struggle against British rule, has been demolished to pave way for a market. "They have no respect for history," I remember him telling me ruefully that day. General Habibullah (father of the present Chief Information Commissioner, Wajahat Habibullah) and my father were both passionate about Lucknow's culture and history. Lucknow, according to them, became the crucible for forging a secular alliance against British rule. Both had campaigned vigorously to prevent the demolition of the old Kothi, believing that it was the responsibility of the government to preserve monuments that epitomised valour and peoples' struggle against imperialism. The 1857 Rebellion, they insisted, represented an ordinary person's uprising against the oppressive imperial occupation and, therefore, it should be celebrated by the masses. Both the General and my father, I remember, pored over books on many evenings and tried to bring in the subaltern perspective to history that was not countenanced earlier. They found instances during the 1857 Rising which showed how common people fought hard against the Britishers. They found a story of a sniper perched atop a tree near Sikander Bagh, the scene of an intense battle to capture Lucknow, who killed a number of British soldiers before he was brought down. The dead body of the sniper revealed her to be a woman, reason enough to install a statue of an unknown heroine at the venue.

To reinforce the fact that it was ordinary people who stormed Lucknow's Residency—it was here that the sepoys laid siege to the British garrison during the 1857 Revolt—the two gentlemen organised a mock storming of the Residency every year. I still remember a descendent of Nana Sahib of Bithoor attired in traditional robes sitting on the elephant leading the long procession. The most interesting aspect of this mock siege was that soldiers from the Indian Army, wearing the uniforms of the sepoys, also participated in this festival of freedom.

The procession was always led by the then Mayor of Lucknow, Dauji Gupta, and followed by the army, police and everyone else. The march ended at Residency where history of  the 1857 revolt was recounted from the people's perspective. Their efforts led to a sound and light programme at the Residency.

Why suddenly this wave of nostalgia? It is the 150th anniversary of the 1857 Revolt and the government has announced its intention of celebrating it in style. To make sure that the festivities do not turn into just another official tamasha, there is need to appreciate the core values of the historic Revolt. It would need ideological clarity, greater participation of political parties—especially of the secular variety-- and their cadres. It would also mean that the government and private media revisit the 1857 Revolt and take a hard look at the Rang De Basanti of all times and draw lessons from it.