The recurring myth - the breast tax or Mula karam doesn’t seem to die down, this time propagated by ‘Scroll’ - Mumbai Multimedia Studio refreshing and scrolling down the history which some how the other took placed and occurrence of ignorance & tolerance!
We at www.multimediastudio.net was completely shocked to realize and have information about this disgusting part of history.
The Breast Tax (Mulakkaram or mula-karam in Malayalam) was a tax imposed on the lower caste (Shudra) and untouchable (Dalit) Hindu women by the Kingdom of Tranvancore (in present-day Kerala state of India) if they wanted to cover their breasts in public, until 1924
Let’s begin with a primer on the attire of women in 19th century Kerala, before we address the lack of authenticity of the story, the mindset, motives and motivations behind such a fabrication. Kerala’s world famous tropical climate needs no introduction. Also, a widely observed pattern is that the traditional attire of a people is directly dependent on the climate of the land. Owing to the humid heat all through the year, a piece of cotton cloth draped around the middle with another (optional) hung over the shoulder as an afterthought, has largely been the traditional attire of the people of Kerala, regardless of gender or caste.
A 17th-Century Dutch visitor William Van Nieuhoff writes about the attire of Ashwathi Thirunal Umayamma Rani, then queen of Travancore, in the following manner:
“… I was introduced into her majesty’s presence. She had a guard of above 700 Nair soldiers about her, all clad after the Malabar fashion; the Queen’s attire being no more than a piece of callicoe wrapt around her middle, the upper part of her body appearing for the most part naked, with a piece of calicoes hanging carelessly round her shoulders.”
A 19th Century painting of Junior Rani of Travancore, Bharani Thirunal Rani Parvathi Bayi
Women in Kerala used to pay a whooping sum of tax to cover their breasts, Those who were unable to pay, they kept their upper body naked.
A 19th Century painting, ‘Malabar Beauty’ by Raja Ravi Varma
This tax was imposed on the Shudras and Dalit’s to show this class their ‘AUKAT’
The breast was bared as a symbol of respect to higher-status people only. A society where men even stare at the cleavage, these women faced the oppression with naked breasts.
Torn Self respect, deteriorated confidence and the noxious stares eating the very pieces of diligence everyday.
Even the women who covered their breasts were not spared, the officers used to come and examine the size and weight of the taxpayer women with their own hands, utter disgrace.
Later, A women named Nangeli protested against this law by cutting off her breasts and presenting them in front of the officer, she died of blood loss, which eventually resulted in mega protests.
Finally, the heel piece law was removed, but only at the cost of a sacrifice.
CREDITS: MULAKARAM (SHORT FILM) #yusufbhandarkar Email multimediastudio9.net
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