A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 5 April 2022 - T for India

 Hello, good morning lovely ladies. I'm a bit late today. I usually write this late in the evening and post it at midnight. But yesterday we spent a gruelling day at the hospital and we both flopped into bed as soon as we got home (around 9 pm).Hubby has started his radiotherapy treatment but then also developed a bleed, which later stopped. They sent him home. This morning the ambulance picked him up at seven for his appointment at 9:30 (we live a long way away from this hospital as our local hospital doesn't have radiotherapy equipment). We'll see how this pans out, in the meantime I have time to write this blog and it will take my mind off things.

Today I have a card from India for you. From Hyderabad in fact.

The Charminar (lit. 'four minarets') constructed in 1591, is a monument located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. 

The landmark has become known globally as a symbol of Hyderabad and is listed among the most recognised structures in India. The Charminar's long history includes the existence of a mosque on its top floor for more than 425 years. The reason behind building such an architectural marvel remains unclear, though it is widely accepted that the Charminar was built to commemorate the eradication of the plague which was widespread during that period in the city. According to Jean de Thévenot, a French traveler of the 17th century whose narration was complemented with the available Persian texts, the construction was done to celebrate the beginning of the second Islamic millennium year. Others have come to believe that the king erected the structure at the very spot where he first laid his eyes on his future begum (wife), Bhagmati.

While both historically and religiously significant, it is also known for its popular and busy local markets surrounding the structure, and has become one of the most frequented tourist attractions in Hyderabad. 

Charminar is also a site of numerous festival celebrations, as it is adjacent to main mosque of the city Makkah Masjid across the road.

The stamps are pretty. This one is about the fashion industry:

It is part of a series called "Indian Fashion - Concept to consumer":

There is also a First Day cover:

I love those stamps. The subject is different to others I've seen.

There are two more:

The subject is Bal Gangadhar Tilak  born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak ; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya, was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence activist. He was one third of the Lal Bal Pal triumvirate.^[5] Tilak was the first leader of the Indian independence movement. The British colonial authorities called him "The father of the Indian unrest." He was also conferred with the title of "Lokmanya", which means "accepted by the people as their leader".^[6] Mahatma Gandhi called him "The Maker of Modern India".^[7]

Tilak was one of the first and strongest advocates of Swaraj ("self-rule") and a strong radical in Indian consciousness. He is known for his quote in Marathi: "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it!".

But.... he was very conservative when it came to women. I have very strong views about rights for women, so I didn't like this aspect of this apparently respected man. Read the following (or skip it if not interested):

Social views against women

Tilak was strongly opposed to liberal trends emerging in Pune such as women's rights and social reforms against untouchability.^[41][42][43] Tilak vehemently opposed the establishment of the first Native girls High school (now called Huzurpaga) in Pune in 1885 and its curriculum using his newspapers, the Mahratta and Kesari.^[42][44][45] Tilak was also opposed to intercaste marriage, particularly the match where an upper caste woman married a lower caste man.^[45] In the case of Deshasthas, Chitpawans and Karhades, he encouraged these three Maharashtrian Brahmin groups to give up "caste exclusiveness" and intermarry.^[a] Tilak officially opposed the age of consent bill which raised the age of marriage from ten to twelve for girls, however he was willing to sign a circular that increased age of marriage for girls to sixteen and twenty for boys.^[47]

Child bride Rukhmabai was married at the age of eleven but refused to go and live with her husband. The husband sued for restitution of conjugal rights, initially lost but appealed the decision. On 4 March 1887, Justice Farran, using interpretations of Hindu laws, ordered Rukhmabai to "go live with her husband or face six months of imprisonment". Tilak approved of this decision of the court and said that the court was following Hindu Dharmaśāstras. Rukhmabai responded that she would rather face imprisonment than obey the verdict. Her marriage was later dissolved by Queen Victoria. Later, she went on to receive her Doctor of Medicine degree from the London School of Medicine for Women.^{[48][49][50][51]}

In 1890, when an eleven-year-old Phulamani Bai died while having sexual intercourse with her much older husband, the Parsi social reformer Behramji Malabari supported the Age of Consent Act, 1891 to raise the age of a girl's eligibility for marriage. Tilak opposed the Bill and said that the Parsis as well as the English had no jurisdiction over the (Hindu) religious matters. He blamed the girl for having "defective female organs" and questioned how the husband could be "persecuted diabolically for doing a harmless act". He called the girl one of those "dangerous freaks of nature".^[43] Tilak did not have a progressive view when it came to gender relations. He did not believe that Hindu women should get a modern education. Rather, he had a more conservative view, believing that women were meant to be homemakers who had to subordinate themselves to the needs of their husbands and children.^[11] Tilak refused to sign a petition for the abolition of untouchability in 1918, two years before his death, although he had spoken against it earlier in a meeting.

As today is T for Tuesday, I will join the T-Party hosted by Elizabeth and Bluebeard. I need a drink or drink related photo. 

This is my white wine. As hubby doesn't drink, I buy these little monodose boxes of Chardonnay. They are quite nice and I occasionally indulge.

On Friday I had persuaded hubby to come along to Intercambio, our Spanish-English language exchange. But the venue was being used for something else and we couldn't use it that day, so we went to the bar. Hubby is having a cup of herbal tea and the rest of us had beers.

Excuse the mask on the table. That is not very hygienic.

I will leave it at that for today, as it is late.

Happy T-Day all,

Hugs,

Lisca