The Bangle Sellers

1.Introduction
Sarojini Naidu was an Indian independence activist, poet and politician. A renowned orator and accomplished
poet, she is often known by the moniker ‘The Nightingale of India’. As a prodigious child, Naidu wrote the play
"Maher Muneer", which earned her a scholarship to study abroad. She became the second woman president of the
Indian National Congress. She was the first woman Governor of an Indian state after independence. Her collection
of poems earned her literary acclaim. In 1905, she published her first book, a collection of poems, under the title of
"Golden Threshold". A contemporary poet, Bappaditya Bandopadhyay quoted "Sarojini Naidu inspired the Indian
renaissance movement and had a mission to improve the life of Indian woman.”
Childhood and Early Life
Sarojini Naidu (née Chattopadhyay) was born on February 13, 1879 in Hyderabad. Her father, Dr. Aghore Nath
Chattopadhyay was a scientist, philosopher, and educator. He founded the Nizam College of Hyderabad. Her
mother, Varada Sundari Devi was a poetess in the Bengali language. Dr. Aghore Nath Chattopadhyay was the first
member of the Indian National Congress in Hyderabad. For his socio-political activities, Aghore Nath was
dismissed from his position of Principal. One of his brothers, Virendranath Chattopadhyay, played key role in
establishing the Berlin Committee. As a political activist involved in India’s on-going struggle for self-rule, he was
heavily influenced by Communism. Her second brother Harindranath Chattopadhyay was a renowned poet and a
successful playwright. Her sister, Sunalini Devi was a dancer and actress
Since childhood, Sarojini was a very bright and intelligent child. She was proficient in multiple languages
including English, Bengali, Urdu, Telugu and Persian. She topped her matriculation exams from Madras
University. Her father wanted Sarojini to become a mathematician or scientist, but young Sarojini was attracted to
poetry.
She applied her prodigious literary skills to write a 1300 lines long poem in English titled ‘The Lady of the Lake’.
Impressed with Sarojini’s skills of expressing emotions with appropriate words, Dr. Chattopadhyaya encouraged
her works. Few months later, Sarojini, with assistance from her father, wrote the play "Maher Muneer" in the
Persian language.
Sarojini's father distributed some copies of the play among his friends and relatives. He also sent a copy to the
Nizam of Hyderabad. Impressed with the works of the little child, the Nizam granted her a scholarship to study
overseas. At the age of 16, she got admission in the King's College, England and later joined Girton College in
Cambridge. There, she had the opportunity to meet prominent English authors like Arthur Simon and Edmond
Gausse who inspired her to write on themes relevant to India. They advised Sarojini "To be a genuine Indian poet
of Deccan, not a clever machine-made imitator of the English classics" which led her to seek inspiration from
India’s natural beauty, religious pluralism and the essence of the country’s social milieu.
Sarojini met Muthyala Govindarajulu Naidu, a South Indian, and a non-Brahmin physician while she was studying
in England and fell in love. After returning to India, she married him at the age of 19, with his family’s blessings.
They were married by the Brahmo Marriage Act (1872), in Madras in 1898. The marriage took place at a time
when inter-caste marriages were not allowed and tolerated in the Indian society. Her marriage was a very happy
one. They had four children.
Major Work Persuasion Of Poetry:
Though she went to England much against her will but it was here that her poetic soul got liberated. It was here
only that she met Arthur Simons, a poet and critic. The struck chord in the very first meeting and kept on
corresponding even after her return to India. Simons persuaded her to publish some of her poems. She published
her first collection of poems in 1905 under the title Golden Threshold. The book sold like hot cakes both among
natives as well as among the Indian Diasporas. Riding on the success, she published two other collections of
poems namely The Bird of Time and The Broken Wings. In 1918, Feast of Youth was published. Later, The
Magic Tree, The Wizard Mask and A Treasury of Poems were published. It is said that people of such caliber as
Rabindra Nath Tagore and Jawaharlal Nehru were among the thousands of admirers of her work. Her works were
characterized by their contents that were though English in wording but had an Indian soul.

Main Asssignment
The Bangle Sellers is one of the most popular poems written by own very own Sarojini Naidu. In this article, we are
discussing the themes in the poem The Bangle Sellers. The poem comprises of two crucial themes which include-
the celebration of womanhood and patriarchy. Do take a look at the following themes here.
Celebration of Womanhood:
In this poem, Sarojini Naidu celebrates and glorifies Indian womanhood. The stages of an Indian woman’s life are
represented through the colour of bangles in this poem. Each colour represents each stage she crosses. Each stage of
an Indian woman’s life from a maiden to a bride and finally to a mature woman with experience is described
through colours in this poem. Silver and blue, or pink -maidenhood; yellow- morning of her wedding; red or orange
(fiery shades) symbolises her bridal night; purple and gold- motherhood and matriarchy. According to the poetess,
the lives of Indian women should be radiant and lustrous like the bangles. The “rainbow-tinted” bangles are
symbolic of the multicoloured phases of a woman’s life.

Bangles are associated with daughters and wives in the Indian society since the very beginning. The second stanza
brings into limelight the the bangles which are suitable for a maiden who is carrying numerous dreams and desires
about her future. While the blue and silver coloured bangles resemble the mist in the mountains, some resemble the
buds of flowers. These images highlight the beauty and freshness of the pretty maidens. The blooming flowers
represent the blooming of these maidens into women.

The golden coloured bangles that resemble sunlit bright corn fields are meant for the Indian brides. These golden
bangles represent the flame of the holy fire around which the bride and groom take marriage vows. This flame-like
resemblance of the golden bangles for a bride suggest the idea of the flame of love.

The final stanza captures the full transformation of the maiden into a woman “who has journeyed through life
midway” and who “serves her husband in fruitful pride”. Purple and gold-flecked grey are the colours that represent
maturity in a woman. Grey represent the maturity that comes with age. Sarojini Naidu’s idea of the ideal Indian
woman is summed up in the final lines of the poem as an Indian woman is represented as the force that keeps the
family together.

Patriarchy:
Although it is only alluded to in innuendos, the patriarchal ideology lurks beneath the surface of the poem. The
women are described as either happy ‘daughters’ or ‘wives’. Every phase she passes is referred to by a man in her
life, father, husband, sons. The woman in this poem is fit into boxes that limit their existence to being a possessed
object of patriarchy. Even if this poem is ironic, it still discusses the ideas propagated by the patriarchal society.
Conclusion
In this poem The Bangle sellers take their load of bangles to the temple fair to sell them. The poetess describes the
bangles are as “lustrous tokens of radiant lives” which refers symbols of love in people’s lives. The bangles are
made for happy daughters and wives. The poetess says that some of the bangles are made for the unmarried women
and they are of silver and blue in colour. The other bangles made for the bride glows like the fields of corn during
morning. Those bangles glow like the bride’s marriage flame and rich in her heart’s desires. The bangles are tinkling
with ‘luminous’ colours like the bride’s laughter or tears. Some bangles are made for the elderly women who have
journeyed through half of their life. These bangles are of purpled in colour with gold fleckers. These women have
served their household well, cradles their sons and have worshipped the household gods with their husbands beside
them.This poem talks about various stage of women in the way of related bangles with bangles.