( Lone ANSWER QUEST wns How does Sarojini Naidu pay a holy tribute to the Indian s 4 martyrs? Aroyini Naidu's poem The Gift of India commemorates the Sacrifices the tndian soldiers who died in the First World War (1914-1918). The dauntles Indian soldiers readily sacrificed their ‘todays’ to fight for their colonial masa who treated them like ‘puppets’ in the play. They motivated the young Indians by WiaRink the song of glorification and victory associated with war. The Indian foig with their indomitable spirit in the hope of gaining freedom for : Mother India. who is the speak S 2 g 2 a § 2 ‘They obeyed the call of ‘drum-beats of the duty’. the Indian soldiers ha: Ironically, ps ve been completely forgotten despite their heroic deeds. Sashi Tharoor, the Incian writer and politician, wrote in his essay, Why the Indian soldiers of World War I were forgotten: [The role and sacrifices of Australians, New Zealanders, Canadians and South Africans were celebrated for some time in books and novels and even rendered | immortal on celluloid in award-winning films like Gallipoli. Of the 1.3 milline Indian troops who served in the conflict, however, you hear very little’ Sargjini Naidu pays a glorious tribute to these innumerable unsung heroes, the precious gifts of India. Her memorable verses have made the Indian herece immortal. Mother India, who is the speaker of the poem laments the sad fate of her brave sons. The British, by claiming their supremacy over the beguiling Indians, compelled them to fight for them. The British ripped her heroic sons from her “stricken wombs’ and falscly motivated to fight for them in distant places. Hence. they were sent to fight in distant shores. The sound of drums summoned them to the valley of death from where there was no returning. ‘The poet has used similes to compare the dead heroic soldiers to the pearls, scattered like ‘shells on Egyptian sands’, She mentions about the various wars fought in Persia (now tran), Egypt, Flanders (Belgium) and France where the Indians have been sent to war. The lifeless soldiers, like precious pearls, lie in their ‘alien Braves’, The dead soldiers are like the ‘biéssoms’ that have been ‘mowed dows by chance’. The ‘flowers’ (referring to the dead soldiers) remain scattered withou! proper care and attention. They lic motionless on the blood-stained battlefield, like the carcasses of animals. The lines: “they are strewn like blossoms mown down by chance On the blood-brown meadows of Flanders and France” depict a deep sense of lamentation for the unfortunate soldiers.The soldiers who have died an unfortunate death, resemble the scattered shells on the sands of Egypt. The gifts which have been sent by India, have died an jgnominious death on the foreign lands, without any honour or recognition. The poet grieves over their present condition in th se lines: “They lie with pale brows and brave, broken hands, On the blood-brown meadows of Flanders and France” India has offered her most expensive gifts at the call of her allie However, what she has received in their exchange is unfathomable grief and sorrow The world can neither suitably judge the intensity of grief of Mother India nor comprehend her deep anguis h. Her suffering cannot be measured in specific terms She prays for her heroic sons and hopes for a better future that can act as a form of consolation to her. The lines: “when the terror and the tumult of hate shall cease And life be refashioned on anvils of peace” reflect her ‘glorious vision’ of a future full of harmony Immortalising the Indian soldiers, the poet reminds every one of the significant role played by India in World War I. However, India’s sacrifices have frequently been overlooked. Their valiant deeds have been omitted from the pages of world history. The British, for whom they fought valiantly, neglected them without paying proper homage. The poet reminds us their heroic sacrifices need to be acknowledged and honoured. Their endeavours should not be neglected or overlooked. She makes us realise that the Indians have been let down by the British Government for their part played in World War I. She expects everyone to offer their love and reverence to the ‘comrades who fought on the dauntless ranks’. They have served the British with immense ‘devotion, bravery and courage’ and hence they deserve to be commemorated and celebrated for their valorous deeds. Who is the speaker of the poem The Gift of India? How does she lament over the death of her martyred sons? ENN The pocm The { India is soul-stirring poem, presenting a vivid, dramatic picture of the piteous plight of the soldiers who laid their lives down in the World War I. The speaker of the poem is Mother India who addresses the erstwhile British rulers of India and asks them if anything else is left to be taken from her land. Her question takes us back to the pages of history where we come to know about the Waricious motives of the British who plundered India for her material po Even the ‘rich gifts of raiment or grain or gold’ have failed to satisfy Along with devouring the material supplies, they have taken away h sessions their grced. the sons from@ mother whi ; ar from their sei reared them in her lap of love and care. They have been ‘ F er’s breast and sent to fight war in distant shores. “gi If we explore the fra; istori theteorifigant ener estes ees sources, we will able to know about Se eee Indian soldiers in World War I. The fragmented return for nothing, Th i er ; ‘ 1g, They served in divers ee oe France and Belgium, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Bast and West ‘Africa, ee aa ae vane the contribution of undivided India in terms of ains the highest. However, thi i i ec tibeien nas. ey have died a dishonourable death in The brave and heroic soldiers are now lying buried in their ‘alien graves’, sleeping an eternal slumber ‘by the Persian waves’, There are others who are lying scattered like ‘shells on Egyptian sands’. Their contemptibly poor condition evokes sympathetic pathos and angst in Mother India who undergoes an acute lamentation seeing her sons lying without a proper burial. The poet recalls how “They lie with pale brows and brave, broken hands, On the blood-brown meadows of Flanders and France” The speaker, Mother India asks the British if they can measure her unfathomable grief and loss. Her ‘tears’ that she has wept speak a lot about her personal affliction She is in a woeful condition seeing her heroic sons in such miserable state. Being filled with extreme pain and distress, she prays for their souls and hopes for a better future that can lessen her affliction. She hopes their sacrifices would ensure a world without hatred and vengeance. The river of peace and prosperity would wash away all the dirt and dust of terror and oppression. Love would be the foundation of this peaceful world. She ardently wishes that the sacrifices of the heroic soldiers would be a ‘The comrades who fought on the dauntless ranks’ would be mould remember the indomitable spirit of the Indian ted in their memories. There tales of heroist ‘qd wide. Their contribution would.no-more rem2i? be immortalised in the history forever. commemorate duly honoured. Everyon' soldiers: Memori and bravery would si unknown to all. They would Do you think The Gift of India? Justify. ithe following answer is. ven in point-form. You can use the! ‘the whole answe js an anti-war poem. It emphasises the meaninglessncs* © The Gift of India ‘and futility of war. War is a gory affair which leads to bloodshed It docs ic of peace’ and prosperity. War is a dangerous _ not bring a ‘bright daybre™!illusion which Jeads people to think that it can bring glory and grandeur. * Aristotle once remarked: ; “We make war that we may live in peace’. Ironically, war can only brine igi and destruction. It can never bring a new era of harmony and tran The pocm The Gift of India stands a witness to this observation without any doubt. ‘¢ The poem refers to the World War I where over one million Indian troops served in the British army. Approximately 1.3 million soldiers served in World War I and over 74,000 died on foreign fields. Europeans began World war I with a glorious vision of war only to be psychologically shattered by the bitter experiences of the trenches. '@ Those who glorify war are ignorant of the harsh reality. It takes away the right to lead a peaceful and serene life. The soldiers are brutally killed by bullets and shells. Their dreams and aspirations are shattered in one go. They crawl towards the fatal encounter, to the mouth of hell. Soon, death transports them to the valley of dead. In this poem, the poet has conveyed the atrocities of the British. They sent our brave Indian soldiers to fight in diverse places. The valiant soldiers fought their masters without a specific purpose and received only dishonour and de. -s are lying like invaluable pearls in the shells on ‘Egyptian sands’. lourless with ‘pale brows’. Their tough hands are ‘broken’ while ¢ war. The dead bodies lie scattered like flowers on the blood- adows of ‘Flanders and France’. hopes there would be peace and prosperity in future. She feels the surge of wrath and hatred would cease to exist and peace and id be restored everywhere. No mother would lose any of her sons ‘0 family would undergo the unbearable pangs of agony. sitive consequences. It has the ability to annihilate everything. or grandeur associated with it. It is a mere illusion to think that peace and advancement. The poet hopes that the warmongers d the reality and stop fighting wars which can never restore ferhood. We should always remember the lines: n't make boys men, it makes men dead.”