Touchstones: Names matter, and why not

Names fascinate me, for there’s a communicative connected to each 1 — surely, probably

What’s successful a name, you whitethorn ask. After all, arsenic the Bard observed, a roseate would inactive odor arsenic saccharine by immoderate different name. While that whitethorn good beryllium true, names fascinate maine due to the fact that they whitethorn beryllium an apt statement of the idiosyncratic oregon a implicit antonym. One of my favourite poems is by the redoubtable Kaka Hathrasi: ‘Naam bade aur darshan chhote’. Kaka past goes done a database of ill-named characters whose quality is the other of what their names suggest. Do delight Google it and laughter arsenic you perceive of a Nainsukh who has lone 1 oculus oregon a Munshi Chandalal who is arsenic achromatic arsenic tar, portion Gyanchand has failed six times successful the 10th class.

Jokes apart, names successful my small assemblage of Kumaoni Brahmins from Almora were often chosen from the immense pantheon of our gods. Generally, women were named aft revered goddesses, portion names of rivers were considered unlucky for girls. So, I had a fewer aunts named Ganga, Jamuna oregon Godavari but astir each clan had a girl called Laxmi, Parvati oregon Gaura. Other unlucky names were Sita and Rahul, due to the fact that Sita was banished and Rahul abandoned by his begetter Gautam Buddha soon aft helium was born.

Given this contented of choosing names, determination were galore called Ramesh, Jiwan oregon Govind successful the Kumaon of my childhood. This could pb to disorder (and often did), truthful the wicked wits of the municipality gave them nicknames that were similar individuality markers and descriptions that made for immoderate truly comic stuff. Thus, we had an uncle called Ramesh Convent (perhaps due to the fact that helium spoke successful English aft helium was educated successful a missionary school), a Jiwan Jaundice to acceptable him isolated from different Jiwans, a Girish Holdall (no thought wherever that came from) but different Girish was called Girish Chocolate. And 1 merry tippler was aptly named Bhuwan Botal. I could spell connected but there’s much to follow.

When I got joined and landed successful Punjab, what threw maine disconnected were the unisex names. Gurinder, Satinder, Harinder could beryllium either antheral oregon woman, and erstwhile once down a autobus carrying a baraat to Patiala with ‘Harinder weds Narinder’ pasted connected its rear, we spent the full thrust trying to fig retired who was the bride and who the groom. Later, erstwhile I started teaching astatine Panjab University, each twelvemonth brought a caller enactment of Harvinders, Navjots and specified confusing names to befuddle my mediocre brain. I americium convinced that my inability to retrieve names present is lone partially owed to a failing memory: it has everything to bash with that spot successful my encephalon that was burned retired by this yearly onslaught of akin names. Again, determination were besides the Sweetys, Happys and Lovelys to contend with.

Outside Punjab, don’t inquire however galore were named Rajiv and Sanjay aft Mrs Gandhi’s handsome boys successful the adjacent generation. Just arsenic determination are galore Priyankas successful this one. Other repeater names are Ananya oregon names specified arsenic Maya and Anita that beryllium comfortably present oregon abroad. Up to this point, I americium cognisant of the lineage and past of names that parents take for their babies. Come present to Gen X and caller parents whose children are called aft characters from chartless histories and mythologies. There are galore websites that springiness them a database of exotic names to take from, nudging speech Maneka Gandhi’s pioneering publication connected babe names from different time.

How tin I not notation the South Indian names that person a logic of their own? Most South Indian Brahmins person astatine slightest 3 superior letters earlier we brushwood the sanction they are known by. The 3 alphabets basal for clan, colony and father’s names, specified arsenic VKRV Rao oregon PV Narasimha Rao. There’s a ample clan of overseas affairs worthies and different clan of journalists who ever confuse maine with their introductory names. This contented was astir apt adopted truthful that erstwhile you said I americium so-and-so, your big knew precisely who you person descended from and wherever your natal household lived. As a wicked person erstwhile quipped: ‘All they present request to adhd is their post-code to marque it a implicit individuality card, amended than an Aadhaar!’

The pioneers present were our beloved Parsi community, who helpfully adopted their commercialized sanction to marque their individuality wide to an alien community. Soda Bottle Openerwala, Bandookwala, Poonawala, Taraporewala and truthful on. The precocious Keki Daruwalla, 1 of the astir lovable and sober poets, erstwhile met the legendary Firaq Gorakhpuri astatine a mushaira and was truthful impressed with his poesy that helium went up to inquire whether helium could sojourn him erstwhile helium was adjacent successful Allahabad. ‘Zaroor,’ Firaq Sa’ab replied. ‘But what is your address, sir?’ Keki Daruwalla asked. ‘Just springiness your sanction to the rickshawala and he’ll bring you to me,’ drawled Firaq. This apocryphal communicative was astir apt created by idiosyncratic other due to the fact that erstwhile I asked Keki if it was true, helium conscionable twinkled his eyes and shook his head.

My ain mother, a formidable Sanskrit student and writer, named my older sister ‘Mrinal’, arsenic she was a large admirer of Mrinalini Sarabhai, her elder astatine Santiniketan. One day, erstwhile her guru, Acharya Hazari Prasad Dwivedi, had travel to sojourn us, helium asked my mother, ‘Did I ne'er archer you that Mrinal is not a feminine noun? Mrinalini is.’ How we pulled her limb aft that!

— The writer is simply a societal commentator