Postmen of the British Empire: Mail Carrier and Guard, Oudeypore, India
Mail Carrier and Guard, Oudeypore, India.
Men
Dr. Keshav Baliran Hedgewar
A rare postcard of the man who founded the RSS, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, an Indian nationalistic, right-wing Hindu organization that continues to play a prominent role in Indian politics, in 1925 in Nagpur following his disillusionment with
Cultivators
It is unclear whether "Haji Yusuf Haji Mohammed. Pictures, Post-cards & Cutlery Merchant.
Jemadar Mir Dast, V.C., I.O.M.
[Original caption] Jemadar Mir Dast 5th Wilde's Rifles. Won the V.C. for great bravery in the fighting around Ypres. Issued by Order of Her Highness Nandkunverba, C.I. Maharani of Bhavnagar, for the benefit of the War Fund. [end]
From a series of
Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi, the father of Indian Independence, from a series celebrating heroes of the struggle.
[Recto, Translated from Gujarati] “Mahatma Gandhi started a novel non- violence war.
Gosavi (Ascetic)
A very early postcard printed in India. Gosavi is a Marathi word that refers to someone who has renounced worldly pleasures and wears garments of the "brick-dust" color shown here.
Bengalee Babu
Another classic, empathetic Dhurandhar portrait that seems to capture well Hobson Jobson's (1903, p. 44) definition: "BABOO , s. Beng. and H. Bābū [Skt. vapra, 'a father']. Properly a term of respect attached to a name, like Master or Mr., and
Group of Baland Khels
[Original caption] Baland Khels. This tribe inhabits the North-West frontier of India, close to the native state of Afghanistan, the boundary between their provinces and the Indian states being the River Kurram.
Rangoon Jail - Prisoners carrying out their breakfast
D. A. Ahuja published a number of postcards of Rangoon jail, including the scene just before this one, while they are waiting for their breakfasts. According to one account of the Burmese prison system, "The annual reports on the prison
Our Clerical Staff Babu City Clerk
The babu, or educated Bengali bureaucrat, could be said to have held the Raj in the twirl of an umbrella. Babus were a new species that blossomed during colonial rule, hybrids of Western needs and Indian traditions.
