Punkha Boy

Punkha Boy

c. 1903
12.10x
8.60cm

A key figure in the Raj was the punkha boy or man, who pulled the string that moved a fan in a bar or in the sleeping quarters to keep their employers cool. The great danger was that the punkha wallah would fall asleep, as this one has already, and forget to pull the fan, causing untold misery to the one being cooled. For this reason many bedrooms had a string tied to the master's foot with which he could wake the punkha wallah and get him back on duty. The large punkha being pulled by this boy is the red contraption on the ceiling inside the bar.