The 1000 rupee irony
An object lesson on the thousand rupee note.
Once upon a time, I remember playing with thousand rupee notes. Before I am labeled as a rich spoilt brat, I am talking about game currency from Monopoly. Wish there was no difference. A piece of paper whose value is more than three hundred times its manufacturing cost, the thousand rupee currency note. What makes this piece of paper so powerful that people find it acceptable to walk down illicit paths to get hold of one? No doubt all good things come at a cost. But, what makes people attach cost to a piece of paper with only perceived value? There are multiple elements on a typical currency note, some for identification and many others for security. Is there more to it that the eye can see? There has to be! How else could people associate it with god, so much so that a festival is dedicated to it? And if it is associated with god, why is the same currency note at the center of an ‘unholy’ act like corruption?
The thousand rupee note looks strikingly different from the others because of its bright color. The red and gold coupled with intricate floral patterns look heavily inspired by art nouveau. And why not, India is known for its colors and grandeur, and there is no better place to show it than currency, a local commodity with global recognition. It is amazing just how many different complex patterns exist on the note. And on this piece of art, on the front side, two things stand out — the shiny green numerals that read ‘1000’ and a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi.
The value of the note is of primary importance and the shiny green being complementary to red justifies its use. As for Mahatma Gandhi, the Reserve bank of India replaced the Ashoka stambh with his portrait first in 1987, with the introduction of the five hundred rupee note, and officially releasing notes of all values with Gandhi’s portrait to maintain consistency in 1996. The choice seems straightforward. Gandhi, the leader of India’s struggle for independence against the British, an inspiration for civil rights and freedom movements across the world, the father of the world’s largest democracy, clearly deserves his place on the currency. Mohandas Gandhi (‘Mahatma’ was a honorary title conferred upon him) was a simple man with an ascetic lifestyle. He lived modestly and only wore the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl, woven with thread hand-spun on a charkha. He was vegetarian and professed nonviolence and truth in all walks of life.
Gandhi probably would have never imagined to see himself on something as materialistic as money, to acquire which, people go to violent and illegitimate extents. Gandhi sees the Gandhi (also a slang for currency notes in India) passing hands of all kinds of people, lawful and criminal, for all kinds of matters, legal and illegal. Strange as it may be, the RBI of India thought it was alright to flip his photograph so that he faces inside when his image is printed on the right. What we see as Gandhi’s left ear is actually his right. He also features on the left portion, as a watermark, and this time facing the right. More important than the side he is facing is his expression, smiling at us — finding it amusing that we put his face on something that is regularly used in shady contexts, something that arguably leads to greed, lies and violence. Still smiling, the fighter that he is.
The value is also written in Hindi, widely accepted as India’s national language. Not only the value, but every piece of information is written in both English and Hindi, including the Governor’s signature. One can question if anyone has two signatures in different languages, but it looks like the Governor in India is expected to. There are a host of identification and security features in the form of watermarks, security thread, latent images, micro-lettering, intaglio prints that help visually impaired identify the denomination and even fluorescent ink and optical fibers that can be seen only when exposed to ultra-violet light. The Ashoka stambh is printed on the left corner with the words ‘Satyameva Jayate’ which means ‘Let truth prevail’ in Hindi. The value is written in 15 regional languages on the other side, of the 22 ‘offical’ languages. There has been a lot of talk about Hindi not being the official language as it is popularly known, especially in the southern states. Representing the diversity in India with multiple languages on the currency makes sense, but speaks very nothing about the absent unity between the states.
The reverse side also acts as a canvas to display India’s pride. The picture changes with the denomination, with the lower denomination notes featuring animals, iconic buildings, landscapes and even Gandhi again with a picture of the Dandi march on the five hundred rupee note. A lot of thought seems to have gone behind what to print on the thousand rupee note when it was re-introduced in the year 2000, after it was demonetized in 1978 to curb corruption. Unlike on notes of lower values, the thousand rupee note has a set of images that represents the economy of India. Images from multiple sectors have been combined to depict growth in them. India ranks second worldwide in farm output and a grain harvesting combine represents the Agricultural sector. The manufacturing sector has been growing and is represented by an oil rig. Advances in science and research is showing with a space satellite dish. A picture of the melting metal represents mines and minerals. A girl working on a computer is the most interesting addition to the collage. One one side, it depicts the advancement in the technology sector and on the other, stands for empowerment of the girl child. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) has data that shows India as one of the only two countries in the world where female infant mortality is higher than male infant mortality in the 2000s. When it comes to child mortality sex ratio, there were 56 male child deaths for every 100 female child deaths, which by far, puts India at the bottom. India’s currency does have a thing for incongruity.
Diwali is the most important Hindu festival and is celebrated over multiple days in autumn or spring every year. The third day of Diwali, arguably the most important, is dedicated to the worship of Goddess Laxmi, the goddess of wealth. On this day, people clean and decorate their houses, prepare sweet treats and even keep the door of the house open to welcome Goddess Laxmi. It is believed that happier the goddess with the preparations, more the wealth bestowed upon the family. It is astonishing how even the so-called atheists turn pious on this day. Who does not want wealth!? Its confounding how even a supreme being is associate with wealth, money and a piece of paper called the currency note.
The thousand rupee note is a symbol of wealth. It is a highly sardonic piece of paper considering 32.7% of all Indians have less than $1.90 per day of purchasing power parity. The note however, shows all things good, or rather what the government thinks is good. There is still some distance between where India wants to be, as depicted on the thousand rupee note, and where it is.
Jai Hind!*
*Jai Hind is a salutation, slogan, and battle cry most commonly used in India to indicate patriotism towards India (also known as Hind). It translates roughly to “Victory to India”
Sources:
- “History behind Mahatma Gandhi’s picture on Indian Currency notes!”, accessed on September 24, 2016, http://skithub.com/history-behind-mahatma-gandhis-picture-on-currency-notes/
- Wikipedia, accessed on Spetember 24, 2016, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahatma_Gandhi
- RBI website, accessed on Spetember 24, 2016, https://www.rbi.org.in/currency/Sec_fea_Rs1000.html
- Quora, accessed on Spetember 24, 2016, https://www.quora.com/What-does-the-picture-on-the-back-of-an-Indian-₹1000-note-signify
- Rukmini Shrinivasan, “India deadliest place in world for girl child”, The Times of India, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-deadliest-place-in-world-for-girl-child/articleshow/11707102.cms
- Poverty and Equity — India, The World bank (2012), Wikipedia, accessed on Spetember 24, 2016, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Below_Poverty_Line_(India)#cite_note-pewb2010-2
- Chopra, Pram Nath (2003). A comprehensive history of modern India. Sterling Publishing. p. 283. ISBN 81–207–2506–9. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
