Even men wore ‘Thali’ in Sangam age!
In the morning of a government holiday, a city-based youth eloped with his lady love and wanted to tie the Thali around her neck immediately, fearing a possible attack by the girl's relatives and some self-proclaimed guardians of 'Indian' culture. As he felt even a temple not being a safe place for putting the nuptial knot, he took the girl to the deserted campus of his Alma mater and tied the Mangalsutra in front of the vintage building of the English department. The incident is just an example of how the so-called 'sacred' solemnising chain was used as a mere token of protection.
However, a debate on the necessity of women wearing Thali aired in a private T.V. Channel once earned the wrath of a fringe Hindu outfit, whose president claimed responsibility for hurling crude bombs at the office of the visual media.
At a time, when the Hindu outfits raised a hue and cry over the news channel blaming that it had brought shame to the 'sacred' ornament by conducting the debate, history has recorded that the upper-class Nair community, which prohibited the lower caste Nadar climber women from covering their breasts, forcibly removed their Thalis when they asserted their rights to wear upper clothes in the 19th century Kerala. The place where this incident happened is still called 'Thali Aruthan Santhai' in today's Kanyakumari district.
In fact, contrary to the common belief that Indian married women wore Thali from ancient times, many of the pieces in classical Tamil literature say that Thali was just an ornament like all other ones, worn even by men and sometimes around their waists!
Referred to as Aymbadai Thaali in Sangam literature, the waist cord contained the figurines of five different images like dog, key, talisman, coin and peepal leaf. The ornament was worn mostly by children, as their parents believed that it would ward off the evils.
With Thali also meaning a chain worn around the neck, the 7th song in Agananuru, a Sangam period work, portrays a little girl wearing it with a tiger-tooth pendant, which is described in Tamil as Pulipal Kotha Pulambu Manithaali.. Similarly, the 374th song in Purananuru, another Sangam period work, portrays some youth wearing the same kind of ornament, as it was a symbol of a man's valour in killing the big cat.
Nevertheless, in the new age when married women were identified with their Thalis, Dravidian stalwart and rationalist thinker Periyar E.V. Ramasamy from Erode in the undivided Coimbatore district, was the first man to speak and write against the practice, questioning why men alone were left free from such marital identity.
However, a debate on the necessity of women wearing Thali aired in a private T.V. Channel once earned the wrath of a fringe Hindu outfit, whose president claimed responsibility for hurling crude bombs at the office of the visual media.
At a time, when the Hindu outfits raised a hue and cry over the news channel blaming that it had brought shame to the 'sacred' ornament by conducting the debate, history has recorded that the upper-class Nair community, which prohibited the lower caste Nadar climber women from covering their breasts, forcibly removed their Thalis when they asserted their rights to wear upper clothes in the 19th century Kerala. The place where this incident happened is still called 'Thali Aruthan Santhai' in today's Kanyakumari district.
In fact, contrary to the common belief that Indian married women wore Thali from ancient times, many of the pieces in classical Tamil literature say that Thali was just an ornament like all other ones, worn even by men and sometimes around their waists!
Referred to as Aymbadai Thaali in Sangam literature, the waist cord contained the figurines of five different images like dog, key, talisman, coin and peepal leaf. The ornament was worn mostly by children, as their parents believed that it would ward off the evils.
With Thali also meaning a chain worn around the neck, the 7th song in Agananuru, a Sangam period work, portrays a little girl wearing it with a tiger-tooth pendant, which is described in Tamil as Pulipal Kotha Pulambu Manithaali.. Similarly, the 374th song in Purananuru, another Sangam period work, portrays some youth wearing the same kind of ornament, as it was a symbol of a man's valour in killing the big cat.
Nevertheless, in the new age when married women were identified with their Thalis, Dravidian stalwart and rationalist thinker Periyar E.V. Ramasamy from Erode in the undivided Coimbatore district, was the first man to speak and write against the practice, questioning why men alone were left free from such marital identity.