Namaskar Y’all

from Saathee Raleigh December 2021

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A Royal Craze

Namaskar, Y’all by Shyama Parui

On a mundane morning, I was driving my two sleepyheads to school when I noticed a familiar face on the window of a pickup truck. It was a sticker of Queen Elizabeth smiling above the dented and mud splattered exterior of the aging vehicle. The hilarious sight livened up the conversation in the car as we conjectured theories about the causes of a royal craze.

It’s hard to miss the bold headlines of tabloids at the airport or grocery store that scream gossip about Prince William and Harry and their respective wives or the popularity of Netflix’s The Crown. I must confess that I too have peered through those magazines and royal bio-pic kind of shows out of curiosity.

That same desire to know more, motivates me to explore museums. Forts and palaces preserved as museums entice me with their intriguing history and the dark secrets they may hold.

The opportunity to stay at two palace-hotels in India, offering regal treatment and opulent interiors, was a memorable experience for our family. As we toured through the exquisite properties, we caught glimpses of the luxury and privilege that characterized the lifestyle of erstwhile royal families and in some ways still do. Most of the local people we came across were still in awe of the current descendants of past rulers and seemed to revere these honorary monarchs. Coronation and other regal ceremonies continue to this day.

The fact that the “Maharajas” or “Rajkumars” have no formal authority and that the state had democratically elected leaders, appeared to be matters of small consequence. Were we caught in a time warp? I scratched my head and wondered.

A bigger mystery is the fascination that Americans have for royals. We take pride in our democracy, fierce sense of independence and individuality but we adore any head that wears a crown. We encourage paparazzi to follow an apathetic guy on the street because the poor fellow is 325th in line to inherit a vague royal title.

This obsession is fodder for the rumor mills in the publishing world as they thrive on nuggets of news and gossip about these otherwise mortal human beings. They must have their cup runneth over!

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