I see I have given false information about a few things, so I have researched my statements and now present you factual information. I was very wrong when I made my statement that Sonia Gandhi was the Prime Minister of India. It is clear that I failed to fully understand the article I was reading on her, and for this I apologize. After doing some proper research, I see now that Mrs. Gandhi is the President of the Indian National Congress. I also now appreciate that I have invested some proper time into looking up who exactly Sonia Gandhi is. She was born in Italy, but settled in India upon meeting and marrying her husband, Rajiv Gandhi. Rajiv was the grandson of India’s first prime minister, Jawarhlal Nehru. Sonia spent a great deal of time with her mother-in-law, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and even became a sort of personal assistant to her. However, Sonia was not fond of politics. Her husband did not enter politics, to her relief, until the tragic death of his brother. Rajiv felt it was his family duty and thus ran for and won his brother’s parliament seat. Upon the death of his mother, Rajiv became the prime minister. I will not get into to specifics here, but Rajiv faced some political challenges and lost his title as Prime Minister. When he attempted to rerun for the Prime Minister position in 1991 he was assassinated. Sonia retreated from political life, and it was not until 1997 that Sonia announced she was running for the Congress Party. In 1998 Sonia became the President of the Congress Party, which continued the legacy of the Gandhi name in the Indian government.
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I would now like to offer some history of the Indian worn Sari:
The word for Sari comes from the Sanskrit for “strips of cloth.” The Sari dates back to the time of the Indus Valley Civilization (2800-1800 BC). Here are some brief beliefs on the Sari:
- Sari’s are believed to have derived from dhotis, which were long garments worn by men.
- Statues from 100 B.C. depict women wearing Saris with accentuated breast and hips with small waist. It is thought that Sari’s are meant to depict such shapes among women.
- Another thought is that Sari originated to allow Dancers the freedom of their limbs while still maintain a modest appearance.
Before I go, I would like to extend a very warm thanks to everyone who follows my blog. I know sometimes I may not be correct in what I observe, and I hope I can come to distinguish what is an appropriate observation and what is not. I chose to study abroad in India because I knew nothing about this beautiful place, unlike many of the European cities I have learned about. I hope, when I look back and read through my blog, I will see how much I have learned during my stay here.
I encourage those that would like to offer me critiques, comments, or thoughts to email me at ALEVY@SKIDMORE.EDU and I wish I had posted my email sooner to avoid feeding you all false information.
Namaste and much Love,
Anna
