Nuggets of Sholay: Ten - Maine Aapka Namak Khaya Hai Sardar

I must confess that bringing this series of Sholay nuggets to you has been an immensely joyful experience. The many hours and days of research, thinking and writing have provided me an escape from the otherwise dull period of the wretched lockdown. And I hope you are enjoying reading it too!

In this episode, I'm digging out a proverb that is neatly ensconsed in the famous 'Kitne Aadmi The' scene.

Muhavra: Kisika Namak Khana (किसिका नमक खाना)   

Did you realise that Gabbar Singh (the Late Amjad Khan) is introduced well after the first hour of the film? Surprising, considering the import and gravity of the character, but Salim-Javed were true masters at the art of storytelling, and they surely had very good reason to do so. Anyway, when Gabbar is diabolically playing the Russian Roulette of bullets with the three hapless dacoits, at 1h.10m, Kaalia (the Late Viju Khote) s-s-s-s-stammers, 'S-S-S-Sardar, Maine Aapka Namak Khaya Hai, Sardar.'   To which, we all know what Gabbar nonchalantly replies. 

S-S-S-Sardar, Maine Aapka Namak Khaya Hai, Sardar.

The sentence literally means 'I have eaten your salt'. But what it actually means is that 'I am very loyal to you'. But what's the connection of eating salt and being loyal? Any idea? Think..think...Sachitism to the rescue :) 

Rewind a few hundred years. Salt was in those days a very precious commodity, and anyone owning salt was either very rich, or very important.  Imagine in those times, you cooked a meal, but ran out of salt. You wouldn't wan to eat that insipid food, right? So you ran out and went to the nearest friend's house and asked for salt. Whichever friend gave you salt, you would be extremely grateful to him/her, correct? Except in those days, you would be more than grateful - you would be loyal to that friend forever.  Therefore, if you eat salt given by someone, you became indebted, bonded and loyal to that someone forever.

Over time, this proverb somehow got linked with Islam (don't know how), because the one who upheld this salt-forged bond is called namak halaal (faithful), the one who betrayed it is called namak haram (traitor).  Halaal vs haraam, remember in the context of meat? While this sinks in, please allow me to mischievously take this thread elsewhere, with unimportant trivia that Amitabh Bachchan acted in both the versions of the aforementioned namak suffixes, and of course was also in Sholay, where the namak proverb was used!

But to think that namak is not even a Hindi word - it's Urdu/Farsi. The correct word is  lavarn (लवण).

That was the nugget. Samjhe ke nahin? Agar achha laga to comment kijiye. Agar achha nahin laga to lament kijiye.

Goodbye, aadab and namaste.