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“Friends, associates and sympathizers.
lend me your ears.
I have to bury the hatchet, not to use it.
(For we shall not resort to violence)
the very hatchet which hacked and butchered
our brothers,
the very hatchet which tore open the
vaginas of our wives and mothers,
the very hatchet which beheaded our kids
and god have mercy, the most innocent and beautiful of all; my own son, Caesar
!
The evil that our blood can do is paramount
and profound, but their drop of red is of course pure and precious.
They say that we be evil, that we be the
sons of Satan.
And they be right, as they are honourable
men.
They say we are parasites, germs which
should be eliminated the moment they are noticed. And they be right, as they
are honourable men.
Come I to speak at my son’s funeral. He was
eight years old, faithful to the Gods, wise and beautiful.
But they say he was also ambitious, cracked
up in the head. They say he could think, think very different and more than
what’s allotted to us. They say he had dangerous motives.
And dangerously has an eight year old paid
for his ambition.
They say he threw stones at them, and got
bullets in return!
He paid for his ambitions they said, and
they of course are honourable men.
They are honourable men, my brothers! Men
who do their duty every morning with the same honesty, vigour and ferocity;
against us.
We came here much before them and will be
here much after they are gone. Our forefathers fought and won this land for us.
Whose taxes did we pay for hundred years? Whose rules and regulations did we follow
without a word of dissent?
Did that seem ambitious? rebellious? treacherous?
Or for god sake, evil?
Whenever those honourable men have asked
for help, we’ve given it all. Who could forget the battle of sultanpur when
everyone of us gave our blood for them. And yet they say we be devil. Devilry must
be made of sterner stuff.
You all did see how Fatima, our priest’s
daughter was raped by twenty seven honourable men, then hacked into pieces and
thrown in the ganges. And yet again you saw how two of your heartthrobs Iqlakh
and Kapil were shot at point blank range.
Why?
Because they are honourable men and we be
germs.
I am grateful to these men and their
government for allowing me to weep and speak at my only son’s funeral.
So, I speak today.
I speak neither to offend the honourable
men nor to offend their sacred status.
I speak to wake you all up, I speak to
pluck your eyebrows out so you can open up your eyes from the deep slumber of
opium.
You call me brother, so what cause withholds
you then to mourn for my son, for Caesar?
O judgement! Thou art fled to brutish
beasts and monkeys have lost their reason.
Bear with me for my heart is in the coffin
with Caesar and I must pause before it comes back to me. (pauses)
(weeps)
(Murmurs in the crowd)
1st
monkey- me thinks there is much reason in his saying
2nd monkey- if thou consider rightly of the matter, humans have committed a
sin too big
to escape, probably the worst this time.
3rd
monkey- had they brother? I fear they’ll be worse
coming.
1st
monkey- Poor Caesar just threw stones at them and he
was shot. BAAM!
2nd monkey- poor soul! his eyes are red with weeping. To lose your only son is
indeed a
terrible loss.
3rd monkey- there is not a nobler soul than Antony
1st monkey- peace ho! Now mark him as he begins to speak.
But yesterday, we were held as Gods, super
beings who stood for courage and bravery. Even mythology proves our faithfulness
and loyalty. But try explaining this to the humans, to these honourable men.
No, I shall not do them wrong. I rather
choose to wrong the dead; to wrong myself and you than to wrong such honourable
men. But here’s a parchment they gave men an hour ago as compensation to my son’s
loss. Let but the commons hear the price they have put for the life of a
monkey, which pardon me, I do not mean to read.
1st monkey- we will hear the price. Read it Antony
2nd monkey- the parchment, the parchment, read it aloud.
Have patience gentle brothers. I must not
read it. You are not wood, you are not stones, but monkeys; and being monkeys
hearing the price of a fellow being, it will inflame you; it will make you go
mad. Its good that you remain unaware of the insults written here. For if you
should, O, what would come of it.
3rd monkey- read the parchment,
we shall hear it. Read.
will you be patient? will you stay awhile? I
have o’ershot my self to tell you of it. I feel I have wronged the honourable
men whose bullets splashed my son’s blood all over……
2nd
monkey- they are evil. Treacherous bastards. Evil evil
human beings.
3rd
monkey- they are villains. Read the parchment
You will compel me, then, to read the
parchment. Then make a ring about the coffin of Caesar and let me read it. Shall
I descend?
1st monkey- descend.
2nd monkey- a ring. Everybody stand around.
3rd monkey- stand from the hearse. Room
for antony , most noble antony
(Antony
If you have tears, prepare to shed them
now. Do you know this saffron garment my son wears? I bought it as a present
for his birthday; and look how charming he appears.
There! there’s the place, the small hole
where they shot him, right through his rib cage. There, touch and feel the
shattered bones of my blue blood. Mark the shoulders, mark how disproportionate
they appear, feel the agony he felt when they shot him twice there and kicked him.
And yes, the most unkind blow of all, notice the obvious.
They shot him in the head! Exactly five
minutes later when their bullets broke his rib cage. For five minutes, five
long minutes, Caesar withered in pain. And then he fell. O, what a fall was it
my brothers. O, now you weep and I perceive you feel the dint of pity.
1st
monkey- O pitiful spectacle
2nd monkey- O noble Caesar!
3rd
monkey- O woeful day!
4th
monkey- O traitors, villains.
3rd monkey- we shall be revenged.
All
Yes. revenge. revenge. seek, burn , fire,
kill, slay. Let not a human in sundarban stay.
1st
monkey- peace ho! Hear the noble Antony
Good brothers, sweet brothers. Let me not
arouse you to such a sudden flood of mutiny.
Those who have done this deed are
honourable and we must not offend them. I have come here only to remember my
beloved, our beloved Caesar and to read out aloud the dirt cheap price these
men have put for our blood.
here is that parchment.
It says, because I am a loyal state
resident and is dutiful and pay taxes, therefore to compensate my grief, the
mighty government has decided to grant me 5000 rupees. That is all, not once,
not anywhere have they mentioned an apology for their horrific crimes. So now
my brothers, you all know your worth in this world. You all know now that any
human can spill out 5000 rupees and shoot you in the head. Well, they are
honourable men and we must sustain the blows for their honour. For mutiny is no
longer possible
1st
monkey- no. we’ll
mutiny.
2nd
monkey- kill kill
3rd monkey- revenge.
4th
monkey- burn
down their houses.
All
Yes. revenge. revenge. seek, burn , fire,
kill, slay. Let not a human in sundarban stay.
Yes. revenge. revenge. seek, burn , fire,
kill, slay. Let not a human in sundarban stay.
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