Simran and SPQR
Published by Arun Isaac on
In other languages: தமிழ்
Tags: cinema, tamilcinema
Figure 1: Simran appears before SPQR in Thulladha Manamum Thullum
In the first scene of the Thodu Thodu Enavae Vanavil song in the 1999 Thulladha Manamum Thullum Tamil movie, Simran appears in front of horse riders bearing SPQR and the Roman eagle. SPQR stands for Senatus Populusque Romanus. In Latin, this means The Senate and People of Rome. Did the film makers know what they were doing when they included this in the movie? Or, did they just include it as a prop without understanding its meaning?! 😝 Not in their wildest dreams could the Romans have anticipated that their symbols would occur in such a bizarre context in the future! Christian churches using textiles embroidered with Arabic Islamic text comes to mind1.
Footnotes:
https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/fashion/crusader-chic quote: Inscriptions with Allah’s blessing abound in Christian churches, transformed into orphreys, elaborately embroidered ornamental stripes or bands on ecclesiastical vestments. A textile with embroidered and woven Arabic inscriptions, quoting the Qur’an at length, might proclaim Muhammad the messenger of God and announce the name of the reigning caliph and royal manufacture in which the textile was produced, all while serving as a burial shroud for a Christian saint.
All content is licensed under a