Mine was not a family of numismatists. I don’t recall any of us collecting rare coins and old currency notes. Yet my Mother has a handful of Indian coins dating back to another generation. She is
90. And has Dementia. So she does not remember anything about these coins. Much to my dismay. I am particularly keen on knowing about a silver rupee dating back to 1945 with King George VI on it. He’s referred to as the Emperor. It was this coin (well, not this one) that was used in ‘Sholay’ by Amitabh Bachchan to trick Dharmendra when they tossed a coin to settle disputes.
‘Sholay’ was a 1975 release. I don’t know why filmmakers SalimJaved used this English coin when there were several Indian coins also in currency. For instance, this Jawaharlal Nehru silver rupee in my palm from 1964. Nehru haters today will wonder why he was commemorated with a coin. Perhaps because he was the country’s first Prime Minister and served 16 years in office till his
death in 1964. Nehru is without his familiar Gandhi topi on the coin. In my Mother’s collection is also a silver five-rupee coin with Indira Gandhi. This was, I think, a limited collector’s edition brought out in honour of Mrs. G’s martyrdom. But the Nehru and King George VI coins were currency. They are pure silver. I wonder if people melted these coins back in the day. The value of the precious metal must have been more than the currency itself.
Today, when one rupee coins are just small change, we would have done it without a second thought. Maybe that’s why the Reserve Bank of India wisely stopped minting coins in silver.
About Mark Manuel
The above thoughts/content has been proudly copied from the wall of Sir Mark Manuel. Being interviewing almost every role model of this country and going stronger each day. Mark Manuel is a respected Mumbai editor, writer, and columnist.
With over three decades of journalism in leading publications. This includes the Free Press Journal, Times, Dainik Bhaskar, Mid-Day, and Afternoon. He is famous for his brilliant pen interviews. He himself is a TEDx speaker.
Further
His interviews have been featured in several leading media houses. They include the Hindustan Times, Huffington Post, BBC, and Network 18. Almost every famous person has been interviewed by him in the country from Mother Teresa to Muhammad Ali. His first book is just out. It’s titled Moryaa Re! It is a crime thriller that is perhaps the country’s first police procedural. He began his career covering crime. And in a tribute to his experience and knowledge of this beat.
Several distinguished officers of the Mumbai Police and its Crime Branch collaborated with him to make this book possible. Amitabh Bachchan wrote the forward in a statement of friendship for Mark Manuel and admiration for his work.
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