Colour me red

In the month of May, when the entire subcontinent reels under the scorching sun, the gulmohar brings forth its flowers 8212; lovely, bold, ...

In the month of May, when the entire subcontinent reels under the scorching sun, the gulmohar brings forth its flowers 8212; lovely, bold, bright red, with spikes of yellow! The flowers reach out to the sky with a daredevilry that challenges the sun itself: 8220;See if you can shrivel me, see if I give in!8221;

And the flowers blossom every day and dry up by the end of it. Yet they go on 8212; every day there are abundant blossoms. Hundreds of them on every branch, which hold them as an offering to the denizens of the skies. There are no leaves; they will come later when the blossoms have shed their electrifying glory. The opening aria is put together by the flamboyant flowers. The feathery leaves will come in a smooth cantata when the gorgeous symphony of the green will meld with the brilliant red of the flowers and create an enchantment all its own.

I have often marveled at the colors but have never dared to make them my own. Would I have the panache to stand alone in colors so unique?

In Botanyspeak, the gulmohar is known as 8216;Deonix regia8217; and belongs to the family leguminosae. It is fondly called the 8220;flame of the forest8221;, 8220;flame tree8221; and 8220;peacock flower8221;.

I am not the first to turn lyrical at the sight of a flowering tree. For aeons, the gulmohar has inspired poetry, art and literature. The earliest mention of the gulmohar is in Vaishnava literature. Most of the medieval Indian poets talk of lovers meeting under the gulmohar tree and there are romantic interludes that seem to begin and end under the flowering gulmohar.

In more recent times, who can forget Sanjay Bhansali8217;s Devdas where the drinksodden Deva breathes his last while the gulmohar sheds its flowers on him? It was such a befitting finale!

The prize-winning lyrics of a Tamil film song are all about the gulmohar and how romantic it can be. Ever read an interesting column called 8220;Under the gulmohar8221;? Try it 8212; interesting for its serendipity!

Story continues below this ad

Some say the essence of the gulmohar reacts beneficially on all those who have suffered sexual violence. They have even dredged up some ancient folklore in support of this theory. After all, the hills are still full of many secrets!

But before I close, I want to make a fervent appeal. Let us not chop down these beautiful trees in the name of development. In my childhood there used to be so many of these trees, along with the jamuns, amaltas, tesu, bel and of course the majestic neems. But thanks to road widening and growth of the city, we are losing these beauties very fast.

Will we have only literature and art to watch? When we have run out of the real thing.