Warbler, Orphean and more !!

Anadhai Anandhan (Orphaned Anandhan)  directed by Krishnan–Panju, starring  Jayalalithaa, AVM Rajan, Muthuraman, RS Manohar and Anjali Devi hit the screens in 1970.  The bond between the lead heroine Jayalalithaa with the orphaned child played by Master Sekhar was the highlight of the film.   The film was simultaneously made in Hindi as Chanda Aur Bijli, which released earlier in 1969. It was a successful film on its release. This film was remade in Telugu as Akka Thamudu in 1972.

 

Sadly, the dreaded Corona virus has created more Orphans.  The Supreme Court  granted the custody of a five-year-old child, who lost both parents to Covid-19, to his paternal grandparents. Deciding an appeal by the child’s paternal grandfather, a bench of Justices M R Shah and Aniruddha Bose set aside the May 2 order of the Gujarat High Court, which granted the custody to the maternal aunt.  The SC noted that the reasons that weighed on the HC to grant the custody to the aunt were that the paternal grandparents were old — 71 and 63 years — while the aunt was just 46 years old; the aunt had a bigger family; the grandfather was a retired government servant depending on pension, while the aunt was a government employee and would be in a better position to take care of the minor.  However, the SC noted that the minor had shown inclination to stay with the grandparents and his custody remained with them following an interim order of the HC and that there was no grievance that the minor was not taken good care of.

Any tale of Orphan is pathetic .. .. heard of ‘Orphean’ ??

The Thracians   were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history. Jason  was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He was also the great-grandson of the messenger god Hermes, through his mother's side. Jason appeared in various literary works in the classical world of Greece and Rome, including the epic poem Argonautica and the tragedy Medea.  

The word  Orphean would refer to Orpheus,  a legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth. Orpheus   is a Thracian bard and  legendary musician. According to the legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece, and even descended into the Underworld of Hades to recover his lost wife Eurydice. The major stories about him are centered on his ability to charm all living things and even stones with his music (the usual scene in Orpheus mosaics), his attempt to retrieve his wife Eurydice from the underworld, and his death at the hands of the maenads of Dionysus. As an archetype of the inspired singer, Orpheus is one of the most significant figures in the reception of classical mythology in Western culture, portrayed or alluded to in countless forms of art and popular culture including poetry, film, opera, music, and painting. 

According to Aristotle, Orpheus never existed, but to all other ancient writers he was a real person, though living in remote antiquity. Most of them believed that he lived several generations before Homer. Greeks of the Classical age venerated Orpheus as the greatest of all poets and musicians; it was said that while Hermes had invented the lyre, Orpheus had perfected it.  Some sources credit Orpheus with further gifts to mankind: medicine.

The word refers to a bird too .. .. the  eastern Orphean warbler (Curruca crassirostris) is a typical warbler of the genus Curruca. This species occurs in summer around the Mediterranean, through the Balkans via Turkey, the Caucasus and surrounding regions to Central Asia. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa. At 15–16 cm length—somewhat larger than a blackcap—this is one of the largest species of typical warblers.  The song is a series of warbling liroo-liroo and scolding notes.  These small passerine birds are found in open deciduous woodland. 4–6 eggs are laid in a nest in a bush or tree. Like most "warblers", the eastern Orphean warbler is an insectivore.

Interesting ! – the pic of Warbler at the start from twitter page of @tnkcanoe. 

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
13^th June 2022.