An official Tour to Italy was a cheering and a unique experience for me on the peaceful days of march. Ivrea a town and comune of the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, with a decent population of nearly 25000 people. My journey was triumphant and it became more booming when I schmoozed to a cobbler in the evening at end of the road, to know about the town and its oneness or most lionize festival. Alberta, the cobbler, was looking at me with one eye, as he was pirate-eyed, and asked ‘where are you from’ I replied with proud INDIA, and he started doing his work again. Then I asked him again about the festival, this time he took out his flask and offered me some, I refused with a firm though I needed it as it was cold. Anyways, he continued with his drink and took me into the past of Ivrea.
He said battle of oranges that sounded like a fruit festival, as I thought do they eat them, grow them, play with them or fight with them, as it was a battle. He furthered explained, The festival’s origins are somewhat unclear but I will tell you as my forerunners told me, a young girl of the town, got married with a duke, an evil ruler of Ivrea , known as feudal lords at that time. He molested her, attempted rape, forced her to sleep with him as she was his newly wed woman and enforced her into his castle and room. In Italy it is referred as droit du seigneur, means first night or legal night. While he was encroaching her she somehow got an opportunity to get his hands off her and cut off his head. This started a revolution and town people destroyed the castle by throwing stones and fired the castle.
This was the most unheard history or we can say ‘her-story’ that I have ever heard off. Off course no one can force you to sleep with someone even if she is your better half or wife. This determined me to listen further, and he communed, first people used to throw coffee beans, then apple and finally it concluded on orange. From that day we celebrate this moment by dividing folks into team and throw oranges on each other, there is no particular or defined reason for throwing oranges and we celebrate it as ‘battle of oranges’.
He emptied his flask and said welcome to Italy the story is finished. I thanked him and leaved for hotel.
This is a very good story for feminism as this happened in 13th century, if a girl can do such heroic thing with his new husband then this is 21st century, as we are more developed and deployed, educated, skilled, awakened women and men both can make the ravisher’s end from the globe.
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