The monkey cap, or tupi, in Bengali households, is a generational inheritance — usually found stashed inside an old trunk with other winter wear, blankets and kanthas for the majority of the year. Nostalgia-laden and smelling of evaporated naphthalene balls, these woollen wonders still have a place in Bengali hearts (and heads). There are, of course, many more fashion-forward headgear available nowadays, but nothing comes close to matching the monkey cap in ‘Bangaliyana’.
Read on as we follow the monkey tupi’s journey from a soldier’s headgear to cinema and Twitter trope…
Where it all began
Also known as dadur tupi, what we call monkey caps in our part of the world is a derivative of the balaclava. Similar to ski masks, too, a version of it dates back to the 19th century and the Crimean War, when headgear like it were popular among Polish and Prussian soldiers. In fact, the name ‘balaclava’ is derived from the Battle of Balaclava, in which these caps were extensively used by British soldiers.
The monkey cap is also known as ‘dadur tupi’
TT archivesThe Bengali and the monkey tupi
Despite our grandparents arguing that winters were much colder during their time, Kolkata and south West Bengal do not have freezing temperatures, like in north India. But central and north Bengal certainly have cold mornings and colder winters – making the need for a cap that covers the ears and throat more necessary. And somewhere down the line, the monkey cap became a one-stop solution for Bangalis and all our shordi-kashi problems.
Monkey caps in popular culture
Prosenjit Chatterjee and Dharmendra wearing monkey caps in ‘Hanuman.com’ and ‘Chupke Chupke’, respectively
From Dharam paaji in Chupke Chupke disguised as a chowkidar sporting a monkey cap to Bumba da wearing a hanuman tupi in Hanuman.com — 1975 or 2013, even megastars have taken resort to monkey caps while enacting timeless characters. Here are some more examples from cinema and the web:
Not warm enough for Big B
Perfect companion for the Bengali sleuth
Anirban Chakrabarti as Ekendra Sen (left) in ‘The Eken’ and as Lalmohan Ganguly in ‘Chhinnamastar Abhishap’
Jatayu and his monkey tupi
