The chapati movement involved the unusual distribution of thousands of

chapati Chapati (alternatively spelled chapatti, chappati, chapathi, or chappathi; pronounced as IAST: ), also known as ''roti'', ''rotli'', ''safati'', ''shabaati'', ''phulka'', (in East Africa) ''chapo'', (in Marathi) ''poli'', and (in the Maldives) ...

s, a type of

unleavened In cooking, a leavening agent () or raising agent, also called a leaven () or leavener, is any one of a number of substances used in doughs and batters that cause a foaming action (gas bubbles) that lightens and softens the mixture. An alterna ...

flatbread, across several Indian villages during 1857 carrying message of their native emperor seeking their services. The ultimate origin of the movement is unknown; though British agents suggested the chapatis might contain secret notes, inspections revealed no such messages. The movement first came into attention in February 1857. Reports began pouring from villages of North India that thousands of chapatis were passing from one hand to another. The usual distribution procedure involved a person who would come from the jungle, give the village watchman several chapatis and tell him to make more chapatis, and distribute those to watchmen in the nearby villages. The watchman would then travel with chapatis in his turban, often with little to no knowledge of the chapatis' original source. Indians generally believed this was the work of the British, who themselves were clueless. ''The Friend of India'', an English newspaper published in Srirampur, reported in its 5 March 1857 edition that British officers were left confused and equally scared when chapatis arrived in every police station in the area. The chapatis had travelled far; from

Farrukhabad Farrukhabad is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Farrukhabad tehsil. The city is on the banks of river Ganges and is from the national capital Delhi and from the state capital Lucknow. ...

Gurgaon Gurgaon (pronunciation: �ʊɽɡãːw, officially named Gurugram (pronunciation: �ʊɾʊɡɾaːm, is a city located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest of the nationa ...

, from

Avadh Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

via

Rohilkhand Rohilkhand (previously Rampur State) is a region in the northwestern part of Uttar Pradesh, India, that is centered on the Rampur, Bareilly and Moradabad divisions. It is part of the upper Ganges Plain, and is named after the Rohilla tribe. Th ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. The speed of distribution was particularly disconcerting to the British because it was much swifter than British mail, and several inquiries were made as to the source and meaning of the movement. They yielded the information that the breads were being distributed far more widely than anyone in Agra had yet realized, and that the Indians who received them generally took them as some sort of a sign. Beyond that, however, opinions remained divided. There were reports that lotus flowers and goat flesh were also occasionally distributed with the chapatis.

References

{{reflist Political movements in India Indian Rebellion of 1857 1857 in India