“How are you? All good?” is how Guilherme Sachetim (48) greets his cows in Brazil. It is a simple phrase with roots that run deep into history.

In the 1940s, a young Gir bull, named Krishna, was gifted to Brazilian cattle baron Celso Garcia Sid by the Maharaja (Prince) of Bhavnagar, India. This simple gesture had profound implications for Brazil’s dairy industry, forever changing its future.

In 1949, 10-year-old Krishna travelled all the way from western Indian Province of Gujarat‘s Bhavnagar to Brazil and founded a dynasty in the Latin American country! We are not talking about a man here. Instead, we are talking about a Gir bull that was gifted by the Maharaja of Bhavnagar to Sid, the cattle baron from Brazil.

The arrival of Krishna ushered in a new era for Brazil as his descendants boosted milk production significantly, driving the White Revolution of Brazil. Guilherme Sachetim, the grandson of Sid who affectionately greets these cows with “How are you? All good?“, has said: “Around 80% of Brazil’s milk comes from Gir cows who have directly descended from Krishna.“

In recognition of the Maharaja of Bhavnagar to its dairy industry, Brazil has built a statue of the late ruler near its Parliament House. And in recognition of the Gir cow’s role in the country’s economy, it finds a place on Brazil’s coins and stamps!

Interestingly, pedigreed Gir cows in Brazil earn the Pure Origin India (POI) tag. Brazil also has more Gir cattle than the breed’s native Gujarat!

The Better India published this article on Instagram on September 19, 2024.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das