Saroji Naidu, in her patrotic poem “The Gift of India” celebrates and proclaims Mother India’s contributions for the cause of the colonisers, especially for the British. In the poem, Mother India herself is the speaker to remind the West of the material gifts that they took away from here. But the biggest contribution was in the form of his martyred sons for the cause of others in the World War I.

The poem celebrates the sacrifice of numerous Indian soldiers fighting in the foreign lands. “The sons of my stricken womb”, “to the drum-beats of duty”, “gathered like pearls in their alien graves”, “pale brows and brave, broken hands” — all express a motif of glorification and celebration of the dutiful brave soldiers who are martyred in the war. The “pride that thrills” through the Mother’s heart is consistent with the same motif of glarification.

Now, the poem not only celebrates the bravery of the sons of India, but also proclaims the honour and the recognition they deserve for their sacrifice for the cause of others. The speaker claims in the very last line —

Remember the blood of my martyred sons!

This is a demand for accounting Mother India’s gifts to the West including her sons who were martyred in the battlefield of the First World War.