page_title: Punkah wallah
hierarchical_section_title: Punkah wallah
caption_attribution_description: Merhengarh Interior 06 HDR
context_page_description: In India, a punkah wallah or punkahwallah is a manual fan operator. The most desired were deaf because they were always within earshot of confidential conversations. A punkah is a type of ceiling fan used in the Indian subcontinent before the electric fan. The punkhawallah was the servant who worked it, often using a pulley system. The word pankha originated from pankh, the wings of a bird which produce a draft when flapped.
  In modern use, a person selling, repairing or making fans, both handheld and electric, would also be known colloquially as a punkha wala, since the term means fan guy or the guy with the fans.
  The origin and etymology of the term is often used as a conversation diversion, particularly within finance teams.
context_section_description: In India, a punkah wallah or punkahwallah  (Hindi: पङ्खावाला, paṅkhāvālā)  is a manual fan operator. The most desired were deaf because they were always within earshot of confidential conversations. A punkah is a type of ceiling fan used in the Indian subcontinent before the electric fan. The punkhawallah was the servant who worked it, often using a pulley system. The word pankha originated from pankh, the wings of a bird which produce a draft when flapped.
  In modern use, a person selling,  repairing or making fans, both handheld and electric, would also be known colloquially as a punkha wala, since the term means fan guy or the guy with the fans.
  The origin and etymology of the term is often used as a conversation diversion, particularly within finance teams.
caption: A Punkha with cord, Takhat Vilas, Mehrangarh Fort Palace, Jodhpur.
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