Dhun Mehta hollered a greeting as he passed by the compound of our office on the morning of June 26, 1975. Were we aware, he inquired, that prominent opposition leaders like Jayaprakash Narayan, Morarji Desai, Jyoti Basu, LK Advani and others had been arrested, censorship imposed and a state of emergency declared in the country?… Continue reading How two men refused to bend to press censorship during the Emergency
Category: History
Echoes in a Parsi attic: How a box of keepsakes opens story of early Jamshedpur via Mumbai
In 1935, Khurshed Maneckji Bharucha, the first Indian chief cashier of Tata Steel in Jamshedpur, borrowed ₹3.5 lakh from a friend who owned an island near Bombay. Soon, on an open ground at Bistupur junction, arose a four-storey building with partition walls made of surkhi, a burnt clay and limestone mix. Article by Sharmila Ganesan… Continue reading Echoes in a Parsi attic: How a box of keepsakes opens story of early Jamshedpur via Mumbai
The Iran League: Bombay’s bridge to Persia
In a creaking colonial building on DN Road, a group of volunteers works to keep alive the memory of a friendship between two nations — one that history, and geopolitics, seems poised to forget On the second floor of Fort’s Navsari Building — reached via a wood-panelled lift whose crank is still wound by hand… Continue reading The Iran League: Bombay’s bridge to Persia
When Indore Was the City of Bicycles: Remembering N.C. Anklesaria & Company on World Bicycle Day
On World Bicycle Day, we look back at a charming chapter from Indore’s civic and commercial history, one in which the humble bicycle was not merely a mode of transport, but a symbol of aspiration, mobility, enterprise, and everyday life. At the heart of this story is N.C. Anklesaria & Company, which, in 1918, started… Continue reading When Indore Was the City of Bicycles: Remembering N.C. Anklesaria & Company on World Bicycle Day
Finding Keki Gazdar: New exhibition traces the roots of an Indian Parsi family through its archives
It is easy to see why Joyona Medhi turns to cinema to describe her latest photobook and exhibition, Sparseeing. The launch of the book at the Cymroza Art Gallery last Friday marked the second leg of an archival work that was sparked by an incidental meeting of friends in 2016. “The book is part fiction,… Continue reading Finding Keki Gazdar: New exhibition traces the roots of an Indian Parsi family through its archives
Why a proposal to resettle Parsis in Iran in the 1940s never took off
In June 1947, as India stood on the brink of independence, sections of the Iranian press began publishing articles suggesting that Parsis would emigrate in large numbers from India to the land of their ancestors. The idea echoed global calls within the Jewish diaspora encouraging migration to Palestine. GA Naqvi, an officer in the consular… Continue reading Why a proposal to resettle Parsis in Iran in the 1940s never took off
The Bomanjee Hormarjee Wadia Clock Tower Restored: A Legacy of Service, Craft, and Civic Collaboration
Built in 1882 by Bomanjee Hormarjee Wadia, this clock tower was a gift of service and foresight. Today, its legacy stands complete once more. Standing tall in Fort since 1882, the Bomanjee Hormarjee Wadia Clock Tower has quietly witnessed Mumbai’s transformation — from colonial-era streets to the thriving financial and cultural capital it is today.… Continue reading The Bomanjee Hormarjee Wadia Clock Tower Restored: A Legacy of Service, Craft, and Civic Collaboration
