In 1933, a sari-clad teenager made international headlines. Avabai Wadia, 19, became the first woman from Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to pass the bar exam in the United Kingdom. Her success encouraged the Ceylonese government to allow women to study law in the country. Article by Parinaz Madan & Dinyar Patel – Mumbai This was… Continue reading Avabai Wadia: The lawyer who became India’s family planning pioneer
Category: History
Godrej locks its history in Amar Chitra Katha in outreach to youth
The challenge, Godrej says, was to reach a younger audience and children who might have had very little association with the brand It is not the first time the history of the Godrej family is being written. In its centenary year in 1997, film journalist and former editor of Filmfare and Screen B K Karanjia… Continue reading Godrej locks its history in Amar Chitra Katha in outreach to youth
Nariman Karkaria: How a young Parsi from Gujarat went to fight in World War I and had the adventures of his life
An excerpt from ‘The First World War Adventures of Nariman Karkaria: A Memoir’, translated from the Gujarati by Murali Ranganathan. Article in Scroll India From Manchuria station, a separate line goes towards Mongolia and Inner Manchuria, but we have nothing to do with it. We are going to board the train to Siberia, which leaves… Continue reading Nariman Karkaria: How a young Parsi from Gujarat went to fight in World War I and had the adventures of his life
When the British asked the French to jail Madame Cama
When the British asked the French to jail Madame Cama, the ‘mother of Indian revolution’ For decades, the British government surveilled the Parsi freedom fighter. Article by John O’Brien A postal stamp depicting Bhikhaiji Cama. | India Post/ Government of India/ Wikimedia Commons The struggle for Indian independence from British rule was not only carried… Continue reading When the British asked the French to jail Madame Cama
Khurshedben Naoroji: The singer who preached nonviolence to bandits
In most countries, the life of an elite, sophisticated woman renouncing her career as a classical soprano to preach nonviolence to bandits and kidnappers would merit significant study and attention. Yet in India, the woman in question, Khurshedben Naoroji, is largely unknown. Historian Dinyar Patel recounts her forgotten story. The writer Ramachandra Guha once described… Continue reading Khurshedben Naoroji: The singer who preached nonviolence to bandits
Doyens of medical service: Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College in Pune celebrates 75th foundation day
The hospital had played a crucial role during the 2009 Swine flu outbreak and even now, before PMC could upgrade its hospitals with ventilators and tertiary care, Sassoon was the only government hospital providing tertiary care to Covid-19 patients A panoramic view of Sassoon hospital on the 75th anniversary of BJ Medical College, which is… Continue reading Doyens of medical service: Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College in Pune celebrates 75th foundation day
Dadar Parsi Colony: Cherishing the Bombay that was
Inflatable pools, barbecues, open backyards…this is how architect Rooshad Shroff recalls the better part of his childhood spent with his parents in the Dadar Parsi colony. With the endless lockdowns, he realises how deeply he misses this oasis of bliss in the heart of Mumbai. “I certainly took the greenery for granted. You simply can’t… Continue reading Dadar Parsi Colony: Cherishing the Bombay that was
