Plenitude on my plate, in a city to love

This column is blessed with a reach stretching unimaginably Once Upon a City generates energies and synergies that beautifully knit people close It keeps bringing me fresh learnings and appreciation which validate the lengthy hours of research requiredEnveloped by abundant goodwill I now have readers invite me over asking when I plan to get to their lane promising leads to people who will help navigate the vicinity They add heft to every column vaulting it further and deepermdashmaking it more meaningful and most gratifyingReader reactions are especially welcome when they shed light on what I write as small slices of history An exciting mail from five years ago proved to be as crucially revelatory as it was responsive ldquoI read with considerable interest your article on Forjett Street Bombay Charles Forjett d1890 is buried in Ladywell cemetery of SE London England and his headstone is one that is often referenced in guided walks of the cemeteryrdquo Signed lsquoMike Guilfoyle ViceChair Friends of Brockley amp Ladywell cemeteriesrsquo this message importantly locates the tomb of the AngloIndian deputy commissioner of police 185664 who organised Mumbairsquos first official forceFilmmaker Hansal Mehta and his father Deepak at the site of their former bungalow Mukhi Nivas in Khar three years ago File picSlipping smartly into disguises Forjett donned desi dress spoke local lingo and artfully slunk through the shadows of dark streets to bust 19thcentury crime rings Forming effective night patrols he rallied his men brilliantly Volume 1 of the Bombay City Gazetteer notes ldquoHis foresight and extraordinary knowledge of the vernacular saved Bombay from a mutiny of the garrisonrdquoCloser home in the flood of weekly mail I was glad to receive a warm communication from Hansal Mehta unassumingly introducing himself after I wrote a 2017 column linking Kharrsquos past to its present Politely complimenting the article he offered his views on growing up in the leafy suburb should I pursue a followup piece I did with delightful childhood vignettes from him It was a stash of racy novels that unexpectedly spurred him on to make sensitive films such as Shahid City Lights Aligarh and Omerta Narrating accounts of life in his former family bungalow Mukhi Nivas on 15th Road Mehta said ldquoWhen I was housebound with a severe jaundice attack kind Ifti Uncle actor Iftikhar Bollywoodrsquos eternal cop and his fatherrsquos friend three buildings away sent over his entire James Hadley Chase collection to read Those plots got me hooked to the idea of wanting to tell strong storiesrdquoOften it is sheer chance that brings to light the affective impact of a story It came as a happy surprise to hear how the captain steering an IndiGo flight on theVadodara to Mumbai route shared facts from the tribute to Maniben Nanavati printed on these pages on a Sunday in February last year The parts the pilot focused on was her role as an educationist and tireless activist for the countryrsquos freedom and womenrsquos empowerment Julius Valladares at Keepsake the Matharpacady cottage with typical IndoPortuguese architectural elements File picSome valuable insights on the beat come from the narrowest gullies Like those of Dongri for a piece that begged to be titled lsquoThree cups of tea at Char Nullrsquo It was here that three intervieweesmdasha pair of Bhishti water carrier brothers a charismatic surmawala and the presiding mujawar of the Baba Gor Sidi dargahmdashserved me different cups of aromatic chai each stirred in with a splendid storyIt was the man in the middle Mohmmad Anis Shaikh in his shop with the signboard lsquoDada Nanji Kamarsi Surmawalarsquo who gave me a second cup of mohalla chai a tiny bottle of fragrant rose attar concocted on the spot and an epiphanic moment of appreciating the worth of ancestry His poetturnedshopkeeper father Gulam Nabi Taufiq set up the store 10 years after arriving in 1920 from Navsari Discovering that my paternal ancestors from the Meherji Rana family also claimed Navsari as hometown he exclaimed in a rush of Gujarati Hindi and English ldquoWe are both from Navsari but yoursquove only been there once Irsquom booking my train ticket to go next month Let me add yours toordquo When I demurred he stressed ldquoWhere we come from is everything Tamey toh priestly class bhi yoursquore from a priestly clan too Our true roots lie in the mulk This city just provides us rojirotirdquo That was an unforgettable lesson in the distinct clarity of identity The columnistasconduit concept brings cheer and charm Fresh from speaking to the living legend Ameen Sayani on the occasion of the Binaca Geetmala radio programmersquos 70th anniversary I happened to interview Ciplarsquos Yusuf Hamied for another piece The two gents are firmly mutual admirers of each other ldquoDo take this from me to Ameen Saabrdquo Dr Hamied requested In the pouch for me to pass on to Sayani was Unforgettable Melodies a threehour disc compilation of songs from films by Hamiedrsquos fatherinlaw AR Kardar The actorproducer from Lahore launched mega stars including Chand Usmani Naushad and Majrooh Sultanpuri and gave Mohamed Rafi his early hit Suhaani Raat Dhal ChukiSavitri and Mohandas Kamath at the 1936established Orient Cleaners Kingrsquos Circle PicSujata RaoObjects hold emotions becoming repositories of the significance we attach to them Sipping copious amounts of chai daylong I treasure a lovely little blue and white coaster given by Phorum Pandya who edited the forerunner to this columnmdasha fortnightly halfpage called Urban Legend What she picked in an old Middle Eastern souk I associate with an overall sense of wellbeing Whether it is battling writerrsquos block before looming deadlines or feeling under the weather or dealing with personal ebb and flow the threeinch diameter of this ceramic roundel seldom fails to soothe The comforting sight of it followed by the sound of any mug clink lightly down on its surface quite adequately reassures restores reboots One of the sweetest gestures of encouragement has been the Once Upon a City cake It was ordered backstage before a performance of Laughter in the House the play born of my book on Parsi theatre of the same name April 12 was a day of multiple celebrations it being actress Ruby Patelrsquos birthday also her wedding anniversary with produceractor husband Burjor besides being director Sam Kerawallarsquos birthday If a show was performed on or around that date there was inevitably a mithai box to open a cake to cut Yet there they were acknowledging my book smiling singing clapping and hugging as I sliced wedges of chocolateIn a world increasingly pocked by untruth and disinformation the voice on the street emerges authentic Exploring vibrant Kingrsquos Circle I lucked out at Orient Cleaners Pulled in by the vintage typography lettering advertising the name of this laundry I was soon astounded by the ease with which Mohandas Kamath at the counter could reel off engrossing anecdotes tracing the Circlersquos sociocultural fabric in the last century Long live the Kamaths of the world keepers of the secrets the city hides within They make wonderful raconteurs engaging in talk beyond gully gupshup describing their neighbourhoods with passion in accurate animated detail His to me were the gifts of time and thought In turn he proudly posed with a copy of my Bombay book delivered to himThe ordinary are ever extraordinary The inhabitants of Matharpacady in Mazagaon have never lacked faith and hopemdashqualities being severely tested in the ongoing fight against ruthless redevelopment threatening the 16thcentury settlement of their forebears Two Christmas evenings ago when other East Indian villages sparkled with stars and fairy lights residents of this gaothan mindfully donated for COVID relief the money to otherwise be spent on lighting They created their own brightness From buttercup yellowpainted Keepsake seaman Julius Valladares has a friendly wave for all who walk slowly past admiring this 1928built housersquos exquisite woodwork He is known to generously usher total strangers into the candlelit cottage for Christmas sweets A Shakespeare buff his mother christened her sons after Julius Caesar and Mark AntonyA quote from 50 years ago continues to inspire I found it while profiling the maverick architectpolitician Piloo Mody His idealism tempered with realism drew him to the liberal Swatantra Party headed by C Rajagopalachari Pertinent Pilooisms ring chillingly relevant amid todayrsquos hyperjingoist rants Condemning caste in 1973 he said in March of the Nation ldquoItrsquos disgraceful enough if looking down on human beings was confined to keeping out of their way or barring them entry into temples What cannot be countenanced is bigotry erupting in vicious cruelty connived at by society condoned by the authoritiesrdquo But the words by him that I find best to believe in aremdashldquoThe world revolves around an idea Every problem has its solution given a clean heart good intention and determinationrdquoAuthorpublisher Meher Marfatia writes fortnightly on everything that makes her love Mumbai and adore Bombay You can reach her at mehermarfatiamiddaycomwwwmeher marfatiacom