Unbordered Memories

I spent the last weekend reading Prof. Rita Kothari's Book " Unbordered Memories : Sindhi Stories of Partition" which is a collection of 25 Sindhi short stories edited and translated into English by her. The authors of these stories are Sindhi writers both from India and Pakistan. I find the title "Sindhi Stories of Partition" quite apt and relevant as these are not just stories of 1947 Partition but centered around or based on the Partition of Sindh. As I have mentioned in my posts previously, Sindhi experience of partition is very different from Punjabi experience ; however, it has received little attention in mainstream media as most discussions in India about Partition are based on the Punjabi experience.For e.g. most first generation Hindu Sindhi migrants often had a soft corner for Sindhi Muslims and held them on a higher pedestal ; something which does not fit in the usual partition narrative. Similarly, it was equally difficult for Muslim Sindhis to adjust with the post partition new surroundings even in their own land - a land that was now seeing the influx of  Muhajirs ( a term used from Urdu speaking Muslims who migrated from India to Pakistan during Partition) and thereby bringing a marked change in the character of cities like Karachi and Hyderabad. This difficult change which at-least most of us (as Hindu Sindhis in India) are unaware about is beautifully captured by Prof. Kothari in the translated version of the story " The Death of Fear" (by Shoukat Hussain Shoro). My favorite stories are "Muhammad, the Coach-driver" by Dada Ram Panjwani and " Holi" by Dada Amar Jaleel. I strongly recommend this book as a "must read" for everyone who is interested to explore the Sindh perspective on Partition. The book is available both in hard copy as well as on kindly (e-book) version. Also my heartiest congratulations to Prof. Kothari for this insightful work. 

On another note, i would also like to thank the Anonymous Commenter on my blog post “Multani Identity” about Mony uncle. Just to share, my mother and I recently stopped  at “New” Khanna Market whilst passing by. The market has lost much of its old charm; now largely being a market for Tent Houses and mechanics rather than retail outlets. We saw my maternal grandfather’s old shop which is now occupied by a Travel and Tours company. We also saw Mony uncle’s shop and after a few minutes of reluctance, mummy and me finally went inside and were glad to see Mony uncle and his sons at the shop. The family was quite welcoming ; immediately recognizing my mother as Dada’s Daughter and Ramesh’s sister. Both Mony uncle and his son’s vividly remembered Nana which was bit of a surprise for me as he expired more than 25 years ago but I guess such is the power of relationships!. When my mother enquired if Mony uncle still celebrated "Shivratri" by attending the night long Jagran  at “Shiv Mandir” in Old Delhi, Mony uncle remarked  that post Nana’s demise, he hasn’t gone to the Mandir as he no longer had company.  Mummy also met another neighbor , Shri Kamal, who runs Vardhman Knitting Wool shop.Such Nostalgia!.

I recently watched the film “ Dil Jo Na Keh Saka” a light entertainment romantic comedy written, produced and directed by young Sindhi filmmaker, “Ada” Naresh Lalwani. Ada Naresh is a well-known Sindhi stage actor; he  and his brother  Sh. Prakash Lalwani were well known in Delhi's Sindhi theatre working at Sindhu Kala Sangam under veteran directors Jeevan Gurshani and Shambu Jaisinghani in the 1980s. Ada moved to Mumbai in the late 1990s for modelling and began his film career as lead actor in a Sindhi film, Ker Kehnjo (directed by Kamal Nathani; released in 1991/92).  Presently, he lives in Manchester, England. I congratulate him for this wonderful movie and pray to Lal Sain for continued success and prosperity in all the future endeavors. The link to the movie is as follows. Please do watch the same.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOpMtHZxPsQ

Jai Jhulelal

Sindhi Identity

I remember a conversation that I had with a dear friend of mine who too (like me) has a refugee background about how his grandfather ( "Dada") is particular about  record keeping especially documents that establish identity/proof of residence such as land papers, electricity bills, water bills etc. Our families have known each other for a long time, both having been allotted a plot of land in  Rajinder Nagar post migration from Sindh in 1947. I have grown up witnessing similar instances with both my Dada and other elders in the family were extremely particular about documentation. In our home, there are folders relating to electricity bills, water bills, house tax proofs (and the list goes on...). Every time I inquired as a young child about the rationale, I was told " Documents sab zaroori aahen, khabar kaane kadain ker ghuraye vathe. Manu vath proof t huje" ( All documents are important, you never know who calls for what when. We should have all proofs handy). I find this narrative similar across most refugee families. As a young kid, I often used to laugh at such description.

Reflecting about such instances now, I think, a part of the rationale behind such response is the loss of identity that partition inflicted upon us (and millions of others). Being in an absolutely new place in such difficult circumstances, having lost all that you had can play havoc with an individual's self esteem. Over time, "your plot" or your "kuchcha house" became your new identity. You come to be known in your new surroundings as " Rajinder Nagar waro Teckchandani" or " Rajani jeko Rajinder Nagar mein Paani ji tanki je puthya rehendo aa"[ (Mr.) Rajani who stays behind the water tank in Rajinder Nagar]. It is this identity that one then seeks to protect at any cost for this might be his only  identification mark in the new land.Over decades, whilst one may become familiar with the new surroundings , however that feeling of (potential) rootlessness still remains. Perhaps Dada was not that wrong!.

Over the past few weeks, I have been reading Professor Rita Kothari's works. Professor Kothari is a fellow Hindu Sindhi with ancestry hailing from Upper Sindh. She is a PhD in English and is the author of several monographs, including  Translating India : The Cultural Politics of English (St.Jerome Publishing, U.K ) and  The Burden of Refuge : Sindh, Gujarat, Partition (Orient Blackswan, New Delhi) . Her academic appointments include teaching at St. Xaviers College (Ahmedabad), Indian Insitute of Technology, Gandhinagar, MICA Ahmedabad and (now) at Ashoka University. I am attaching a link to her hour long session at IIT Gandhinagar on "Sufis in Sindh" which I believe clearly establishes her scholarship on the subject. I recommend everyone to watch this as it gives a good background into origin and practices of Sufism in Sindh. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0sg_F6bZW0&t=1735s

Jiye Sindhiyat !