Changing sands of time

Footprints in Time:_The Story of Indians in Bahrain by Reena Abraham was launched at Keraleeya Samajam on Sunday.

It is a story of friendship, trust and partnership. It recounts the strength and courage of thousands of adventurous Indians who have, over hundreds of years, crossed the seas in search of business and opportunity and found themselves at home in a tiny desert island that has required their services in a number of different ways.

Footprints in Time: The Story of Indians in Bahrain traces how age-old values of honesty and trust can form the basis of long lasting friendships and great relationships that can withstand the test of time. The book also speaks about the role Indians have played in the development of the kingdom.

Written by Reena Abraham and published by Miracle Publishing, the book, which took two years to complete, is the first attempt to document the historical relationship between the peoples of these two countries which has weathered the world wars and the Great Depression.

Beautifully illustrated with old and new pictures, this coffee table book traces an association which goes back centuries to this day through historical facts, statistics, official records and, most importantly, memories and narratives that have been passed down the generations of both Indian and Bahraini families.

Calling it a dream project which took over her life in the two years of its making, Reena who is based in the UAE, said: 'I am very honoured to have been selected for this job. The book is a reminder to us Indians and Bahrainis about this great culture and tradition. It is a commemoration of a relationship that the younger generation should be aware of.

'What Indians have contributed to Bahrain is tremendous. While there is a commercial point of view there is also a historical and human point of view.

'As a writer it has been a challenge to trace history and not put a personal comment. It has been a challenge to make sure that everyone is well represented.'

Lack of documentation posed the greatest difficulty in putting the book together. Calling it a very large jigsaw puzzle, the author relived the past with some of the oldest family members of both communities.

REENA_Abraham said: 'Footprints in Time: The Story of Indians in Bahrain is a really long story. There are so many generations to trace back. The oldest community are the Bhatias who go back at least a hundred years. But the oldest Indians can be traced back to 300 - 400 BC.

'There are no records or history books anywhere except a few archaeological findings here and there. There is a mention of Indian traders stopping in Bahrain on their way to Basra. It was their transit port.

'There are records of political residence. However, there are no names, no personal details of trade and commerce.'

An aspect that makes this 260-page book very special is the several personal accounts from well-known Indian and Bahraini personalities. They include Jawad Al Arrayed, Deputy Prime Minister of Bahrain, Ali Al Saleh, Chairman of the Shura Council and former Minister of Commerce, Abdulnabi Al Sho'ala, chairman of the Bahrain-India Society, Faisal Jawad, chairman of Jawad Business Group and Dr Essa Amin, president of the Bahrain Historical and Archaeological Society.

Reena said: 'Many spoke of Bahrain as their own. It is when people started talking to us that I realised how much history has been forgotten.

'I spoke to representatives of different sections and industries who have contributed to Bahrain in some special way. Each interview took on an average three to four hours ... it was amazing. Every interview revealed thousands of stories ... most of them are unbelievable. They would in turn come up with several more names, many of whom are no longer living in Bahrain.

'I did not feel bored even for a second. Many stories are of individuals who have come up from the ranks. For instance the first woman entrepreneur of Bahrain was Lakshmi Dhamanmal of Asha's restaurant.

'And Navin Megchiani of Mohammad Jalal and Company, whose father was a pearl trader and is the oldest living Indian today at 92. He was so frail that he could not even sit when I spoke to him.

'There are remarkable memories of the time when they came on the ship - excited and scared. For several reasons they would not eat food cooked by others, they would not let go of their beliefs and were stuck with rules they grew up with.

'They were so conservative and really adventurous. The old Bahrainis, who called Indians baniyans, spoke highly of their honesty.

'The generosity of participants has been very touching.'

Through various conversations the author discovered that this close knit community got together through picnics and plays. When Awali developed, the high point of weekends was to watch films without paying for tickets.

She said that there were many differences between today's and yesterday's generations. Reena said: 'Earlier generations felt the need to integrate and submerge their personality. This generation is very confident of what they are and their identity.'

The book has also paid due to Indian women. Among them are Leela Jashanmal, the founder of the Indian Ladies Association, whom Reena calls 'a pioneer in her own right'.

Others include Meera Ravi, Vani Krishnan, Marietta Dias and Salma Bala who have found paths to interact with Bahraini women.

Photographs can speak a thousand words and the author pays tribute to the publisher saying: 'Miracle has done a great job. Very few had put their old photos in an album. People have pulled photos from cupboards for us and it has been a big job to put it together.'

Reena has been the editor of several magazines and publications during her long career over many countries including Bahrain, the UAE, Sultanate of Oman, India and Bangladesh. Currently she is partner and editorial director of Glow Publishing.

In April 2006, her book, First Light: The Photography of GMB Akash, went on to win the prestigious Graphic Design USA 2006 award for excellence in communication and design.

A peek into the past

The first scheduled commercial flight to land in Manama was the Imperial Airways flight which arrived in Bahrain in 1932 en-route from London to Delhi.

The flight landed in Manama in an old hidden water channel and had to be pulled out by volunteers with ropes the next day.

Initially because they were greatly trusted, the Bhatia baniyans served as financiers for the pearl trade.

They advanced the money necessary to equip the pearl fleet and in return, they were given the first choice from the pick of the pearls and entrusted with the business of taking them to the rich Indian market.

In the days before 1930, there were about 56 Bhatia-owned pedis or companies involved in the pearl industry.

In the late 30s, the biggest store of the time was Jashanmal, a seven-door fronted store on Government Avenue.

Dr Achuth Srinivas Bhandarkar was the first medical practitioner in Bahrain. Born in 1900, the young man from Kundapura in Karnataka was a young medical practitioner serving the British Army in India.

In 1924, he came to Bahrain and then lived and worked here till his death in 1964 at the American Mission Hospital.

Known as Isa among local people, he served five generations of the Royal Family.

The largest house in Manama in those days was Beit D.I belonging to Dhamanmal Issardas, standing very near the location of the Aradous Hotel today.

It had a majlis hall which was the gathering place for merchants from Muharraq who congregated there every afternoon.

Lack of qualified personnel locally meant that the import of skills from India was crucial to the organisation of the country's early administration.

Gangaram Tikamdas, one of the early immigrants, was appointed by the Ruler of Bahrain as administrator to set up the Customs Directorate for the country. The chief administrator of Customs was again an Indian, Kumbhi Maharaj.

It is said that in a confidential government survey of the 1930s on the richest amongst Bahrain's merchants, six out of 13 names were Indian.

Trade and commerce were visibly disrupted during the Second World War. Responding to urgent calls for help from the Bahraini and Kuwaiti ruling families, Dhamanmal Issardas, well known in Bahrain, sent a huge consignment of food to both countries waiving aside the usual business formalities.

Jawaharlal Nehru, first Prime Minister of free India was also the first Indian dignitary to visit Bahrain.

For a long time the Indian rupee remained in use in Bahrain serving as its official currency.

The early monetary history of the Kingdom of Bahrain began with the formation of the Bahrain Currency Board in 1965.