The discovering of our lineage
to Tipu Sultan did not fascinate me, or the fact that some of the famous Khan
names have their twigs firmly entrenched into the family tree. What interested
me, however, is that both my grandparents were creatively inclined, and
therefore, I set about to prod a little underneath the soil, and what the
excavation brought forth is what you will find in the passages below.
My maternal grandfather,
Mr Meer Basheer Ahmed Khuraishi hailed from Mysore. Although he was a wealthy
landlord, his family consisted primarily of fruit merchants. My great
grandfather was a business partner with Lala Ghulam Sarwar, the father of Muhammad Yusuf Khan, who is popularly known to the world as
Dilip Kumar. My grandfather carried on the custom by partnering with Dilip
Kumar’s brother after the demise of my great grandfather. Grandfather was one
of the founder members of the Indian National Congress, The Secretary Chamber
of Commerce and Industry, the Honorary Magistrate of Mysore and a Board of Member
of Krishna Rajendra Hospital, Mysore.
The Gandhi family, the Maharajah of
Mysore, the 8th Chief Minister of Karnataka D Devaraj Urs, Basappa Danappa Jatti (the fifth Vice-President of
India), Sahukar Chennaiah, the Tata family were closer aides, and of course the
royalty from different states coming from such a background himself. He was a
great friend with Prithviraj Kapoor, the father of Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor
and Shashi Kapoor and the great grandfather of Ranbir Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor
and Karishma Kapoor. Ifthikar
Ahmed, Shahrukh Khan’s grandfather, was a relative as well as a close friend. His other close friends
were the poet and actor Mahajabeen Bano, otherwise known as Meena Kumari. Kamal Amrohi who wrote
Mughal-e-Azam and directed Pakeezah and K Asif too.
He was passionate about
gardening, and held the Rolling Shield for Gardening for years on end, until he
breathed his last.
My paternal grandfather,
C M Abdul Gaffar Khan, was a prominent timber merchant of India. He was a great
admirer of cabinetmaking and threw the doors open to Metro Furnishing House in
Bangalore, that made quality furniture for more than two decades. My
father, a solicitor, took charge of Metro Furnishing House after the demise of
my grandfather. An educationist, my grandfather was the founder of Azad High School.
It was the first English Medium School started by a Muslim in Bangalore in the
fifth floor of the renowned Shoukath Building situated on Silver Jubilee Park
Road. The school still exists. Shoukath Building, christened after my father Shoukath
Ali Khan, was the first, five-storied building, constructed in
1946 in Bangalore. It was a landmark, and the tour guides made it a ‘must see’
attraction while showcasing visitors of the achievements of our city. The
building had postcards made by the government as memorabilia. Sadly, no one in
the family has retained any of them. If only someone were to find any traces of
anything from that era regarding the building and its collectables, I would
love to hear from them.
My grandfather had authored
two books, one on faith, and the other on economics. Both can be found at The
Central Library in Cubbon Park, and at various libraries across the country.
One of the greatest
influences from my paternal side was Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, the founder of the Al-Ameen
Educational Institutions. He is married to my father’s first cousin Zarin Taj.
Mumtaz uncle is somebody I have played with at home, been with right through my
school and college years, and learnt immensely from. I was pleasantly surprised
to discover from historians that those who revere him for what he has done for
our country and its education address him as the Sir Syed of South India, and Wikipedia
calls him Baba-e-Taalim.
When telephones were
not available over the counter as they are now, one had to apply and wait for
years for one’s turn to show up. My father was close to the former Prime
Minister Inder Kumar Gujral and told him that he had submitted an application
for a phone one evening over a meal. In a matter of weeks, the phone had begun
to ring at home.
The 25th Chief Justice
of India M N Venkatachaliah, Veerapa Moily, Madhavrao Scindia with whom my
father had spent time loitering about at the palaces in Gwalior were some who
seriously influenced me. Biren Das, art connoisseur and owner of K C Das, sitar
maestro Ravi Shankar were just some of the people I most regularly met and had interacted
with from my school days.
I am told some
historians have written books on my maternal as well as paternal family. Have
contacted some of the authors to share their books with me. Shall upload
excerpts from them once I have them in my hands.
I recall going for dinners at Raj Bhavan when the Governor Khurshed Alam Khan was in Bangalore.
His wife Syeeda Khurshed, mother of Salman Khurshid, is a dear friend of my mother Dr Taj Jahan Begum. My
earliest memories of my mother’s charities are when she took charge as the head
(honorary) of a 50-bed hospital in a slum of Bangalore. She was the Board of
Regent Member of University of Agriculture and Sciences for 2 terms. Member and
Secretary of Sarvodaya International Trust started by Pascal Alan Nazareth, the
former diplomat and ambassador and brother of Margaret Alva. Founder Member
Ford Foundation with police commissioner and politician L Revannasiddaiah.
The leading Muslim
community heads from different fields, (editors, politicians, MPs), had
nominated her for the post of Member of Parliament, but being a woman she was
not inclined to politics because her father had advised her that politics is
not a befitting occupation for women. I remember we had met Anil Shastri, the
son of the former Prime Minister of India Lal Bahadur Shastri who tried to
convince her that to have people with power in politics would be helpful for
the community at large, but mother was rather unwavering on her decision, and so,
relented from taking up the post of Member of Parliament.
