12 January 2025 marks the centenary of the Bawla murder case. This killing of one of #Bombay's richest men on Malabar Hill attracted global attention and led to the abdication of the Maharaja of a princely state:

On 12 January 1925, Abdul Kader Bawla, a rich businessman and corporator in the Bombay Municipal Corporation, was murdered while on a drive at Malabar Hill in Mumbai and an attempt was made to kidnap his companion Mumtaz Begum. However, Mumtaz was saved by the fortuitous arrival of four officers from the British Army. In a scene straight out of a Bollywood flick, these unarmed and outnumbered men fought off the eight assailants and saved Mumtaz from their clutches.

More significantly, they managed to capture one of the murderers. Eventually, the case, which had captured media and public attention, led to the abdication of Maharaja Tukojirao Holkar-III of Indore.

But this is not just another true crime. The case and its backstory involves personalities of the day like Dr B.R Ambedkar, Chhatrapati Shahu of Kolhapur, M.A Jinnah, 'Prabhodhankar' Keshav Sitaram Thackeray, the father of later-day Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his elder brother Ganesh aka Babarao, and the Shankaracharya. Mumtaz later went to Hollywood to try her luck in the film industry. A silent movie on the Bawla case was also produced in Bollywood in 1925 itself.

Read on to know more about this crime and its intersection with the various social and political realities of colonial India.

Of course, you can also buy my book 'The Bawla Murder Case: Love, Lust and Crime in Colonial India' at (amzn.eu/d/79k8tPK) or from an indie book store like @Bahrisons_books @KitabKhanaBooks @faqirchandbooks or @bookworm_Kris

#history #heritage #colonialIndia #truecrime #crime #Mumbai #Bombay #police #policehistory #PrincelyIndia #Maharashtra #Indore #MadhyaPradesh #Book #books #movies #Hollywood #Bollywood #ColonialIndia #MumbaiPolice #BombayPolice

Abdul Kader Bawla (25), was a businessman and corporator in the Bombay Municipal Corporation from Mandvi in south Mumbai. He was a landlord and textile-mill owner, and was considered one of the richest men in Bombay. He belonged to the mercantile Kutchi Memon community and was the grandson of philanthropist Haji Saboo Siddik. On 12 January 1925 evening, Bawla went on a drive with his mistress Mumtaz Begum. They were accompanied by his personal assistant, driver, and cleaner.

Near the Hanging Gardens on Malabar Hill, a Red Maxwell car rear-ended Bawla’s Studebaker. It blocked Bawla’s car and around seven to eight people alighted from the Red Maxwell, abused Bawla and demanded that he hand over Mumtaz. They fired at Bawla from the left, where Mumtaz was sitting. Another assailant seized Mumtaz, when she broke out of her shocked daze and screamed.


Lieutenant John MacLean Saegert, an officer in the British Army’s Engineers, Sappers and Miners, and his friends, Colonel C.E. Vickery, and lieutenants Francis Batley and Maxwell Stephen had played golf at the Willingdon Sports Club near Mahalaxmi Race Course.

At around 7.30 p.m., they left the club to visit the Taj Mahal Hotel at Apollo Bunder. On their way to the hotel, Saegert, who was driving and was unfamiliar with the area, arrived at Kemps Corner and took a wrong turn, driving up Malabar Hill via Gibbs Road instead of taking the lower Hughes Road to their intended destination.

When they reached the top of the Malabar hill, they saw two other cars on the right side of the road. When they were around thirty yards away, the European officers saw some men get down from the car in the front, followed by flashes of a pistol and then loud screams from the second car.

On hearing the screams, Saegert stopped the car. The officers, who were unarmed and in civilian clothes, got out and rushed towards them. Three men were threatening a woman with knives. The woman, who was Mumtaz, had already been injured on the forehead and was being dragged out of the car

Despite being unarmed and outnumbered, the Army men put up a fight straight out of a Bollywood flick. Saegert was shot at and stabbed by the assailants multiple times as he tried to fight them off. Lieutenant Batley attacked the shooters with a golf club, which was the only weapon available to the officers in the melee. Batley was also fired at by an assailant, but escaped unhurt. The army men overpowered an assailant, who was armed with a pistol and jack-knife and was grappling with Saegert. As residents of the neighbourhood appeared on the scene, the other attackers fled.

Bawla succumbed to his injuries at the J.J. Hospital. Bawla had a fortune of Rs 40 lakh. He willed it to his widowed mother Rukhiabai in his dying declaration, leaving Mumtaz Rs 1 lakh, which was a princely sum in those days.

The crime sent ripples across the country as Bawla was one of the leading public men of the day. The Bawla murder case was also mentioned in the British Parliament. The European officers were lauded for their bravery.

Just a day after the attempted abduction of Mumtaz Begum and murder of Abdul Kadar Bawla, the Bombay City Police had realized this was not just another street crime or holdup. Patrick Kelly (later Sir), commissioner of police, Bombay wrote to the secretary, Government of Bombay, Home Department, about evidence pointing to a conspiracy being hatched or instigated in one of India’s most prominent princely states.

Kelly, who was one of Bombay’s longest-serving police commissioners, said the girl Mumtaz ‘was in the keeping of the Maharaja of Indore for a few years’. Mumtaz had left the royal in April 1924, and had been ‘kept’ by Bawla

Kelly said that the inspector general of police, Indore, sent his assistant to him around two months ago, with a request for copies of certain statements recorded by the Bombay police in an enquiry once made by them regarding Mumtaz. The commissioner added that he had refused to supply the copies and that any demand for papers of this sort should be made by the political agent of Indore to the Government of Bombay

A short while ago, Mumtaz’s sister had written to her from Amritsar that the Indore authorities were collecting wrestlers to abduct her to Indore. Bawla himself was said to have received threatening letters.

Investigations revealed that Shafi Ahmed Nabi Ahmed, who had been nabbed by the European army officers at Malabar Hill, was a risaldar in the Indore Mounted Police. Initially, he had denied his guilt and claimed to be an innocent pedestrian proceeding on his way when he was caught in the fray.

But the most daunting challenge for the Bombay police team was that although the crime had taken place in British Indian territory, the conspiracy was hatched in Indore. However, the investigators overcame this hurdle by their dexterity. Despite the odds stacked against them, the investigation by the Bombay police unearthed that most of the suspects on their radar were senior officials of the Indore durbar

Eventually, they arrested Pushpasheel Balwantrao Ponde (twenty-three), a Mankari or court dignitary from Indore; Captain Shamrao Rewaji Dighe (twenty-eight) from the Indore State Air Force; Akbarshah Mahomedshah (twenty-three), huzrya (valet) in the household department, Indore; Mumtaz Mahomed Syed Mahomed (twenty-five), sub-inspector, CID, Indore; Karamatkhan Nizamatkhan (twenty-eight), pay sergeant, Holkar mounted escort, Indore; Abdul Latif Moyuddin (twenty-five), motor driver, Indore; and Bahadurshah Mahomedshah (twenty), motor driver, Indore. It was believed that they were involved in the shooting. Later, Major General Sardar ‘Dilerjang’ Anandrao Gangaram Phanse, aged thirty-two, the adjutant-general of the Indore State Forces was also arrested. The Bawla murder case is considered to be a landmark investigation in the history of the #MumbaiPolice.

Mumtaz was born in 1903 in a family of Punjabi Muslim courtesans. Her grandmother Karimbibi was said to be in the harem of Maharaja Ranjitsinh of Punjab. In 1911-12, Mumtaz’s mother Wazir Begum took her to Indore and the mother-daughter duo performed for the rich and famous in the town. Soon, they came in touch with Shankarrao Gawde, the major domo of Maharaja Tukojirao-III. Soon, Mumtaz became the Maharaja’s mistress. Mumtaz was famed for her beauty. As the author K.L. Gauba says "In her own class, it was said, Mumtaz was without a peer."

In April 1919, Mumtaz and her mother travelled with the Holkar family to Bombay. Tukojirao-III is said to have offered to marry Mumtaz by having her convert to Hinduism. However, this offer was rebuffed. The next day, Mumtaz was taken away from her mother on the pretext of watching a movie and was sent to Indore instead without her mother’s knowledge or consent.

Wazir Begum lodged a complaint about her daughter’s abduction with the Bombay Police, but the case was eventually dropped as there was no documentary evidence about Mumtaz being a minor. Mumtaz stayed on in Indore with a status equal to the two Maharanis and was also known as Kamalabai. In 1924, a girl was born to Mumtaz in Indore. The nurses claimed that the child had died later. Mumtaz alleged that the child had been killed by the nurses.

Finally, Mumtaz, her mother and step-father Mahomed Ali fled the custody of the officials of the Indore durbar as they were heading to Mussorie from Bhanpura. They finally arrived in Bombay where those linked to the Indore durbar are said to have made an attempt to restore her to the princely state. Mumtaz however had a fortuitous escape. She began performing again in Bombay. It was then that she came in touch with Bawla and became his mistress. After a tiff with her parents, Mumtaz moved in with Bawla and began staying with his family at their sea-facing residence near the Girgaum Chowpatty. Mumtaz was finally putting the turbulence of the past behind her and settling down with Bawla when the shots rang out on that fateful day on Malabar Hill.

Generations of #Maharashtrian parents and grandparents have lovingly called their naughty children and grandchildren ‘dambis’ or ‘dambrat.’ But do you know that these were originally cuss words used by British officers and overseers for Indian labourers in the #Mumbai docks?
 
This is how the docks have had a deep cultural impact on Mumbai and #Maharashtra. Of course, these docks also catalysed industrial and economic development, and helped export goods like salt, opium, and cotton from India.
 
This is a thread on Bhau Laxman Ajinkya aka Bhau Rasul, who laid the foundations of #Mumbai’s port-led maritime growth by building the city’s first wet dock—the Ferry Wharf or Bhau cha Dhakka in 1841. Read on to know how the words ‘dambis’ and ‘dambrat’ entered the popular lexicon.

#history #Mumbai #MumbaiHistory #heritage #MumbaiHeritage #BritishIndia #thread #Bombay #BombayHistory #MumbaiPort #BhauChaDhakka #FerryWharf #BhauAjinkya #MakersofMumbai #BhauLaxmanAjinkya


Laxman Harishchandra Ajinkya was born in 1788 in a Pathare Prabhu family at Karanja in present-day #Raigad district. His father Harishchandra migrated to Mumbai in 1801, but passed away soon after. The 12-year Laxman was faced with the daunting task of looking after his mother and two young siblings. But, Laxman had learnt English and had excellent handwriting. In those days when there were no computers or typewriters, such people were much sought after for their skills.
 
Laxman joined the East India Company’s Gun Carriage Factory at Dhakta Colaba, where armaments like cannons, guns, and cannonballs were manufactured. He soon rose to be the head clerk for Captain Russel, a high-ranking officer in the establishment, who trusted him implicitly. Laxman spoke up for the interests and welfare of the workers. For instance, the workers had to navigate swampy areas to reach the factory and found it tough to carry their lunch boxes. Laxman successfully requested Captain Russel to set up a canteen in the factory. This may have endeared him to his fellow workers and earned him the moniker of Bhau or brother.
 
Russel nudged Bhau Laxman to get into business. He resigned from service and took up contracts like the one to build roads by reclaiming swamps and marshes to connect the island that made up what was then #Bombay. Laxman reclaimed the land from Chinch Bunder to Masjid Bunder and Crawford Market at his own expense. He also developed villages like Akurli, Dindoshi, and Chinchawali as suburbs. The proximity to Captain Russel may have earned Bhau Laxman the nickname ‘Bhau Rasool.’
 
Bhau Laxman also bagged tenders to construct wharfs or bunders. Then, Bombay did not have a regular wharf or pier for passengers or goods traffic. He built the first wet dock at the eastern end of what is now Indira Dock. This was called the Ferry Wharf and was opened for public use in 1841. This construction took four years and involved strenuous efforts on part of Bhau—he had to develop it from his own funds and for this, had to borrow a princely sum of Rs 1.50 lakh at a compound interest of 6 per cent. He repaid the loan in eight years. The British allowed him to use the docks on a 50-year contract. Bhau Laxman mortgaged his land to build another wharf, this time with warehouses for storing goods—making it the only one in British India at that time. This gave a boost to the export and import of goods.

Murder most foul, as in the best it is. But this most foul, strange and unnatural. –William Shakespeare, Hamlet

On 12 January 1925, Abdul Kader Bawla, a businessman and corporator in the Bombay Municipal Corporation, was murdered while on a drive at Malabar Hill in Mumbai and an attempt was made to kidnap his companion Mumtaz Begum. However, Mumtaz was saved by the fortuitous arrival of four officers from the British Army, who despite being unarmed and outnumbered, fought off the eight assailants and saved Mumtaz. More significantly, they managed to capture one of the murders. Eventually, the case, which had captured media and public attention, led to the abdication of Maharaja Tukojirao Holkar-III of Indore.

But this is not just another true crime. The case and its backstory involves personalities of the day like Dr B.R Ambedkar, Chhatrapati Shahu of Kolhapur, M.A Jinnah, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his elder brother Ganesh aka Babarao, and the Shankaracharya. Mumtaz later went to Hollywood to try her luck in the film industry. A silent movie on the Bawla case was also produced in Bollywood.

Read on to know more about this crime and its intersection with the various social and political realities of colonial India.

Of course, you can also buy my book 'The Bawla Murder Case: Love, Lust and Crime in Colonial India' at () or from an indie book store.

#history #heritage #colonialIndia #truecrime #crime #Mumbai #Bombay #police #policehistory #PrincelyIndia #Maharashtra #Indore #MadhyaPradesh #Book #books #movies #Hollywood #Bollywood

On 12 January 1925, twenty-five year old Abdul Kader Bawla, a businessman and corporator in the Bombay Municipal Corporation from Mandvi in south Mumbai. Bawla was a landlord and textile-mill owner, and was considered one of the richest men in Bombay. He belonged to the mercantile Kutchi Memon community and was the grandson of philanthropist Haji Saboo Siddik.

Near the Hanging Gardens on Malabar Hill, a Red Maxwell car hit Bawla’s Studebaker on the rear. It blocked Bawla’s car and around seven to eight people alighted from the Red Maxwell, showered abuse on Bawla and demanded that he hand over Mumtaz. They fired at Bawla from the left, where Mumtaz was sitting. Another assailant seized Mumtaz and she screamed.amzn.eu/d/79k8tPK


Lieutenant John MacLean Saegert, an officer in the British Army’s Engineers, Sappers and Miners, and his friends, Colonel C.E. Vickery, and lieutenants Francis Batley and Maxwell Stephen had played golf at the Willingdon Sports Club near Mahalaxmi Race Course.

At around 7.30 p.m., they left the club to visit the Taj Mahal Hotel at Apollo Bunder. On their way to the hotel, Saegert, who was driving and was unfamiliar with the area, arrived at Kemps Corner and took a wrong turn, driving up Malabar Hill via Gibbs Road instead of taking the lower Hughes Road to their intended destination.

When they reached the top of the Malabar hill, they saw two other cars on the right side of the road. When they were around thirty yards away, the European officers saw some men get down from the car in the front, followed by flashes of a pistol and then loud screams from the second car.

On hearing the screams, Saegert stopped the car. The officers, who were unarmed and in civilian clothes, got out and ran towards them. Three men were threatening a woman with knives. The woman, who was Mumtaz, had already been injured on the forehead and was being dragged out of the car

Despite being unarmed and outnumbered, the Army men put up a fight straight out of a Bollywood flick. Saegert was shot at and stabbed by the assailants multiple times. Lieutenant Batley attacked the shooters with a golf club, which was the only weapon available to the officers in the melee. Batley was also fired at by an assailant, but escaped unhurt. The army men overpowered an assailant, who was armed with a pistol and jackknife and was grappling with Saegert. As residents of the neighbourhood appeared on the scene, the other attackers fled.

Bawla succumbed to his injuries at the J.J. Hospital. Bawla had a fortune of Rs 40 lakh. He willed it to his widowed mother Rukhiabai in his dying declaration, leaving Mumtaz Rs 1 lakh, which was a princely sum in those days.

The crime sent ripples across the country as Bawla was one of the leading public men of the day. The Bawla murder case was also mentioned in the British Parliament. The European officers were lauded for their bravery.

Just one day after the attempted abduction of Mumtaz Begum and murder of Abdul Kadar Bawla, the police had realized this was not just another street crime or holdup. Patrick Kelly (later Sir), commissioner of police, Bombay wrote to the secretary, Government of Bombay, Home Department, about evidence pointing to a conspiracy being hatched or instigated in one of India’s most prominent princely states.

Kelly, who was one of Bombay’s longest-serving police commissioners, said the girl Mumtaz ‘was in the keeping of the Maharaja of Indore for a few years’. Mumtaz had left the royal in April 1924, and had been ‘kept’ by Bawla

Kelly said that the inspector general of police, Indore, sent his assistant to him around two months ago, with a request for copies of certain statements recorded by the Bombay police in an enquiry once made by them regarding Mumtaz. The commissioner added that he had refused to supply the copies and that any demand for papers of this sort should be made by the political agent of Indore to the Government of Bombay

A short while ago, Mumtaz’s sister had written to her from Amritsar that the Indore authorities were collecting wrestlers to abduct her to Indore. Bawla himself was said to have received threatening letters.

Investigations revealed that Shafi Ahmed Nabi Ahmed, who had been nabbed by the European army officers at Malabar Hill, was a risaldar in the Indore Mounted Police. Initially, he had denied his guilt and claimed to be an innocent pedestrian proceeding on his way when he was caught in the fray.

But the most daunting challenge for the Bombay police team was that although the crime had taken place in British Indian territory, the conspiracy was hatched in Indore. However, the investigators overcame this hurdle by their dexterity. Despite the odds stacked against them, the investigation by the Bombay police unearthed that most of the suspects on their radar were senior officials of the Indore durbar

Eventually, they arrested Pushpasheel Balwantrao Ponde (twenty-three), a Mankari from Indore; Captain Shamrao Rewaji Dighe (twenty-eight) from the Indore State Air Force; Akbarshah Mahomedshah (twenty-three), huzrya (valet) in the household department, Indore; Mumtaz Mahomed Syed Mahomed (twenty-five), sub-inspector, CID, Indore; Karamatkhan Nizamatkhan (twenty-eight), pay sergeant, Holkar mounted escort, Indore; Abdul Latif Moyuddin (twentyfive), motor driver, Indore; and Bahadurshah Mahomedshah (twenty), motor driver, Indore. It was believed that they were involved in the shooting. Later, Major General Sardar ‘Dilerjang’ Anandrao Gangaram Phanse, aged thirty-two, the adjutant-general of the Indore State Forces was also arrested.

Mumtaz was born in 1903 in a family of Punjabi Muslim courtesans. Her grandmother Karimbibi was said to be in the harem of Maharaja Ranjitsinh of Punjab. In 1911-12, Mumtaz’s mother Wazir Begum took her to Indore and the mother-daughter duo performed for the rich and famous in the town. Soon, they came in touch with Shankarrao Gawde, the major domo of Maharaja Tukojirao-
III. Soon, Mumtaz became the Maharaja’s mistress.

In April 1919, Mumtaz and her mother travelled with the Holkar family to Bombay. Tukojirao-III is said to have offered to marry Mumtaz by having her convert to Hinduism. However, this offer was rebuffed. The next day, Mumtaz was taken away from her mother on the pretext of watching a movie and was sent to Indore instead without her mother’s knowledge or consent.

Wazir Begum lodged a complaint about her daughter’s abduction with the Bombay Police, but the case was eventually dropped as there was no documentary evidence about Mumtaz being a minor. Mumtaz stayed on in Indore with a status equal to the two Maharanis and was also known as Kamalabai. In 1924, a girl was born to Mumtaz in Indore. The nurses claimed that the child had died later. Mumtaz alleged that the child had been killed by the nurses.

Finally, Mumtaz, her mother and step-father Mahomed Ali fled the custody of the officials of the Indore durbar as they were heading to Mussorie from Bhanpura. They arrived in Bombay and Mumtaz began performing again. It was then that she came in touch with Bawla and became his mistress. After a tiff with her parents, Mumtaz moved in with Bawla and began staying with his family at their sea-facing residence near the Girgaum Chowpatty. Mumtaz was finally putting the turbulence of the past behind her and settling down with Bawla when the shots rang out on that fateful day on Malabar Hill.

This is a long thread on the #restaurants I have eaten in 2023. This covers #Mumbai, #Delhi and #Pune.

#Food #food #MumbaiFood #Pune #PuneFood #Mumbai #Delhi #DelhiFood #eatingout #khaugiri #khawayya #hotel #hotels #foodscene

Hotel Gomantak Yashwantashram:

No frills joint located bang outside the Grant Road (West) railway station. Good place for coastal food Moti Mahal Restaurant, Dariyaganj, New Delhi

The place where butter chicken is said to have originated. The butter chicken you get here is different from the 'tandoori chicken shreds served in oily gravy' stuff that is served elsewhere. Try the brain curry and kababs too...

Must visit

The outrage over the refusal of a Gujarati-dominated housing society to allow a #Maharashtrian woman to rent an apartment/ office at Mulund in #Mumbai is not the first such instance of housing apartheid directed at #Marathi speakers in their own capital. The roots of this discrimination run deep in #history.

Some political activists got together and ensured that the father-son duo in the Mulund society apologised to the woman. But soon, it will be back to business for them. At least, until the next outrage…

Even today, there is no clarity over whether that silly "rule" which was cited as the basis for the denial has been rolled back.

Thread

#Marathi #Maharashtra #MarathiIdentity #Marathipan One must note that while the liberal intelligentsia is quick on its feet to denounce any expression of nativist, pro-Marathi sentiment in Mumbai, they often ignore similar regional and linguistic chauvinism, sub-nationalism and xenophobia in their own states. They also fail to acknowledge that opportunities are often secured through networks linked to caste, linguistic and regional identities with merit per se taking a back seat.

#Mumbai was a part of #Maharashtra in the geographical, historical, and socio-cultural sense. #Marathi speaking groups like the Agaris, Kolis, Bhandaris, Pathare Prabhus, Pachkalashis etc populated the clutch of islands that make today's Mumbai. These indigenous residents had to eventually pay the highest price for Mumbai's 'development.'

Marathi merchant princes and entrepreneurs like Rama Kamat Lotlikar and Jagannath 'Nana' Shankarseth Murkute, and the middle and labour class have built Mumbai brick by brick over the centuries and so have people like Nagu Sayachi and Raosaheb Papanna, who spoke Telugu but were culturally Maharashtrians. Economic migrants from other states came here later because they saw opportunities here and because they felt Mumbai was the mythical El Dorado, the city of gold.

Anyone denying this reality are living under a rock, or perhaps, they are THE rock.

Malabar Hill is the most prestigious & well-guarded neighbourhood in Mumbai. It houses ministers, bureaucrats & the elite. The Raj Bhavan is also located here. In the 1970s, there was a robbery in Raj Bhavan, that too from the Governor's bedroom! #thread #MumbaiPolice #history





Nawab Ali Yavar Jung was the Governor of Maharashtra from 1970-76. Then, the Governor used to stay in Pune during the monsoons.

The latest episode of #Maharashtra’s Game of Thrones saw #AjitPawar split the #NCP & become the deputy chief minister. Let us analyse the impact on the major players in the game
#SharadPawar #MaharashtraPolitics #NCPSplits #politics #BJP #ShivSena #DevendraFadnavis #EknathShinde Eknath Shinde:

The ruling coalition in Maharashtra is now dealing with a problem of plenty. It now includes three parties, the #BJP, chief minister #EknathShinde’s #ShivSena, and now #AjitPawar and his men from the #NCP.

#Hindutva zealots like #SambhajiBhide claim that #MahatmaGandhi's last fast in January 1948 was meant to force India to pay #Rs55crore to #Pakistan. It is also claimed that Gandhi indulged in #Muslim appeasement, but what is the reality?
#thread #history #Gandhi #NathuramGodse The fast was a moral form of protest to ensure communal amity and cessation of hostilities between Hindus and Muslims in India. Gandhi also wanted to ensure the safety of the Hindu and Sikh minorities in Pakistan.

Heard #SambhajiBhide's unhinged rant against #MahatmaGandhi & #MahatmaJotibaPhule. Bhide claims that Gandhi and Phule were anti #Hindu & were given the 'Mahatma' title by the Christ Seva Sangh from Sweden. This thread is meant to set the record straight
#history



It was in a function on 11 May 1888 in the Koliwada hall at Mandvi in #Mumbai that the masses conferred the 'Mahatma' title on #Phule to honour him for his selfless service.
#JotiraoPhule

So, Anish Chandy @LabyrinthAgency was in town and @jitendradixit & yours truly took him for a #Maharashtrian dinner at Nav Mejwani in Dadar West, #Mumbai. It is opposite Amar Hind Mandal.
#Food #FoodTwitter #Marathifood #MaharashtrianFood #Maharashtra We began with Prawn crackers & Aloo wadi

4.5/5

The #ShivSena was launched on 19 June 1966 by #BalThackeray. Its initial targets were #SouthIndians. The genesis of the Sena had its roots in a similar anti-South Indian campaign by his father #PrabodhankarThackeray in 1922 Thread:
#UddhavThackeray #politics #Mumbai #Maharashtra Keshav Sitaram Thackeray was a journalist, author and social reformer. He was referred to as Prabodhankar Thackeray because of his periodical 'Prabodhan' in which he took on casteism and obscurantism.

The dargah of #Sufi saint Makhdoom Ali Mahimi at #Mahim in #Mumbai is revered by the #MumbaiPolice, who lead the ceremonies during the annual urs. A #thread on the patron saint of the police force and how this tradition came about. #history #heritage Indians across faiths follow syncretic traditions. Recently, Tryambakeshwar, a jyotirlinga of Lord Shiva near #Nashik in #Maharashtra, hit the headlines after it was alleged that some Muslims tried to forcibly enter the shrine

This is a thread on Phiroz Rustomji Daruwala, a cold-blooded serial killer who brutally killed an elderly family in a #murder case that rocked #Mumbai and #Maharashtra 50 years ago. The criminal also planned to abduct matka king Ratan Khatri!
#crime #truecrime #murdermysteries 2 February 1971. The neighbours of Darabshah Sethna (82), a resident of Jehangir Mansion, near Metro Cinema at Dhobi Talao in #Mumbai were intrigued. The main door of his 5th floor was locked, which was unprecedented as the family never went out together.

Manwath is a taluka in #Maharashtra's #Parbhani district. It is located around 500-km from #Mumbai. This obscure place was rocked by a series of 10 gruesome ritualistic murders in the 1970s. These killings were the result of #superstition.
#thread #truecrime #police #history Five girls who were about ten years old, an year-old child and four women in their mid-thirties were murdered between 14 November 1972 and 4 January, 1974. These murders had a similar modus operandi and pattern. They were committed at night. These incidents shocked #Maharashtra

For any researcher or author, getting access to old, rare #books & reference material is crucial. There are few book sellers who provide these for a substantial fee. But my experience with at least two of them has been less than average.
#BooksTwitter One of them is a known bibliophile. He stocks and sells copies of old and rare books. His only problem is that you ask him for one book and he will compel you to buy four more. It is like going to a shop to buy something worth Rs 10 and making purchases worth Rs 100!

The #food scene in #Mumbai is actually very boring. #Pune is very vibrant in comparison with several choices on offer. One is actually spoilt for choice…
Thread
#FoodTwitter when it comes to #Marathi food l, there is Surves Pure non-veg at F C road, the various restaurants like Nagpur hotel and Shambhavi in Sadashiv Peth, mutton bhakri joints at Khed Shivapur, Milan and Aware Khanaval at Kumthekar Road,

It has been my peeve that much of #Maharashtrian cuisine is not found in #Mumbai’s restaurants. Most #Marathi places offer #Goan or #Malvani #food. Perhaps because many Marathis here hail from these coastal regions. I found Martand at Lalbag which serves Ghati food #FoodTwitter We decided to begin with Javla papad which serves small, dry prawns with masala papad. 4.5/5

A Doctor can be the greatest criminal of the world. He has the knowledge & the nerve-Sherlock Holmes. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's line was personified by a 40-year old Doctor from #Pune who committed a sensational murder in the 1950s. Thread
#crime #truecrime #Maharashtra #Mumbai At around 5.30 a.m. on 13th November 1956, Anant Chintamun Lagu, a Pune-based doctor, came to the GT Hospital in Mumbai with a 45-yr-old widow, who was unconscious. Lagu said she had fallen unconscious during an overnight train journey from Pune to Mumbai.

#Goa was liberated from over four centuries of #Portuguese rule in 1961. But the Portuguese occupation saw anti-colonial uprisings including the #PintoRevolt or the #ConspiracyofthePintos. It is claimed that the rebels had colluded with #TipuSultan of #Mysore
#history The Pinto revolt at Candolim was the 1st such serious attempt by the people of #Goa to overthrow the #Portuguese. It was a protest against the racial discrimination by the Portuguese.

So, we had dinner at the Folk at Kalaghoda in Mumbai. It’s a quaint place. Thread:

#food #Mumbai Mutton Galauti kabab

Much of the writings about #VDSavarkar paint him in black-&-white, when the truth lies in shades of grey. Brushing inconvenient facts under the carpet, does not do justice to #Savarkar's complex personality. This is a thread about Savarkar from a historic perspective #history On 9 June 1906, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, a 23-year-old from Nashik, bid adieu to wife Yamuna and their toddler son Prabhakar, and boarded the SS Persia in Bombay to sail for England to study law. However, even as he was in the high seas,