The history of Bunder Road, now MA Jinnah Road, would have been different altogether had one man not refused a “lucrative offer” given by his Englishman student some 150 years ago.
Britishers have a history of adjusting themselves to the environs and culture of their conquered regions. After conquering Sindh in 1843, they decided to learn Sindhi.
In Karachi, an angrez (British official), whose name is not known to history, hired Akhund Abdur Rahim, a primary schoolteacher, to learn Sindhi. A few months later, the angrez was able to express himself fluently in Sindhi with a British accent.
“He was thrilled,” Abdul Hameed, great-grandson of Akhund Abdur Rahim, a resident of Lyari, said. “And made a unique offer to his teacher.”
"The angrez got Akhund along on a Victoria and asked his subordinate, riding a horse to get off. “He then turned to the grandpa and asked him to get on the horse,” Hameed said.
Akhund Rahim was confused, staring at his student with probing eyes. “Akhund Saab,” the angrez said, “Please, get on the horse and ride till it stops by itself. The distance that the horse covers will be your property.”
They were standing at a point where now Boulton Market is situated and the horse was bound to gallop eastwards that now ends at Gurumandir.
“What will I do with all that property,” Akhund said, “I don’t want to become a landlord; I am happy with reading, writing and teaching,” he had said.
The Briton was amazed, saying: “Sir, this area is going to become the most expensive in Scinde (Sindh).”
“So what!” said an unimpressed Akhund.
Soon after this incident, still buried under the debris of unknown history, Bunder Road was built and became the economic hub of a city that was to inherit a cosmopolitan culture along the western borders of the subcontinent. The Akhund saved Karachi from succumbing to a single family –his own!
Bunder Road conveniently catered to the needs of a little over 300,000 of Karachi’s population before it became the capital of Pakistan in 1947.
Descendents of people living in the neighbourhood of Akhund Abdur Rahim say he was a saintly man, as their ancestors told them. “My grandpa said Akhund Saheb had the keys to fourth heaven and he used to travel there,” Ahmed Ali, who still lives in a rundown building in congested Mithadar, said.
Akhund’s house was near the famous Madras Hotel. At the time of the partition of India, the Hindu owner of the hotel asked the Akhund’s grandson to take possession of the building.
“He (the owner) even offered him to transfer the ownership rights in his name, but Akhund’s grandson turned down the offer, saying his grandpa’s soul would not be happy if he accepted something that did not belong to him,” said Ahmed Ali.
After his death, Akhund Abdur Rahim was buried in Mewashah cemetery, but now it is difficult to locate his grave and is not easily accessible.Thursday, December 22, 2011
Wealth is not everything, for some at least
The history of Bunder Road, now MA Jinnah Road, would have been different altogether had one man not refused a “lucrative offer” given by his Englishman student some 150 years ago.
Britishers have a history of adjusting themselves to the environs and culture of their conquered regions. After conquering Sindh in 1843, they decided to learn Sindhi.
In Karachi, an angrez (British official), whose name is not known to history, hired Akhund Abdur Rahim, a primary schoolteacher, to learn Sindhi. A few months later, the angrez was able to express himself fluently in Sindhi with a British accent.
“He was thrilled,” Abdul Hameed, great-grandson of Akhund Abdur Rahim, a resident of Lyari, said. “And made a unique offer to his teacher.”
"The angrez got Akhund along on a Victoria and asked his subordinate, riding a horse to get off. “He then turned to the grandpa and asked him to get on the horse,” Hameed said.
Akhund Rahim was confused, staring at his student with probing eyes. “Akhund Saab,” the angrez said, “Please, get on the horse and ride till it stops by itself. The distance that the horse covers will be your property.”
They were standing at a point where now Boulton Market is situated and the horse was bound to gallop eastwards that now ends at Gurumandir.
“What will I do with all that property,” Akhund said, “I don’t want to become a landlord; I am happy with reading, writing and teaching,” he had said.
The Briton was amazed, saying: “Sir, this area is going to become the most expensive in Scinde (Sindh).”
“So what!” said an unimpressed Akhund.
Soon after this incident, still buried under the debris of unknown history, Bunder Road was built and became the economic hub of a city that was to inherit a cosmopolitan culture along the western borders of the subcontinent. The Akhund saved Karachi from succumbing to a single family –his own!
Bunder Road conveniently catered to the needs of a little over 300,000 of Karachi’s population before it became the capital of Pakistan in 1947.
Descendents of people living in the neighbourhood of Akhund Abdur Rahim say he was a saintly man, as their ancestors told them. “My grandpa said Akhund Saheb had the keys to fourth heaven and he used to travel there,” Ahmed Ali, who still lives in a rundown building in congested Mithadar, said.
Akhund’s house was near the famous Madras Hotel. At the time of the partition of India, the Hindu owner of the hotel asked the Akhund’s grandson to take possession of the building.
“He (the owner) even offered him to transfer the ownership rights in his name, but Akhund’s grandson turned down the offer, saying his grandpa’s soul would not be happy if he accepted something that did not belong to him,” said Ahmed Ali.
After his death, Akhund Abdur Rahim was buried in Mewashah cemetery, but now it is difficult to locate his grave and is not easily accessible.
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