The Bombay Bakery
My uncle in Pakistan just passed away. He was the head of the iconic Bombay Bakery in Hyderabad Sindh and that house and bakery, has been an integral part of my family’s lore. He was my last living relative in Pakistan and with his death, I feel that a unique door has closed to me forever and that in a sense I can never go back “home” again.
But what is home for the people caught up in the great migrations of history? Probably one of the most emotive issues in the living history of the subcontinent is the Partition .
Today, the governments of India and Pakistan have an attitude towards each other that vacillates from belligerence to conciliation and back again. Kashmir, border disputes, water rights, military presence in the region, even cricket matches are all hotspots in the much publisized hostilities. But what’s it like on a personal level? For the people who’ve lost their home? For those who’ve made another one? For those who go back to the one their family left?
Harash Mehra is a Hindu, born in Lahore and he still lives there despite the fact that he has family in India and has visited the country several times.
Kirti Chopra comes from a Punjabi Hindu family who at Partition left their family home in a village near Lahore at Partition. She was born in India, but a few years ago, got the chance to visit Pakistan for the first time. You can hear their stories here.
on Jun 18th, 2010 at 7:44 am
Interesting- He was my cousin and despite the fact that I’ve never been to Pakistan, I feel exactly the same way.
on Jun 19th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Uncle Kumar was the kindest and most unique individual. No can ever take his place and life in the bakery will never be the same without him. However the Bombay Bakery will always remain your “home” and will never close its doors for you. We hope to see you soon.
on Jun 23rd, 2010 at 2:35 am
First and foremost, Dheera, my sincerest condolences on the loss of a close loved one in your uncle. What is quietly transpiring through events such as this, is the family and other human contacts which formed a great bond between peoples of India and Pakistan before the time of partition. The loss of more members of this generation is a parallel to the human suffering between North and South Korea with the continued passage of time and escalating tensions between countries whose citizens were former countrymen. The links between people are rapidly dissolving and giving way to artifical definitions such as “Us and Them”.
on Jun 24th, 2010 at 3:40 pm
Sad to know about your great loss!
on Aug 4th, 2010 at 10:37 am
hi
i want number of those who r living in lahore and they hve frnds an relatives in delhi… fr aman ki it show…