The Dargah Lane of Commerce Pain and Peace

The Dargah Lane of Commerce Pain and Peace, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

Good Morning Mumbai

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Welcome to the World of Sufism Spirituality and Peace , this is a world of the common Indian Muslim, now believe me the Indian Muslim is a very simple peace loving man living happily, I was asked why he lives in Ghettos..well it is a government problem if you see it now, earlier it was protection cohesiveness of common ideology and life style, , and living amongst his own..

Though I walked out of situation by telling my friend Vinod Mirani I could not answer for the rest of the community, my parents began their journey at the Kurla Bakhar early 50s in the slums, till my dad bought us eventually to Wodehouse Road Colaba, and we stayed there for many years, sometimes I do wonder why my dad did not take a house at Bhendi Bazar, but than his work place was N Swamy Rao Tailors near Hampton Court..Colaba.

Perhaps it was my father late Mohomed Shakir Lakhnavis luck at play, his adventurous and defiant nature, his choice of a world he liked, my dad opted out of the ghetto circuit..my dad had lived far too long with the English man, his earlier bosses were European outfitters and tailors.

He saw his ups and his downs , we stayed at Breach Candy Neelam building for a short while , but than again it was Colaba that my dad preferred , and luckily thanks to him and my mother Shamim Shakir we still have our so called ancestral house at Strand Cinema..

Now back to the Indian Muslim , the Indian Muslim does not believe in diatribe, or path of destruction as we see across the border, killing people who are connected to God in a Mosque.. this is a Islam that never existed in my fathers time, sorry this is not Islam, I call it a False Jehad of Doom that leads nowhere and the ensuing eunuch silence that wakes up like Rip Van Winkle to sonorously cry out ...Anti Islam..

Anti Islam is not a new thing at all it has existed, and has been collectively tolerated and promoted by vested interests, whether it was the murder of Hazrat Ali in a mosque or the killings and genocide of Imam Hussain at Karbala l.. and this has nothing to be with my being a Shia.

I am called a Hindu too and I am proud of my cultural inheritance..so if you now walk with me through this smoke filled Dargah lane bustling with hope you will know what the Indian Muslim signifies, come see him blind silently begging for your miserly pockets attention, a little ahead his counterpart from Kashmir begging with his grown up daughter and innumerable kids, squatted on the floor the Albino mother breast feeding her albino kid.. her Albino husband avoids my flash but happily takes the 20 bucks I give him..

Than there are the food stalls, khichda , biryani seekh kabab , halwa puri and the Indian Muslim flesh and bones is taken care of..

The cut out studio has vanished .. no more standing next to the Tees Mar Khan ..our own in Bandra Sallu Bhai..he was the most famous cut out.. and he is not just an Indian Muslim but a Hindu Muslim too..

This is the Dickensian lane that leads you across the road to Makhdoom Shah Babas Holy Shrine..I am writing all this as a blogger , the flower shops , the quintessential hotels where you pay the owners to feed the same poor over and over again..and you enter the doors of Peace , offer flowers beg for salvation from sins..

Being a sinner I have never been inside any Holy Shrine sanctum sanctorum save Nizamuddin Aulia..

Outside the doors of the Mahim Shrine in the main courtyard on the side are women shaking their head grunting growling these are the possessed and sharing their fate their family and kids..

Your journey with me ends here I take your leave and move beyond through a narrow gate manned by cops and commandos, yes I am at the Dhuni..a strange hashish smoke world, the rafaees of Chancawalli are the custodians of this Dhuni..

I come here almost every night ..I shoot , I dance I eat with them , people who dont know me spiritual tourists kiss my hands , ask me to pray for them ,and soon I will start carrying a beggars bowl .. a step towards the final humility of a mans soul..

Yes the beggars bowl all have it hidden among their lust and secret desires..

The Rafaees at Mahim last night knew nothing about Idd e Ghadeer ..Ghadeer is celebrated joyously in Ajmer Sharif among the Sufis..too..not just the Shias.

Drinking tea here brewed on the dhuni is a heady one, even the food is simple exquisite..the Rafaee hospitality does not come easily it took me over 7 years or more..

I dont see much Hijras here but I did spot a hijra with a new born child but could not shot her she had entered the Inner sanctum..some pictures you shoot on a blank memory card of your mind ..

I am shooting all this on a 16 GB card..barefeet every night I add a new band aid to my feet.. I am quite depressed at the Dhuni as the Bawas who I shot have all vanished, and as there is another Urus called Ali Maulah Shrine at Dharavi.. most of the Rafaees are there.

I see strange people, strange things and lock them up my camera body..I am now uploading the second day of the Urus at Flickr..and it has taken a very long time..