The Shakirs of Colaba

The Shakirs of Colaba, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

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My parents graves at Rehmatabad Shia Cemetery..

Side by side interlocked
mohomed shakir
shamim shakir
as one forever
seamlessly fused
in eternity
time could not sever
made in Lucknow
lived at Colaba Mumbai
The Shakirs faith fidelity
intrepid endeavor
now or never

The Grave Of Nawab Kashmiri Actor

The Grave Of Nawab Kashmiri Actor, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

his is the grave of Nawab Kashmiri , and it was at his house at Colaba Wodehouse Road that my father Mohomed Shakir bought us live from the shanty our first house close to a Hindu crematorium , and this was an opulent house though it served as the Late Nawabs family servants quarters..and the building was called Khatau Bhuvan opp Military Quarters , and is today called Jony Castle..

The Nawb Kashmiris children :

Akthar (Baji) Kashmiri daughter lives with her kids in the States her husband predeceased her in Pakistan.

Anwar Kashmiri son deceased

Munnawar Kashmiri .. stays at Juhu with his wife and a daughter in the States.

And a nephew Ajay Kashmiri in Mumbai..

I owe a lot to Akhthar Baji for my education and my upbringing.

Candle Lit Graves Rehmatabad Shabbarat

Candle Lit Graves Rehmatabad Shabbarat, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

I did use my Tripod here , but the ground was soggy due to the rains..and the family relatives of Benazir Bhutto are buried here I am told, and a lot of Baluchi graves with designed tiles from Iran, and the great Indian Tragedienne filmstar Meena Kumari is buried her, her husband Kamal Amrohi, Jalal Agha comedian Aghas son, Mahesh Bhatts mother, and so many unsung souls.

Actress Meena Kumaris Grave on Shabbarat

Actress Meena Kumaris Grave on Shabbarat, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

I have always said fatiyah on her grave , and I think the person that really understood her well was Mehmood Saab's son Lucky Ali.. and she did keep her staff happy..and she was a powerhouse of a performer Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam and Pakeezah are my favorite and Mere Apne..

27 July 2010

silently
enacting
the last
power packed
role
of her life
she lives
a tragedy queen
never dies
tears she shed
made others shed
memories
sweet and nice
the tears
have not yet dried
a candle
burning in the wind
a pain from this shore
to the other shore as guide

kabhi toh milegi
baharon ki manzil rahen
lilting lyrics
pain could not hide
in the backdrop
on a crest they ride

Shabbarat A Soul Remembered

Shabbarat A Soul Remembered, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

135,539 items / 1,037,605 views

Baluchi grave at Rehmatabad Shia cemetery Mazgaon..


This is a grave of a person of Baluchi origins and their graves are built with Iranian tiles,,
I have always had a special respect for the person buried in the grave..a cosmic reality here and not here ..


death painlessly dies
when it comes
touches man
gently closes his eyes
taking him
once again
in the womb
of mother earth
muddy fragrance
monsoonal showers
as tears from the skies
on shabbarat they come
in hordes to the cemetery
to recite the fatiah
see that this relative
reaches jannat our paradise
this poem did not exist
when I posted this picture
it took time to arise
from the corridor of my mind
into the soul of a dead man
could not be otherwise
the tide kisses the shores
of destiny only time flies
its the camera that
captures eternity
a picture just
a poem in disguise


updated
27 July 2010

Shabaraat at Rehmatabad Shia Cemetry

Shabaraat at Rehmatabad Shia Cemetry, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

This is an old Flickr post picture shot in 2007

Rehmatabad is the only Shia cemetery in Mumbai, there is another one someone told me at Marine Lines , locked up in some controversy, next to the Rehmatabad Cemetery is the more ornate and opulent is the Arambagh Khoja Ishnashari Cemetery, and in between the two is a unused Jewish Cemetery, gone to seed, the caretakers family , the poultry and the mess on the graves the neglect can be seen, many a times I have had the urge to go and shoot it clandestinely perched on the adjacent wall.


And the Jewish community has not done much to cleanse this section of their heritage as they have been more intense in shutting down an eatery that was called Hitlers Cross.. well its human nature.. we see what lies far.. and myopic to what lies in utter shambles close to the heart , like the dispassionate Parsi community the statue of the Khada Parsi.. crying out in vain..
Well Shabaraat , you find all the Shia women and their families on the mounds, on the graves offering Fatiyah, reciting Aital Kursi, and other Koranic verses, some shouting slogans , this is the segment of kids chanting Haidar, Haidar, and Ya Ali , I was subjected to a questioning but the Maulana caretaker recognized me , the watch man had informed him I was shooting the graves without permission.

This is a very small cemetery but is famous for the blood that flows freely during Ashura and Chelum, in Moharram.. only the brave hearted can see the gore of Kama or Forehead cutting with swords, scourging s , and all this is done in cramped corners..and Chelum in Mumbai.. is something one should see it here at Rehmatabad..but the Press is not allowed, and its a Shia Muslim affair..
And I was not sure I would have undertaken this pictorial pilgrimage , without the painkillers, I was barefeet, on the graves.. my parents lie buried here.

The Bajra Wiladat e Imam e Zamana Gateway of India

The Bajra Wiladat e Imam e Zamana Gateway of India, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

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This was shot in 2007 .

Now this pier is closed to public for this function due to security reasons , last year I shot it too but the side pier next to the the one where you catch the boats for Alibag or Uran.

This boat comes at the pier and within the boat is the Nazar for tasting consisting of halwa and aflatoon and home made sweets.

Before the boat called the bajra arrives there is a lot of shair and shairi in praise of the Ahle Bayt and a continuous , ear piercing shouts of Nare Hyderi.

The women come here too with their relatives kids and throw arzis or requests in the sea , the arzis are covered in flour fed to the fishes.

There is heavy police bandobast and thankfully everything goes on peacefully.

This is a predominantly Shia event and part of the Shia Shabbarat celebrations by the Shia Muslims of Mumbai.

The Sunni Muslims too celebrate Shabbarat at the various Sunni cemeteries but the largest crowd is at Haji Ali Dargah and at the Mahim Dargah of Makdhoom Shah Baba and Fakhruddin Shah Baba.

At Shia houses the ladies make puri halwa and offer fatiah to their dead ancestors visit the Shia cemetery at Arambagh Khojas and Rehmatabad Mazgaon the Iranians and Hindustani Shias.

They light candles on the graves of their relatives , remember them fondly in the prayers called Fatiah.

My parent graves side by side is also at Rehmatabad Shia cemetery.