Gandhi makes the shopkeepers of Bahadur Shah Market in Karachi smile even today. It’s their private little joke that unbeknownst to thousands of people who pass by each day, have the Indian icon smiling down at them. This surprising wrought-iron reminder of the past can be found in the balconies of the two-storey Azeem Mahal which was built in 1933, at a time before any resident of Karachi could have been sure this city would be in Pakistan one day. It was not unusual before Partition in 1947 for buildings in the bustling port city of Karachi to be embellished with such artwork. DJ Science College and St Joseph’s Convent High School have tiles from Belgium, Michaelangelo’s cherubs flit in the masonry high above the traffic-crazed streets of Saddar and alternating Roman and lancet arches line Bunder Road at Lakshmi Das and Saleh Mohammed Streets circa 1920. In fact, Azeem Mahal is located on Mohan Road, named after Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the man himself. The road starts from MA Jinnah Road (Bundar Road), crosses the famous Urdu Bazaar book market and goes up to the Sindh Assembly building. Text and Photo by #AmarGuriro #Gandhi #BahadurShah #Karachi #Indianicon #AzeemMahal #Pakistan #1947 #portcity #artwork #DJScienceCollege #StJoseph’sConventHighSchoolKarachi #Belgium ##BelgiumTiles #Michaelangelo #masonry #Saddar #RomanandLancetarches #arches #BunderRoad #LakshmiDasStreetSaddarKarachi #SalehMohammedStreet #India #MohanRoad #MohandasKaramchandGandhi #MAJinnahRoad #UrduBazaar #book #SindhAssemblybuilding
