The Gujarati community, who have contributed to the development of the temple city in a big way, began their journey from the Rann of Kutch to Madurai, 125 years ago and over the years, have made this town their second home.
Being contractors by professions, they were instrumental in constructing many bridges and buildings in and around Madurai. What began as a professional journey, ended up with them deciding to settle in Madurai to save time on travel which took many days a century ago. Many landmarks in Madurai were constructed by Gujarati contractors, including the majestic collector's office building near the Gandhi Museum. Mavji Chauhan was the contractor of this heritage structure.
Passionate about their language and script, they inaugurated the 'Shree Madura Gujarati Library' way back in 1925 so that people from their community could have access to books in their own language. Even today, the library continues to flourish with more than 5,000 books in Gujarati, frequented by the young and elderly. Among the teachers, Ranjan Bhatt is much sought after for her expertise in the language. "Many children are sent for Gujarati language classes without fail, as they do not get an opportunity to pursue the language in schools," says Gujarati resident Sangeeta Desai.
This clan of 'little Gujarat' in Madurai, does not discriminate among themselves in the name of caste be it Vaishnav, Brahmin, Jain or Kutchi, and also a group of about 40 to 50 Khoja Gujarati Muslims who are fluent in Gujarati and Kutchi. According to former president of the Gujarati Samaj, Chandrakant Patel, the Shri Gujarati Bandhu Samaj was formed in 1931 to help them keep in touch with their roots. It was followed by the Truthful Society, Navjivan Samaj, Gujarati School and the Gujarati Seva Samaj. All these associations came under one roof in the year 1963 when the Shree Madura Gujarati Samaj was formed. The building for this samaj was constructed in the year 1972. Today, the samaj acts as a home away from home for Gujaratis, where they can relish authentic Gujarati food, including shrikhand (sweet yogurt), dhokla and batata vada.
At present, there are two organisations, namely the Shree Madura Gujarati Samaj (estd.1963) and the Gujarati Seva Samaj (estd.1976), with membership from about 225 families living here. These families are engaged in different trades ranging from textiles, educational institutions, plywood, teak & timber wood, grocery, utensils, electrical goods, bicycles and even computers.
Being away from their home state, the Gujaratis have made a lot of effort to ensure that the younger generation does not lose touch with their tradition, culture and language. Nearly all the festivals that are celebrated in Gujarat be it Holi, Diwali, Janmashtami or Navratri are celebrated here with much fervour and enthusiasm. Both samaj come together at various occasions of celebration or grief. For a native of Madurai, the best way to experience a north-Indian festival is to get invited to a celebration at the samaj.
People from this community have contributed in a big way to the development of Madurai, one among them being Lalji Vora who was instrumental in giving Madurai its first mall, the Milan mall, about two years ago. People from the Gujarati community have thus carved an integral role in Madurai, adding colour to the multicultural hues in the city while also paving way for its development.
Source - TOI
Being contractors by professions, they were instrumental in constructing many bridges and buildings in and around Madurai. What began as a professional journey, ended up with them deciding to settle in Madurai to save time on travel which took many days a century ago. Many landmarks in Madurai were constructed by Gujarati contractors, including the majestic collector's office building near the Gandhi Museum. Mavji Chauhan was the contractor of this heritage structure.
Passionate about their language and script, they inaugurated the 'Shree Madura Gujarati Library' way back in 1925 so that people from their community could have access to books in their own language. Even today, the library continues to flourish with more than 5,000 books in Gujarati, frequented by the young and elderly. Among the teachers, Ranjan Bhatt is much sought after for her expertise in the language. "Many children are sent for Gujarati language classes without fail, as they do not get an opportunity to pursue the language in schools," says Gujarati resident Sangeeta Desai.
This clan of 'little Gujarat' in Madurai, does not discriminate among themselves in the name of caste be it Vaishnav, Brahmin, Jain or Kutchi, and also a group of about 40 to 50 Khoja Gujarati Muslims who are fluent in Gujarati and Kutchi. According to former president of the Gujarati Samaj, Chandrakant Patel, the Shri Gujarati Bandhu Samaj was formed in 1931 to help them keep in touch with their roots. It was followed by the Truthful Society, Navjivan Samaj, Gujarati School and the Gujarati Seva Samaj. All these associations came under one roof in the year 1963 when the Shree Madura Gujarati Samaj was formed. The building for this samaj was constructed in the year 1972. Today, the samaj acts as a home away from home for Gujaratis, where they can relish authentic Gujarati food, including shrikhand (sweet yogurt), dhokla and batata vada.
At present, there are two organisations, namely the Shree Madura Gujarati Samaj (estd.1963) and the Gujarati Seva Samaj (estd.1976), with membership from about 225 families living here. These families are engaged in different trades ranging from textiles, educational institutions, plywood, teak & timber wood, grocery, utensils, electrical goods, bicycles and even computers.
Being away from their home state, the Gujaratis have made a lot of effort to ensure that the younger generation does not lose touch with their tradition, culture and language. Nearly all the festivals that are celebrated in Gujarat be it Holi, Diwali, Janmashtami or Navratri are celebrated here with much fervour and enthusiasm. Both samaj come together at various occasions of celebration or grief. For a native of Madurai, the best way to experience a north-Indian festival is to get invited to a celebration at the samaj.
People from this community have contributed in a big way to the development of Madurai, one among them being Lalji Vora who was instrumental in giving Madurai its first mall, the Milan mall, about two years ago. People from the Gujarati community have thus carved an integral role in Madurai, adding colour to the multicultural hues in the city while also paving way for its development.
Source - TOI
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