Tracing a legacy

Magen Aboth Synagogue in Alibaug

You might be familiar with the Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue in Kalaghoda; however, the city houses a few other synagogues that you might pass by on a daily commute, but are unaware of. An example of this could be the Shaar Harahamin Synagogue on Samuel Street in Masjid, which is Mumbai's oldest and first Bene Israel synagogue that was built in the late 18th century.

The Bene Israel Jews of the Konkan coast are one of three traditional Indian Jewish communities, along with the Baghdadi Jews of the Middle East, and the Cochini Jews of Malabar. Sifra Lentin, Mumbai-based writer and a Bombay history fellow at Gateway House, tells us, "The Bene Israel synagogue is symbolic of the history of its community." Lentin will dive into the cultural history of the community in her upcoming talk with The Museum Society of Mumbai and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, hosted on Zoom.

Sifra Lentin

Titled The Jews of Bombay and the North Konkan: A history of transnational trade, lost tribes and a proud military heritage, Lentin says, "Many aren't aware of the Bene Israel legacy in Mumbai. Besides the well-known Sassoon family, there was a large and flourishing community of Jews, not just Baghdadi Jews like the Sassoons, but also local Marathi-speaking Jews who are referred to as ‘‘Bene Israel'', which translates to children of Israel. This Jewish community was settled in villages of the north Konkan coast."

Lentin writes extensively on Jewish heritage in India, and has contributed to MARG's Indian Jewish Heritage - Ritual, Life-Cycle & Art in 2002. This Mumbai resident also wrote a thrice-weekly column for mid-day titled Vintage Mumbai from 1995 to 1997. She explains that the Bene Israel Jews were also called the Shaniwar Tellis (or the Saturday oil-pressers). The name takes its root in their predominant profession of oil pressing and because they observed the Jewish Sabbath, which falls on a Saturday. The name was to distinguish them from tellis belonging to other communities.

"The Zoom event will talk about the cultural history of these communities - when they originally arrived in colonial Bombay and also how they set up a community and institutional ecosystem in the city. The narrative will touch upon a history stretching from the Biblical times to the Middle Ages and, in more detail, the history of the Bene Israel and Baghdadi Jews. It will also cover the immigration of both communities overseas in the post-Independence period as well as their connections to the city in the 21st century," Lentin concludes. She assures of an interactive event where the talk will be followed by an audience question and answer session.

ON April 21, 5.30 pm
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