Jurists, janam kundlis and a crime passionnel

Every lane begs to be mapped In a city pocked pathetic by random redevelopment several quiet gullies await a chroniclerrsquos attentionSetalvad Lane is a short 100metre thoroughfare linking Nepean Sea Road to Arabian Sea shores It acknowledges the family of Sir Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad the barrister who was one of three Indian members in the 1919 Hunter Commission investigating the Jallianwala Bagh massacre Sir Chimanlalrsquos son MC Setalvad journalistactivist Teesta Setalvadrsquos grandfather was Indiarsquos first and longesttenured attorney general from 1950 to 1963 and the first chairman of the 1961established Bar Council of India Sir Chimanlalrsquos younger son VC Setalvad was the father of ace cricket commentator Anant Setalvad whose baritone voice enthralled thousands of keen fans of the gameAssociated with noble intent thanks to such men of distinction the otherwise tranquil pathwaymdashseldom resonating with anything but birdsongmdashhad its somnolent air rent by three gunshots fired in a crime passionnel The subsequent twists and turns of the case sent seismic shocks far beyond Indian borders This happened in Jeevan Jyot the neatly sprawled complex of flats for highranking consular corporate and LIC officers formerly the mansion of the respected Setalvads Jeevan Jyot was built by Phirozeshah Dubashrsquos Anderson Dawn Company which also designed the attractive apartment blocks Brighton and Sorrento on adjoining roads Sharmila Sunny Mangala Nath and Ravi Pandit backgrounded by their parentsrsquo portraits in their astrologerpolitician father Vasant Kumar Panditrsquos office room at Ramkrishna NiwasOn a dull grey morning along with a steady drizzle I soak in the Indocolonial elements adorning the architecture of villas like Bota Manzil and Ila Kunj An array of verdant bushes sprayed lush by rain on the portico of picturepretty Bota Manzil usher me into the living room of handicrafts exporter Allauddin Merchant and his wife Rashida Allauddinrsquos grandmother Jenabai came to the 1916built bungalow in 1941 moving with her husband Allibhoy from Malabar Hill to this seaskimmed space aired by salt breezes they sought for health reasonsldquoNo one really knows but it is said that one Mohamedbhai constructed a couple of villas like Ila Kunj and Bota Manzil Look therersquos even the initial of his name on the front grille here M for Mohamedbhai M for Merchantrdquo quips Rashida ldquoOur home was painted to shoot scenes for The Jewel in the Crown with an inner room doubling as the actorsrsquo changing roomrdquo she adds referring to Granada Televisionrsquos 1984 hit series Within minutes spill multiple vivid versions of the murder incident from every 1950s child in the neighbourhood Allauddin says ldquoBarely 10 I hadnrsquot seen a gun before This smartly dressed man came out of the Jeevan Jyot gate carrying a smoking pistol I was either in Ramkrishna Niwas or Madhav Vilas where a few of us boys gathered to be taken for a janoi thread ceremony We stared amazedrdquo Grandfather Rajguru Ramkrishna Pandit and Greatgrandfather Rajguru Hareshwar PanditThat smartattired gent was of course Kawas Nanavati the naval commander accused in a classic eternal triangle saga Pumping a trio of bullets into Prem Ahuja his wife Sylviarsquos lover he turned himself in to the authorities For all the uproar the tragedy aroused residents recollect ldquoNanavatirsquos calm demeanourmdashriding intothe lane and out in a Navy vehiclerdquo an old resident in Rubans Apartments observed How sensationally reel and real life conspire to inspire The giant reach and recall of the infamous killing spawned a slew of Bolly reels books and a PhD thesis too Media hysteria kept trailing the controversial court trials and upturned verdict decades down To the extent that cabbies readily queried ldquoNanavati khoonwali gullyrdquo to customers announcing Nepean Sea Road for a destination Sharing Allauddin Merchantrsquos amazement was Shriprakash Sardesai at the secondfloor window of Madhav Vilas ldquoWe heard noises and shouts then spotted Nanavati coming out after the deed was done An unforgettable sightrdquo His brother Sanjeev recalls ldquoWhen Jeevan Jyot was earlier the Setalvad house Sarojini Naidu would visit the legal luminariesrdquo The brothers speak of their father Vinay Kumar Sardesai a textile chemicals manufacturer originally from Chiplun coming to Setalvad Lane five years before what transpired that sultry afternoon of April 27 in 1959 ldquoTill that episode erupted everything was peaceful We simply heard rhythmic waves lash loud and close when tides swelledrdquo says ShriprakashA long view of the laneThat serene imagery stays vibrant for Rashna Dhondy from nextdoor Jehangir Towers tipping the lane westmost Once stately Sagar Villa the waterfront property boasted horse stables at the back a trio of handsome marble columns in front and a pair of staircases With the Dhondys and the Bapasolas this was home to the Currimbhoy Mirza and Steinmetz families Remembering the moon shimmer on the sea which switched colours bewitchingly in monsoon showers Rashna Dhondy says ldquoIt was thrilling to watch ships sail from the garden fringed by coconut palms We hurried down to play and for treats from the kind Hungarians below of homebaked cakes and eggs hatched fresh on their farmrdquo These were the Steinmetz siblings war refugees whose gutwrenching stories of suffering in concentration camps had moved Jamshed Bapasola immensely His grandfather solicitor Jehangir Bapasola the first Indian partner in Little and Co acquired the beautiful bungalow in the early 1900sldquoI can never forget horrifying accounts of the pain they endured and saw for myself the prisoner numbers the monstrous Nazis tattooed on their armsrdquo says Jamshed visibly affected ldquoClara Ernest and Eraine narrated the nightmare experience of being cruelly separated from their young sister Piri The older three children ended up in India and Piri in the US They met again after almost 50 years over dinner in this home which we were invited to What an intensely emotional eveningrdquoSylvia and Kawas Nanavati in happier times shortly after their marriage in 1949Clara cooked a special chicken paprika dish for that very poignant reunion meal It came from their poultry farm like the four kilos of bird they sent every Xmas which the Bapasolas would roast The late 1970s saw the Steinmetzs sell the Thane chicken farm and leave for Israel Other fatesmdashfortuitous or perilousmdashwere predicted with remarkable accuracy by three generations of astrologers The ancestral practice of the Pandit clan from Vasai was outstandingly popular Sitting in Ramkrishna Niwas with Sharmila Sunny Mangala Nath and Ravi Pandit their sister Jyotsna Maseelall is in Ohio I learn about their father Dr Vasant Kumar Pandit considered the countryrsquos first MA and PhD in Jyotish Shastra He was assigned the honorific ldquoPandit Varahamiharardquo in salutation to sixthcentury Ujjainrsquos mathematicianastrologerastronomer VarahamiharaVasant Kumarrsquos grandfather Hareshwar Madhav Pandit and father Ramkrishna Hareshwar Panditmdashboth given the title of Rajguru by their royal patron Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji Maharaja Jam Saheb of Nawanagarmdashhave lent their names to the rowed buildings Hareshwaralay Ramkrishna Niwas and Madhav VilasRenowned for their spoton skills in fortune telling Vasant Kumar and his father prepared horoscopes people swore by and arranged elaborate Ganesh pujas in Ramkrishna Niwas Embarking on a political career with the Jana Sangh Vasant Kumar was consulted by Jayaprakash Narayan Atal Behari Vajpayee and LK Advani ldquoDad was so good at astrology Opposition party members put aside their leanings and consulted himrdquo says Sharmila Sunny Filmdom followers included Suraiya Mukesh and Krishna Shah ldquoProminent Parsis as well sought his advice on mahurat dates for auspicious functions We enjoyed attending their delicious wedding feast bhonurdquo says Mangala NathldquoOur fatherrsquos political sympathies were consciously different from his fatherinlaw GV Deshmukh our maternal grandfatherrdquo Sunny points out ldquoMy grandfather told him lsquoWhy take advantage of my Congress affiliations I strongly believe you should strike out on your ownrsquordquo Independent Indiarsquos first mayor of Bombay Dr Gopalrao Deshmukh the inaugural president of the Indian Medical Association was physician to Gandhiji Nehru and JinnahFacing the Pandits Sherie and Pervez Sukheswala came to Manek Abad two years after it replaced a bungalow in 1974 ldquoIt felt like living in a tree house because those were the views from every single window Just soothing greenery with birds singing through the dayrdquo says Sherie My gaze falls on five surviving badam trees sway outside Jeevan Jyot beside ldquoThatrsquos a beauty of a building gone to the dogsrdquo she rues mincing no words Businessman Adi Bilimoria was seven years old when his father brought him to cornerhugging Ila Kunj flagging off the lane ldquolsquoGamyu ke do you like itrsquo mydad asked I fell silent having rushed in with great excitement only to find two entire rooms messily dug up That was a Navyrequisitioned flat When we did shift in it was wonderfulrdquoWith no wall between Ila Kunj and Bota Manzil the Ila Kunj compound entrance had two large trees Bilimoria freed one from bougainvillea clumps chokingit and a lovely new tree sprouted to life Leaning into the branches of another in Carmel building opposite it formed a welcoming arch at the gullyrsquos startAn arboreal embrace mirrored by the friendly energy exchange in the gully till today Hands rise in hearty Hellos across verandahs Much in touch neighbours are aware who is away travelling and offer care for pets and plants And ldquoPlease donrsquot return itrdquo I hear as an umbrella is thoughtfully pressed in my hand Allrsquos right for sure on Setalvad LaneAuthorpublisher Meher Marfatia writes fortnightly on everything that makes her love Mumbai and adore Bombay You can reach her at mehermarfatiamiddaycomwwwmeher marfatiacom