Immigrant chronicles

We learn about Sir Jamshedjee Jeejeebhoy who traded in opium, earned a fortune, and donated generously to charities during the Bengal famine of 1943

Prochy N Mehta's fascinating new book Pioneering Parsis of Calcutta  sheds light on the enduring legacy of her own community in a city she prefers to address by its colonial name Calcutta, also preferred by the English-speaking elite of today and yesteryear. Her meticulous research has led to a remarkably interesting compendium on Parsi traders, philanthropists, barristers, community leaders, bureaucrats, and stalwarts from other fields.

Ms Mehta writes, “The first Parsi who came to Calcutta around 1767 was Dadabhai Behramji Banaji. Parsis used to trade with Armenian brokers in Surat. These Armenians came to Murshidabad and thence to Calcutta. It