• Login
Upload
Tech News, Magazine & Review WordPress Theme 2017
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Videos
    • All
    • Hum Awam
    • Off The Cuff
    • The Afia Salam Show

    Going Green!

    Cricket Corruption: Butt, Asif Found Guilty

    Amir, Asif & Butt Jailed

    Natural Gases

    Chalo Chalo Bhit Shah Chalo

    Teach the Teachers

    Mixed Media

    Fix the Fixing!

    Be Safe Online

  • Societal Issues
    • All
    • Gender

    What does the society expect of its women!

    Guatemala: Indigenous Village Declares Internet Access a Human Right

    Speak Up Against Gender Based Violence

    A Little Feel Good Story

    “We Learn From History, That We Never Learn From History”

    Bhoja Air Crash and Climate Change

    Strange Bedfellows?

    Justice for Women

    Women’s role & culture

  • Stories
    • All
    • advocacy
    • Disaster Response
    • Environment
    • History
    • Media
    • Media, Advertising & Branding
    • Miscellaneous
    • Politics
    Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

    Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

    Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

    Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

    Nostalgia and Hope intertwine with Climate Induced Migration

    Nostalgia and Hope intertwine with Climate Induced Migration

    World Water Day 2018:Nature Based Solutions

    World Water Day 2018:Nature Based Solutions

    Once upon a Christmas in a Town called Hussain D’Silva

    Once upon a Christmas in a Town called Hussain D’Silva

    Getting through December 21

    Getting through December 21

    That date.. December 16th!

    His Sabeen, and Ours’

    His Sabeen, and Ours’

    World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

    World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

  • Mind Over Matter
  • Articles
  • About
    • Profile
    • Portfolio
    • Expertise
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Videos
    • All
    • Hum Awam
    • Off The Cuff
    • The Afia Salam Show

    Going Green!

    Cricket Corruption: Butt, Asif Found Guilty

    Amir, Asif & Butt Jailed

    Natural Gases

    Chalo Chalo Bhit Shah Chalo

    Teach the Teachers

    Mixed Media

    Fix the Fixing!

    Be Safe Online

  • Societal Issues
    • All
    • Gender

    What does the society expect of its women!

    Guatemala: Indigenous Village Declares Internet Access a Human Right

    Speak Up Against Gender Based Violence

    A Little Feel Good Story

    “We Learn From History, That We Never Learn From History”

    Bhoja Air Crash and Climate Change

    Strange Bedfellows?

    Justice for Women

    Women’s role & culture

  • Stories
    • All
    • advocacy
    • Disaster Response
    • Environment
    • History
    • Media
    • Media, Advertising & Branding
    • Miscellaneous
    • Politics
    Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

    Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

    Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

    Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

    Nostalgia and Hope intertwine with Climate Induced Migration

    Nostalgia and Hope intertwine with Climate Induced Migration

    World Water Day 2018:Nature Based Solutions

    World Water Day 2018:Nature Based Solutions

    Once upon a Christmas in a Town called Hussain D’Silva

    Once upon a Christmas in a Town called Hussain D’Silva

    Getting through December 21

    Getting through December 21

    That date.. December 16th!

    His Sabeen, and Ours’

    His Sabeen, and Ours’

    World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

    World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

  • Mind Over Matter
  • Articles
  • About
    • Profile
    • Portfolio
    • Expertise
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
Afia salam
No Result
View All Result

Once upon a Christmas in a Town called Hussain D’Silva

afiasalam by afiasalam
December 25, 2016
Home Stories Miscellaneous
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

I was introduced to Christmas for the merry-christmasfirst time as a four year old when we moved to Karachi. I was put in a ‘Christian’ (NOT Missionary) school, and lived in the upper portion of a house where a Christian family lived, whose daughter was my classmate. Being a diffident newcomer, I tailed her in school, and recall being gently led out of the chapel where she had to go for her religious class. I can’t for the life of me remember what we non-Christians were taught at that time.

So that is how i experienced my first Christmas, saw a Christmas tree, and exchange of gifts. But my real, and most memorable Christmas experiences were when we moved to a small housing colony (not gated, Thank you!) in North Nazimabad, known as Hussain D’Silva Town.

Strange name, but very apt; it was a joining of the names of two friends who were architects and developers, one of whom, Mr. Hussain passed away a few years ago while Mr. D’Silva moved to Canada. Little did they know what a little intellectual oasis they were forming.  Some big names of the country in journalism, arts, in the armed forces, advertising industry, poets, writers and television personalities trace their roots to Hussain D’Silva Town.

This little housing colony developed in the late 50’s for the new upwardly mobile middle class was where I got my first taste of pluralism and diversity. Our house was next to the one housing a Church. In those peaceful, trusting times, few houses had gates and most had waist high walls that were no barrier to children visiting their neighbours. I of course was intrigued at the stream of people coming to the church in the evening, yes, every evening, not just Sunday, and would watch over the wall.

The neighbourhood was dotted with houses belonging to Muslims of all sects (though we didn’t know what that word meant at the time), Christians, a lone Hindu family and I think there was one Parsi family.  We as children had no clue why some neighbours had open house for Haleem and others for koondey. Everyone went there. Come Moharram, and all of the children would be part of the sabeel group. On eid we knew there were some familieid-mubarakes who went to somewhere other than the mohalla masjid  for their eid prayers because they were from the Ahmadiya community, but that only meant that we had to wait for them to return so the children could get together to go around on the eidi collection mission.

It was here that I learnt what Christmas was. It was a time when the Christian schoolmates and neighbours would decorate their houses, go shopping for new clothes, and presents, and ‘do up’ the St. Jude’s Church, which had moved from the neighbouring house to a proper premises; a premises which had been ‘financed’ by those living in Hussain D’Silva Town, Muslims Hindus, Parsis, alongside the Christian residents,  by way of generous contribution to making the annual fete in November a success. Everyone dug into their pockets.

Of course this does not mean we were passive watchers of the Christmas preparations. Oh no. Just like they would come visit us, in all their finery, over both eids, on which the sawiyan and the meat from the sacrificial animals used to be sent to their houses too, minus our Hindu neighbours to whom we went fruits and mithai, Christmas was a busy time for us too.

After all, if we were hoping to consume the delicious melt-in-the mouth almond toffee or kur kurs or the divine cheeselets that were the staple Christmas fare, we had to do our share of the hard work. More than a week before Christmas, we would be at our friends, helping them unpack and string up the decoration items on the tree, help their moms in the arduous task of stirring the toffee or frying the other goodies. Other party of the ‘must be a part of Christmas rituals was seeing our friends go Christmas carolling… how can one forget the groups of carol singers moving through the streets in the cold winter nights. No one really snuggled in the beds, as how could one not listen, to the final ‘product’ after their weeks of practise.

Then of course on Christmas day, it was our turn to play the visitors, and we too would don our fine feathers and go for the Christmas visits, armed with presents, and devoured the goodies which included the ‘non-Christmassy cake’ especially plated up for the Muslim visitors as it was sans rum which was part and parcel of the Christmas fruit cake.

Those who had special friends among the Christians, like I luckily did, would receive a plateful of goodies on Christmas eve. The older and more adventurous ones joined their friends in the midnight mass at the Church. This was a norm, across Karachi, not just in Hussain D’Silva Town.

But imagine what proved to be the icing on the cake! not just metaphorically but literally! In 1974, Eid ul Azha and Christmas fell on the same day! The entire Town wore a festive look and the difference between visitor and hosts was no longer there. Every greeting elicited the answer of ‘same to you’ and ‘khair mubarak’ in a perfect display of coexistence.  I miss the Christmas in Hussain D’Silva Town. I wish my city of Karachi had many more such oasis.

screen-shot-2016-12-25-at-7-51-32-pm

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: ChristiansChristmasChurchCoexistEidHinduHussain D'Silva TownKarachiMasjidMuslimsParsis
afiasalam

afiasalam

Masters in Geography and a career journalist having 4 decades of experience of print, electronic and web journalism. Member National Climate Change Council, Prime Minister's advisory body, and National Coordinating Body for Marine Protected Areas. Fellow of LEAD, FNF's International Academy of Leadership & Australia Awards , member of PUAN, IUCN Commission on Education & Communications and Commission on Economic & Social Policy. She has been highlighting issues related to environment and climate change through her writings, and advocacy through seminars and moderation of panel discussions and round tables. She is also a development practitioner, current elected General Secretary of Baanhn Beli, co-President of Salman Sufi Foundation, TYrustee of The Helpline Trust, and Chair Board of Trustees Indus Earth Trust. She can be reached on Twitter @afiasalam Linkedin: afia salam Instagram: @salamafia

Next Post
Memons on my mind!

Memons on my mind!

Comments 4

  1. Lubna Panjwani says:
    7 years ago

    What a brilliant write up Aafia ji, I just came across it as one of my school mates with whom I have studied at St. Judes forwarded this to me. Both of us can relate to this blog as we have spent good 12 years crossing by and taking a sneak peak into the St. Judes Church!
    Many thanks for taking us back to the memory lane ! And YES may that harmony, peace get back to this city of lights. (Aameen)

    Seasons Greetings and Happy 2018

    Reply
    • afiasalam says:
      7 years ago

      Thank you so much.. i yearn for those lovely days of Hussain D’Silva Town and St. Judes… God bless for the lovely words

      Reply
  2. Capt.Salah Umer says:
    6 years ago

    Sounds a lil belated from me but what a brilliant piece of work!

    This has lit up quite a few candles taking us back in time when St.Judes,at its inception,was located where you came down and settled with your family in the sixties.I clearly remember your hind wall was adjacent to the church.
    Beats me hollow how time has just whisked by….hmmm…almost sixty years…lts been far too long.

    Thank you Afia.

    Reply
    • afiasalam says:
      6 years ago

      Thank you Salahuddin Bhai… yes a lot of time has past but the bonds of Hussain D’Silva town are still strong

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended.

No quick recovery in monsoon-hit Sindh

September 28, 2015

Violence Against Women

August 12, 2012

Trending.

Treacherous weather

June 5, 2014

Sabeen: The birthday girl is not here anymore

June 20, 2015
Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

Remembering Baba e Mangroves Late Tahir Qureshi on #WMD22

July 26, 2022
Six years after the Attabad disaster, adaptation is still name of the game!

Six years after the Attabad disaster, adaptation is still name of the game!

January 4, 2016
World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

World Cancer Day.. is just another day!

February 4, 2016
Afia salam

Media consultant and trainer, content developer/editor, documentary concept and script writer, presenter/producer.
Currently working as free lance journalist and media trainer, especially in the field of Environmental journalism.

Follow Us

POWERED by WIMA

Categories

  • advocacy
  • Blog
  • Disaster Response
  • Environment
  • Gender
  • History
  • Hum Awam
  • Media
  • Media, Advertising & Branding
  • Miscellaneous
  • Off The Cuff
  • Politics
  • Societal Issues
  • The Afia Salam Show
  • Uncategorized

Tags

Adaptation Afghanistan Afia Salam Balochistan Bangladesh Change Children Climate Change Cricket Culture disaster England Environment Floods glaciers Government History India Internet IUCN Journalism Journalists justice Karachi Mangroves Media Nature Pakistan Pakistanis Paralyzed Politics PTI Senate Sindh Speak For Change Sports Technology USA VAW Water women Work working women World Youth

Recent News

Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

Balochistan honours late Baba e Mangroves on #WMD24

July 26, 2024

how to activate microsoft office 2019 without product key for free lifetime ✓ Activate Office 2019 Now with KMS Methods ➔ Easy Steps!

April 8, 2025

Developed by Jareeullah Shah

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About
    • Profile
    • Portfolio
    • Expertise
  • Blog
  • Videos
  • Societal Issues
  • Stories
  • Mind Over Matter
  • Contact
Upload
  • Login

Developed by Jareeullah Shah

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In