Armenians of Kolkata, An Anthropological History
The Armenians settled in Calcutta from the end of the 16th century. According to an estimate there are less than 100 Armenians in Calcutta now. The film takes glimpses into Armenians glorious past, their legacy, the present and future even though it might seem bleak.
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00:02:31The Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth is the oldest Armenian church in Kolkata.
00:02:38This was built in 1724 on the burial grounds of the Armenian community
00:02:44after the first wooden church, built in 1688, was completely destroyed by fire in 1707.
00:02:54Seventeen years later, this church was built by Agha Nazar, hence the name Nazareth's Church.
00:03:01The architect was an Armenian from Iran, Levon Gevond.
00:03:06The beautiful belfry and the steeple were added ten years later in 1734 by Manuel Hazarmel.
00:03:14The Church was renovated and decorated by Khoja Petrus Arathon in 1763, and two extra altars were erected.
00:03:33One in memory of himself, and the other to the memory of his younger brother, Khoja Gregory,
00:03:40better known as Ghorgin Khan, the commander-in-chief of Nawab Mir Qasim of Bengal.
00:03:47The altar in the church is adorned with a cross, the gospel text, and twelve candlesticks symbolizing the twelve apostles of Christ.
00:03:58The altar is also decorated with three paintings, Holy Trinity, Last Supper, and the Enshrouding of Our Lord.
00:04:08Agha Khachik Arakhiel, an illustrious Armenian, presented the clock in 1790.
00:04:18Resting in peace here is Reza Bibi, the wife of the charitable Sukhiyas.
00:04:25This tomb, dated 11 July 1630, is an indication that the Armenians came here before the English.
00:04:34This is also said to be the earliest Christian tomb in Calcutta.
00:04:52A street in North Calcutta still carries the name of the Sukhiyas.
00:05:04The Sukhiyas are a group of people who have been living in Calcutta since the 19th century.
00:05:10They are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:15The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:20The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:25The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:30The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:35The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:40The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:45The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:50The Sukhiyas are known as the Sukhiyas, or the Sukhiyas of Calcutta.
00:05:55India
00:06:14The Armenians have been connected with India as traders from ancient times.
00:06:20They came to India overland through Persia, Afghanistan and Tibet.
00:06:26For many centuries, the Armenians had been doing business with India successfully during various reigns.
00:06:36There are many versions as to when the Armenians came to India.
00:06:40The arrival of Armenian merchant Thomas Cana on the Malabar coast in 780 AD is widely accepted as the first date.
00:06:50This was seven centuries before Vasco da Gama landed in India.
00:06:57In the 16th century, Emperor Akbar invited them to settle in Agra.
00:07:02He was well aware of their intelligence and business acumen.
00:07:07According to the Aini Akhbari, the Chief Justice of the Empire, Abdul Hai, was an Armenian.
00:07:14So was the Lady Doctor of the Royal Harem, Juliana, besides others.
00:07:20It is also said that Akbar had a Christian wife, Mariam Zamani, an Armenian.
00:07:26He allowed them to conduct their religion freely.
00:07:31In the 17th century, the Armenians came to Bengal.
00:07:36They traded in spices, muslin, gems and indigo, then changed with time to jute, betel nut and shellac,
00:07:54the latter being their monopoly for a few decades.
00:08:07The British autocracy and a growing population opened the way to various professions,
00:08:14the stock market, employment in British firms and the railways.
00:08:20They followed the pattern of most early settlers, whose business skill, foresight and hard work
00:08:28enabled many of them to make fortunes in a few successful seasons.
00:08:34In October 1869, a small, delicate lad landed in Calcutta.
00:08:40His name was John Carapiate Goldstone.
00:08:44Goldstone was destined to become the 20th century's wealthiest Armenian in Calcutta.
00:08:52He built the silver-domed palace on Lower Circular Road, Goldstone Park,
00:08:57which was later bought by the Nizam of Hyderabad.
00:09:02This is now the famous landmark, Nizam Palace.
00:09:11Queen's Mansions on Park Street.
00:09:14He made about 350 buildings in central and south Calcutta.
00:09:19Jesse Goldstone built a beautiful mansion in Lower Circular Road.
00:09:28And just opposite, it is now called Nizam's Palace.
00:09:32And he had stables there because he had racing horses.
00:09:36And dead opposite him is the Little Sisters of the Poor.
00:09:41Now the Little Sisters of the Poor had a mishap.
00:09:45One of the horses of their carriage had died.
00:09:48And they were scraping their knees every night and praying to God for a horse
00:09:55so that they could afford one.
00:09:57One day, one of Jesse Goldstone's prize race horses walked across the road
00:10:04and went into their property.
00:10:07Well, the nuns thought that God had answered their prayers.
00:10:11Jesse Goldstone didn't know what to do, where this horse had gone.
00:10:15Eventually he found out that it had gone there.
00:10:18So he went and told them, look, I'll give you ten horses.
00:10:21But I want this one back.
00:10:24And that is how they got horses for their carriage.
00:10:28Goldstone's colleague and kinsman, Arathun Stephen, was a hotelier and a connoisseur.
00:10:39Stephen caught on Park Street.
00:10:45To him, the city owes the majestic edifice of the Grand Hotel on Chaurangi.
00:10:52He died on the 14th of May, 1927, and was buried in the Armenian churchyard.
00:11:08Park Mansions.
00:11:09This Edwardian residential block of mansions was erected by the prominent Armenian philanthropist, T.M. Thaddeus.
00:11:22Kachik Paul Chatter
00:11:26Another very prominent figure from this community was a Kachik Paul Chatter.
00:11:32Orphaned at the age of seven, he got into La Martiniere College in Calcutta on a scholarship.
00:11:38In 1910, when the school got into dire financial crisis,
00:11:43he gave a magnanimous donation of 11 lakhs of rupees and saved it from a certain closure.
00:11:51To honour his contribution to the school, Sir Paul Chatter's name was included in the school prayer.
00:11:57Almighty God and most merciful Father, who has taught us to praise Thee as well for the dead as the living,
00:12:05we thank Thee for Claude Martin, our founder,
00:12:09for Paul Chatter, our benefactor,
00:12:12as then our song shall be,
00:12:15as we chant his eulogy,
00:12:19may our founder's name endure,
00:12:23ever spotless, ever pure.
00:12:27Sir Gregory Charles Paul, an Armenian born in Calcutta and other distinguished Armenian barristers of the time,
00:12:35brought the Calcutta Armenian Trust under the administration of the High Court at Calcutta in 1888.
00:12:43These trusts have played a major role in preserving the Armenian presence in Calcutta.
00:12:50He served as the Advocate General of Bengal for many years.
00:12:56Sir Apkar Alexander Apkar, President of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce from 1904 to 1907,
00:13:04was known as one of the most popular of the Merchant Princes of Calcutta.
00:13:10The Heritage Trail finds its artistic excellence at the turn of the 20th century in Goharjan.
00:13:17She was born as Angelina Joward in 1873 to an Anglo-Indian mother and an Armenian father in Asamgarh.
00:13:28She came to Calcutta with her mother in 1883, a city known for its great patronage of the arts.
00:13:36She became a master of Kayal, Dhrupad and Tumri.
00:13:41Calcutta, beginning of the 20th century, was the birthplace of the first Armenian women.
00:13:49She became a master of Kayal, Dhrupad and Tumri.
00:13:54Calcutta, beginning of the 20th century, the gramophone came,
00:13:59a new technological marvel that liberated music from the confines of royal courts and rich man's foyeries.
00:14:07Gohar was one of the earliest women to seize upon the opportunity that the recording technology presented.
00:14:18She recorded Tumri, Dadra, Kajri, Chaiti, Bhajan and Tarana.
00:14:27She went on to become India's first recording superstar with over 600 songs in more than 10 languages from 1902 to 1920.
00:14:38She adapted and then excelled in the three minutes recording time format of those days.
00:14:49The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:15:01The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra was built in March 1867.
00:15:07In March 1968, a large number of Armenians attended the Holy Mass here to celebrate the first centenary.
00:15:18The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:15:48The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:16:18The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:16:23The cemetery here has the oldest grave dated back to 1867.
00:16:29The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:16:48The Holy Trinity Chapel at Tangra
00:17:06One of the most important contributions of the Armenians to the educational and cultural life
00:17:12was the establishment of the Armenian College and the Philanthropic Academy.
00:17:17The Academy is the oldest seat of learning in the entire Armenian diaspora.
00:17:23It was founded in April 1821.
00:17:27The present campus started in 1884.
00:17:31The Armenian College, along with the Davidian Girls' School,
00:17:36provide quality education and a chance to live a better life for about a hundred boys and girls
00:17:43who have come from countries such as Iraq, Iran and Armenia.
00:17:48In fact, it offers a safe haven to the Armenian children, free from strife and persecution.
00:18:19The named college, it is actually a school affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination.
00:18:37In addition to the usual subjects, the school teaches the Armenian language,
00:18:42which has its own script, literature, culture and religion.
00:18:48Apart from free education, the students also get a free trip home every three years.
00:19:18The boys play a number of games like football, basketball, volleyball, rugby, being the most popular.
00:19:48The boys took over the rugby field, the girls excelled in hockey and basketball.
00:20:13Nor were the indifferent students.
00:20:17Armenian girls have done well and qualified as teachers, secretaries, social workers and a doctor.
00:20:42I was born in Iran, in a very beautiful town called Shiraz.
00:21:02I was educated in the Martinier Girls' School in Calcutta, a very good school.
00:21:11Even now, in fact now it is very famous.
00:21:16After school I won a scholarship and I went to Delhi.
00:21:22I studied there three years and graduated and qualified to be a teacher.
00:21:30I returned to Calcutta and it didn't take me much time to get a post.
00:21:37I taught in several schools before I joined the Gokhe Memorial Girls' School.
00:21:47During that time I had gotten married and I had two children.
00:21:54I just wanted to do something and my husband allowed me to open a school.
00:22:02That was in 1957.
00:22:05I still teach in the school and for me every day is a joy.
00:22:14Bob brushing his hair.
00:22:18Which picture is Bob brushing his hair?
00:22:22That's right, look at your own book.
00:22:24Which picture is Bob brushing his hair?
00:22:27That's right, look at your own book.
00:22:291, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.
00:22:391, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.
00:22:49My grandfather was in British intelligence along with his brother-in-law in the First World War.
00:22:58His brother-in-law was shot, killed.
00:23:06The sudden bullet killed him but my grandfather escaped.
00:23:11His escape was very, very, I mean you could write a story about it.
00:23:18Because he was hidden in harems and all sorts of places.
00:23:21Eventually he came overland to India and he started some work over here.
00:23:30And then the British government brought his wife and four children to India.
00:23:38That is how our family came to India.
00:23:42It was through my grandfather.
00:23:44My grandfather was a scholar.
00:23:48He was a scholar.
00:23:49He was a scholar.
00:23:51But then over here he had to go into business.
00:23:55He had to work to make a living.
00:23:58But his sons did very well.
00:24:01My uncle, that is my father's younger brother, started KLM in Calcutta.
00:24:09Also Java Bengal Lines.
00:24:11He spoke Japanese.
00:24:15He spoke Dutch, English, Armenian, Bengali and Hindi.
00:24:22Multilingual.
00:24:24The other brother was a bank manager.
00:24:27So both the sons did very well.
00:24:30The daughter went into education.
00:24:33She opened a school.
00:24:35She had a school in Calcutta.
00:24:37So the family was socially very well established.
00:24:43And they had a very good reputation.
00:24:47I have been associated with sport all my life.
00:24:52I have been a sports person.
00:24:54I played for my state in hockey.
00:24:58I played all other games.
00:25:00Tennis, basketball.
00:25:02You name the game and I played it.
00:25:05But hockey was the one where I represented my state.
00:25:10And in those days Bengal were the champions.
00:25:16With hockey I was associated with the Women's Hockey Association.
00:25:22I was the president for over 40 years.
00:25:26And also of the Basketball Association for the same period.
00:25:32I also was with the All India Women's Hockey Federation.
00:25:43With the government I was associated since 1960 to 2011.
00:25:54In the sports council.
00:25:57And was a standing committee member.
00:26:00My association there was very fruitful.
00:26:04Because when I was much younger I used to go to the districts.
00:26:11And oversee what was required for sport.
00:26:17And that I used to do at the weekends.
00:26:20Because during the week I was busy with my school.
00:26:23So every weekend it was such fun.
00:26:25Going to the districts with other members of the committee.
00:26:31And sorting things out there.
00:26:33And during my tenure the committee did agree to build hospitals.
00:26:40And we built the Armenian Trauma Centre.
00:26:44The Detralaya Eye Hospital.
00:26:47And we revamped the KGK Hospital.
00:26:52The Dam Down Cancer Hospital.
00:26:55So many others.
00:26:57I forget their names now.
00:27:01And that is something I would like to see happening in the future.
00:27:08I mean if you have so much money.
00:27:12The church has such a lot of money.
00:27:14Some of it should be spent for people to help people.
00:27:19And health care is something.
00:27:20I mean you hear of people going to a hospital and they haven't got a bed.
00:27:25For the sick person.
00:27:27That shouldn't be.
00:27:29If there were enough hospitals then everyone would be taken care of.
00:27:34Sadly there were very few Armenians left in Calcutta.
00:27:39Most of them went after independence.
00:27:45And for the war also.
00:27:47They left for greener pastures as they thought.
00:27:51You know they didn't know how they would cope with a new beginning in India.
00:28:00So all the rich people left.
00:28:06Now there are very few families.
00:28:10And most of them have to depend on the church for their sustenance.
00:28:16A lot of the children have gone.
00:28:21But I wouldn't say of the families that are getting help from the church.
00:28:29A lot of their children are here.
00:28:32But the church is educating some of them abroad.
00:28:38So possibly later on they won't stay here.
00:28:41They will also search for greener periods like others have done.
00:28:48My husband was a very cultured man.
00:28:52He spoke 30 languages.
00:28:55So later on when we had a hotel we had no problems with foreign guests.
00:29:02He was the eldest son of the Magadit John of the Continental Hotel.
00:29:10Which is alongside the Grand in Chaurangi.
00:29:14Unfortunately I lost my husband in 1979.
00:29:21But the years with him were very fruitful.
00:29:26Because he was a visionary.
00:29:31And because of his education, not only in India but abroad,
00:29:39he had a very wide view on life.
00:29:44Our children, I should say, it was a bonus for them.
00:29:52And you have Carlton Hotel?
00:29:55Yes. He and I in 1958 started the Carlton Hotel which was the annex of the Continental.
00:30:04It was not a five-star hotel.
00:30:10But because of the atmosphere there, we had very special guests.
00:30:18People who could afford to live in five-star hotels used to come to us.
00:30:22And it was just like a family hotel.
00:30:28People used to come and they enjoyed their stay.
00:30:34Because we used to give board.
00:30:38And if we had Italian guests, we made Italian food.
00:30:43If we had Spanish guests, we made Spanish food.
00:30:46And so the word went around.
00:30:49If you want to have your home food in Calcutta, you go to the Carlton Hotel.
00:30:56And what has come of it now?
00:30:59Well, when my husband expired in 1979, I ran it for over 10 years.
00:31:06But I had legal problems, you know, with the landlord.
00:31:11And rather than go into further legal problems, I handed the hotel back.
00:31:18Not the hotel, but the tenancy back.
00:31:22And now, of course, it is now Peerless Hotel.
00:31:27In between it was the Ritz Continental.
00:31:30And now it is the Peerless Hotel.
00:31:32They put up a very large structure where the hotel used to stand.
00:31:37It's very difficult to uproot an old tree and replant it.
00:31:43Imagine at my age if I had to go and settle.
00:31:48I go for holidays, oh yes.
00:31:50I go and see my children. I go to London. I go to America.
00:31:54And I see them.
00:31:56But for them, I think it's wrong for me to go there at the end of my life for them to look after me.
00:32:05You know?
00:32:07But you're right, you know.
00:32:10Maybe there will be a time I should go. I don't know.
00:32:14The hospitable Armenians combined work and play.
00:32:18They owned and managed boarding houses for their fellowmen.
00:32:22These grew into small hotels for visitors.
00:32:25Carlton, Kenilworth and Fairlawn are a few examples.
00:32:30The women complemented the efforts of their male counterparts
00:32:34who played a distinguished role in Calcutta well into the 20th century.
00:32:41Since 1783, Fairlawn has stood at the junction of Madge Lane and Sutter Street
00:32:48within a stone's throw from the New Market, the heart of the most cosmopolitan area of the city.
00:32:59It was bought in 1936 by Mrs. Rosie Sarkis, an Armenian lady.
00:33:05And that was the making of her.
00:33:09From this base, she built a hospitality empire over various places in Bengal and England.
00:33:18Over the years, the legacy has been carried forward
00:33:23by her daughter Violet, her husband Ted Smith and their daughter Jennifer.
00:33:30I had to start transcribing.
00:33:33It took me 35, 36 years to do the system.
00:33:38But, murder.
00:33:50Fairlawn has become the hotel of choice for many creative people who come to the city.
00:33:56Authors, journalists, musicians, actors, painters and sculptors.
00:34:03It's not like a hotel. It's more like her home.
00:34:07And people feel very homely when they come here.
00:34:10They don't feel that it's a part of a hotel.
00:34:13They feel that they're living part of the Indian home life.
00:34:27I live in one room.
00:34:30Maybe two meals a day. I'm very happy.
00:34:33My children, I'm afraid, are not interested in taking over the business.
00:34:37They very much have their own lives.
00:34:40My son lives in Singapore. My daughter lives in England.
00:34:43Although they come here and visit and thoroughly enjoy it
00:34:46and are very, very helpful to me and my mum,
00:34:49they would never come and live here and take it over.
00:34:52So, really, the buck stops with me.
00:34:55It all depends on what happens in the future.
00:34:59Obviously, I will continue for as long as I can.
00:35:02But we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it.
00:35:06As a part of a young Armenian generation in India,
00:35:11I don't know how the future is.
00:35:14I don't know how certain the future is, but I can only hope and pray
00:35:17that we can become someone who can do a little something for this country.
00:35:24My family first came to know about India, Armenian College
00:35:28and the long history of Armenians in India back in the year 2002
00:35:33when one of our distant relatives, who happened to study in India
00:35:37in Armenian College, encouraged my parents to send us,
00:35:42I mean me and my younger sister, to India.
00:35:44And with the promise that we are going to learn new languages
00:35:50and it is going to be good for us.
00:35:54So we came here without knowing anything,
00:35:58but we have learned a lot in the country.
00:36:01And now that we have grown up,
00:36:04it's really confusing to stay back in India,
00:36:08which has been a home away from home for the past 20 years.
00:36:11Or to go back to Iran and be a part of family back there.
00:36:17But with God's grace, I think something will happen
00:36:22which will be both useful for both the places.
00:36:27I'm really not certain about that.
00:36:30But I hope if I'm a part of this community in the future,
00:36:34I'll be someone who can do something for this community,
00:36:37something positive, who can do something for the community
00:36:42to grow bigger, stronger,
00:36:45and which will not only serve the community,
00:36:49or the church, or my school,
00:36:52but serve this country as well,
00:36:55who has done a lot and we really owe to this country.
00:36:58So it's been quite a journey for Armenians.
00:37:03If you look into the history,
00:37:05we have been here for almost 400 to 500 years.
00:37:09And I really don't know the actual reason
00:37:12why Armenians have been leaving the country,
00:37:15leaving the city of joy, Calcutta,
00:37:18and going abroad or going out of India.
00:37:21There might be different reasons,
00:37:24job opportunities, or personal reasons.
00:37:27But from my point of view,
00:37:31if we can stay back
00:37:33and help the community to grow a bit more,
00:37:37because we have had lots of people
00:37:40leaving the community and going abroad,
00:37:43and the numbers in the community
00:37:46have decreased very much.
00:37:49So if we can, not only the young generation,
00:37:53we can be very active.
00:37:57The young generation can be,
00:38:00we have a lot of energy,
00:38:03we have a lot of ideas,
00:38:06but we always need the support
00:38:09of the elderly people in the community,
00:38:12the church, all of them who have
00:38:15started the base of this community years back.
00:38:19And what we can do, we can complete it.
00:38:22But without their support, it's a bit tough.
00:38:26Well, before starting to talk about the present,
00:38:29I would like just briefly to talk about the past.
00:38:31Because without the past,
00:38:34there would be any presence.
00:38:37And according to a Greek soldier and writer,
00:38:41Xenophon, five centuries before Christ,
00:38:44he told us that
00:38:47the Persian king,
00:38:50wishing to send a delegation to India,
00:38:53he asked Armenian merchants to escort
00:38:56and to accompany that delegation to India,
00:38:58because Armenians were quite familiar
00:39:01with the roads and Armenians
00:39:04already had been in India,
00:39:07and they were quite familiar with the culture.
00:39:10So starting from those days,
00:39:13there were Armenians in India.
00:39:16And as far as we know, the Armenian community in India
00:39:19was established in the 17th century,
00:39:22so it was formally formed at that century.
00:39:24And the Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy
00:39:27was founded in 1821
00:39:30by the merchandise,
00:39:33by the donation of the people who had the army
00:39:36to educate,
00:39:39to impact the knowledge and wisdom
00:39:42of Indian Armenian students.
00:39:45But during those days, passing the years,
00:39:48the Armenian community itself was shrinked.
00:39:51And it is not a secret for anyone,
00:39:54for Armenians living here,
00:39:57that there are few,
00:40:00very few
00:40:03families and very few students
00:40:06that Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy
00:40:09can get educated
00:40:12and can give the knowledge.
00:40:15Most of them coming, the students, I mean,
00:40:18most of them coming from Armenia,
00:40:21coming from Iraq and from Iran.
00:40:24I see and I visualize the future
00:40:27with the saying of Armenian tradition.
00:40:30It is, the education starts from
00:40:33the very moment of our birth,
00:40:36and it continues until the end,
00:40:39until we die.
00:40:42So from the very moment we get the birth,
00:40:45it's part of our tradition
00:40:48to be educated, because it's kind of
00:40:51a passport for the future,
00:40:54for those who prepared today,
00:40:57who prepared themselves for the tomorrow.
00:41:02The presence, it's
00:41:05not bright, but
00:41:08I hope,
00:41:11and I pray every single time
00:41:14when I get a chance,
00:41:17just that Armenians who are here,
00:41:20they are under the big umbrella
00:41:22in multicultural
00:41:25and multilingual states
00:41:28such as West Bengal and such as
00:41:31especially Calcutta, the city,
00:41:34it will grow up, because the dormitory
00:41:37of girls, as far as I know,
00:41:40it's under the construction,
00:41:43and we believe that soon or later
00:41:46we will get from other dioceses,
00:41:49from other diaspora students
00:41:52who are burning in ACPA.
00:41:55ACPA,
00:41:58the Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy,
00:42:01it's one unique and phenomenal
00:42:04and important thing
00:42:07for Armenian education system
00:42:10in India.
00:42:13Not only for Armenians,
00:42:16or Indian Armenians, I mean,
00:42:19not only for them, but also for the people
00:42:22who have a chance to come,
00:42:25even for a year or two years,
00:42:28spent here, spent in this family,
00:42:31spent in this
00:42:34honorable culture,
00:42:37they can get so many things,
00:42:40they can get and give so many things.
00:42:43Usually it happens that whoever
00:42:46finishes his or her education,
00:42:49usually they, most of them,
00:42:52they stay in India, not especially
00:42:55in Calcutta, but in other places,
00:42:58Mumbai, Delhi, and they are continuing
00:43:01their education. It's kind of trouble,
00:43:04and the whole world is kind of big book.
00:43:07If you don't travel, you don't read that book.
00:43:10So they are getting their first steps
00:43:13from ACPA, and they are starting.
00:43:16Some of them, as far as I know,
00:43:19they get married and they make a family.
00:43:22So it's not only about Calcutta,
00:43:25the city where the ACPA is,
00:43:28but it's also about the whole big
00:43:31country and nation as India.
00:43:34So we are talking about Armenian community,
00:43:37we are talking about the community
00:43:40that was shrinked during the years,
00:43:43and now as a
00:43:46mother bird giving place,
00:43:49ACPA, we are trying to rebuild
00:43:52with the small Armenians, represent
00:43:55that community, and live
00:43:58with the past,
00:44:01loving today, and not afraid
00:44:04from tomorrow, whatever it is.
00:44:07Maybe no Armenian would stay here.
00:44:10Maybe the Armenian community will grow up.
00:44:13Maybe the students, wherever they came
00:44:16from, they will go back. But still,
00:44:19the Armenian heritage, Armenian tradition,
00:44:22Armenian atmosphere of Calcutta,
00:44:25on the buildings and everywhere.
00:44:28So we are both Indian,
00:44:31Armenians are well connected.
00:44:34I mean, it's an unbounded chain
00:44:37that we are connected together.
00:44:40We are getting so many things,
00:44:43so many cultural experience,
00:44:46so many challenges. And many of them,
00:44:49I mean the students, they are trying
00:44:52to move on and start new life,
00:44:55new beginning.
00:44:58In India?
00:45:01In India. So it's a global,
00:45:04it's not about Calcutta again,
00:45:07because I'm sure if somebody left
00:45:10the Armenian college and went to Delhi
00:45:13to continue his or her education,
00:45:16he or she will meet somebody
00:45:19and would be sure that this is
00:45:22their life, they will settle down
00:45:25and they will continue the tradition
00:45:28that they took from the Armenian college,
00:45:31from this place.
00:45:34The Third Armenian Church in Kolkata,
00:45:37the Armenian Chapel of St. Gregory the Illuminator,
00:45:40was built in 1906.
00:45:52Here lies Mesrov Yakov Seth,
00:45:55a noted scholar, historian, and antiquarian.
00:46:06Chatter Home, an old-age home
00:46:09for the benefit of the Armenian community,
00:46:12is located close to this chapel.
00:46:15Named after its eminent benefactor,
00:46:18Sir Paul Chatter, this home caters
00:46:20to the welfare of the needy.
00:46:23My first love is my wife,
00:46:26and my second love is Calcutta.
00:46:29I've never left Calcutta, and never will leave.
00:46:32I was born over here, and I'll die over here.
00:46:47That's an Armenian patriotic song.
00:46:50And this is my wonderful darling,
00:46:53sweetheart of a wife.
00:46:56And this is my wife's tattoo,
00:46:59and my name written in Armenian.
00:47:02Now, first is an Egyptian hieroglyph on top,
00:47:05and over here it's in red.
00:47:08N-A-H-I-J-E-L.
00:47:11That's Nigel, a tattoo of my name.
00:47:14Nigel in Armenian.
00:47:17Speak about how you met me.
00:47:20We met on the road, and when I would go to work,
00:47:23he would be crossing me over.
00:47:26We just had eye contact once or twice,
00:47:29and a few months later, I go to a friend's place,
00:47:32and he's there.
00:47:35And then we see, this is the guy we've been seeing
00:47:38every day on the road, and we've been having eye contact.
00:47:41I guess from there we exchanged numbers,
00:47:44and we started calling each other and speaking to each other.
00:47:47So, I guess it was the speed that got us together.
00:47:50When we came out of school,
00:47:53myself and many other boys, we found it very difficult
00:47:56to mix with society because we never knew the language,
00:47:59number one, Bengali being the major language
00:48:02in West Bengal over here.
00:48:05But the boys and myself, we were pretty street smart.
00:48:08I don't know how we managed to have that.
00:48:11We somehow managed to start interacting with the people,
00:48:14and then we realized that it was not just Armenians
00:48:17that we were concentrated upon.
00:48:20There are different societies, different religions,
00:48:23different people out here in India.
00:48:26It's a multicultural society.
00:48:29And now the school boys, when I meet them,
00:48:32I find them, they are very open to other communities
00:48:36and people around, and they are just.
00:48:39And they even celebrate the same festivals,
00:48:42like coming up is Holi.
00:48:45They are going to celebrate Holi.
00:48:47Not celebrate, as in they will play with colors.
00:48:50In the long run, I want to become a more active member
00:48:53in the community, as in I do,
00:48:56I have put proposals forward to the community,
00:48:59to the committee, sorry, not community,
00:49:02to the committee wherein they can have
00:49:05the local Armenians, their wives,
00:49:08have the wives get together.
00:49:11Then all the Armenians of character, the local Armenians
00:49:14who have not studied in the Armenian college,
00:49:17or its history, get them to go for classes
00:49:20at least once, twice a month.
00:49:23We spend very interesting time here.
00:49:26And I hope we'll continue to.
00:49:29Thirteen years, it's not a small time.
00:49:34It's a long time.
00:49:37And in these years, we work hard,
00:49:42and we had very interesting conversations
00:49:45and very interesting work, journey.
00:49:50Over here in Calcutta mostly,
00:49:53the people are very warm,
00:49:56they are very friendly, helpful.
00:49:59Right now I'm studying in Scottish Church College.
00:50:03It's one of the reputed colleges in West Bengal, India.
00:50:09And I'm doing BBA, business administration.
00:50:13We didn't feel much different,
00:50:16like he's a totally different guy,
00:50:19he's from a different country.
00:50:22But he used to share a lot of things with us,
00:50:25like we had a lot of things in common,
00:50:28so we got together really well.
00:50:31Our college was good every time we were
00:50:34sitting in the same bench,
00:50:37talking about new things about Armenia and Indian culture,
00:50:39and at last, even now,
00:50:42we are planning to go for an excursion
00:50:45towards North Bengal, to my place.
00:50:48We are a very rare species, endangered species, you could say.
00:50:52The few that there are in the city,
00:50:55they come from Armenia or Iran,
00:50:58and they come here to study and look for opportunities
00:51:01to better themselves, to live here, make life better.
00:51:05And Indian Armenians, there are very few,
00:51:07I think Calcutta has the maximum number,
00:51:10this is the stronghold of the Armenian community.
00:51:13Like me, I don't think there are more than two or three,
00:51:17and in the music industry, I think I'm the only one.
00:51:38So when it comes to Christmas, it's only a household affair.
00:51:42But when it comes to Kali Puja or Diwali,
00:51:45like I said, it's two weeks of preparation,
00:51:48we build the pandal ourselves, we design the lights,
00:51:51we decide which fireworks we are going to buy,
00:51:54we go around collecting chanda, if nobody gives us chanda,
00:51:57we don't threaten or harass them,
00:52:00we pull in ourselves and we make the thing a success.
00:52:03So that's it, I guess that's the magic.
00:52:05Magical flavor of living in India,
00:52:08you get to enjoy all communities' festivals,
00:52:11all their different types of food, their humor,
00:52:14their hospitality, and life is just wonderful living here, I guess.
00:52:18With regard to future planning expectations,
00:52:22what I see myself doing in the future,
00:52:25it's what I've been doing these past 10-15 years.
00:52:28There's absolutely no amalgamation between
00:52:31what I've been doing as a singer on stage
00:52:33or the Armenian community or being an Armenian whatsoever.
00:52:37It has absolutely no blending in any way.
00:52:40Because one's a profession, the other's a community.
00:52:43The Armenian community has not inspired me in any way in my career.
00:52:49I'm an on-stage commercial entertainer,
00:52:52I sing in Punjabi, in Hindi, in English, like you know.
00:52:56And by the grace of God, we have traveled to a lot of countries,
00:53:00for performances, charitable performances and others.
00:53:03And there's absolutely no bearing
00:53:06where the Armenian community is concerned
00:53:09on my profession as a singer.
00:53:12I mean, it's a complete dead end.
00:53:15Yes, if the embassy does get in touch and ask me
00:53:18as an Armenian of Calcutta to represent all Armenians
00:53:21and sing in Iran or Armenia for the Armenian community,
00:53:24I'd be more than happy to do that.
00:53:27But that would require me to
00:53:30practice the language
00:53:33or a few songs, because I don't know any of them
00:53:36up until today.
00:53:38Very honestly, I'm not even keen on learning any of them.
00:53:41But as and when the need arises, I will.
00:53:44But beyond that, this question is like a blank wall.
00:53:49Where my profession is concerned,
00:53:51the Armenian community has absolutely no bearing on it.
00:53:54Being an Armenian, I've had friends from all different communities.
00:53:57My best friends have been Punjabis, Muslims.
00:54:00My DJs are Gujaratis.
00:54:03I've got two Sardarji DJs.
00:54:05All my dancers are mixed.
00:54:07It's a completely democratic act.
00:54:09Cosmopolitan, if you may call it.
00:54:12I do have Armenian friends as well,
00:54:14but we don't mix that much.
00:54:16That apart,
00:54:18you know, my only apprehension for this community
00:54:21is because our numbers are dwindling.
00:54:24The youngsters are compelled to get married
00:54:27to people of different communities.
00:54:30So the only example that I can mention to you
00:54:33is the example of myself.
00:54:35I got married to a Punjabi girl,
00:54:37who I was seeing for many years,
00:54:40for about seven, eight years,
00:54:42and then we got married now,
00:54:44and we've been married for four and a half years.
00:54:46And that apart, I think,
00:54:48my apprehension for the Armenian community
00:54:50is that it is finally going to fade away into oblivion,
00:54:53if it hasn't already,
00:54:55because the Armenians that are here right now,
00:54:57they come from outside,
00:54:59from Iran or Armenia,
00:55:01and they don't stay for very long,
00:55:03because of various issues,
00:55:05like there's the language barrier,
00:55:07and then there's geographical issues,
00:55:09then visa issues,
00:55:11many things for foreigners who,
00:55:13it's not adaptable for them to live in a country like India,
00:55:16or in a city like Calcutta,
00:55:18to speak more locally,
00:55:20because Calcutta's a city that's bursting at the seams,
00:55:22I'll use your words.
00:55:24I mean, it was a city that was built for 10,000,
00:55:25and now we have 12 to 13 million by day,
00:55:28and we have people from other states and countries
00:55:31pouring in and trickling out.
00:55:33So, it's not a very good scene
00:55:37for communities like the Armenians,
00:55:39or the Chinese, or the Jewish,
00:55:41or who else is there?
00:55:43These smaller communities,
00:55:45what is eventually,
00:55:47what eventually is going to happen
00:55:49is we're going to get married to girls and boys
00:55:51from other communities,
00:55:53and we're going to dwindle in numbers,
00:55:55a darker shade of grey.
00:56:16Being in a city like Calcutta,
00:56:18which is so,
00:56:20a cosmopolitan city,
00:56:22we have integrated with
00:56:23all the communities, you can say,
00:56:25Hindus, Muslims, Punjabis,
00:56:28Parsis, Chinese.
00:56:31We have integrated,
00:56:33and we get on very well with all these communities,
00:56:35because we don't have a choice.
00:56:37Our community being so small,
00:56:39and dwindling so fast,
00:56:41we have to, you know, socialize
00:56:43with all the other communities of the city.
00:56:45We are very comfortable living here.
00:56:47I was very happy getting married
00:56:49to my childhood sweetheart.
00:56:51I did not look for an Armenian girl.
00:56:53I did not look for an Armenian
00:56:55or eat Armenian food.
00:56:57I'm an out-and-out.
00:56:59From 1% to 100%, I'm an Indian.
00:57:01My daughter's married to an Armenian,
00:57:05and she's very happily married.
00:57:08There's a very good quality in the Armenians,
00:57:11who are very close to me,
00:57:14and they were friendly,
00:57:16homely,
00:57:18and they would go out of their way
00:57:20to do anything for you.
00:57:21The number of the Armenians in Kolkata
00:57:24is only about 100.
00:57:27Considering the half Armenians
00:57:30and non-Indian nationals
00:57:32who are studying or working here,
00:57:34the number will increase
00:57:36by a few more hundreds.
00:57:38If I get a degree from India,
00:57:40I would like to put my practice law
00:57:42in India itself.
00:57:4412 years in India has made India feel,
00:57:46made me feel like India is my home,
00:57:48and I wouldn't mind building a career
00:57:49in this country itself.
00:57:51This is the Armenian stronghold, Kolkata,
00:57:53and if our community wishes
00:57:55to preserve itself,
00:57:58then yes, bringing Armenians
00:58:00from Iran and Armenia are crucial,
00:58:02because then we get this opportunity
00:58:04to mix with people
00:58:06of our own bloodline,
00:58:08or our own, well, not exactly bloodline,
00:58:10but our own community.
00:58:12And that throws the doors open
00:58:14for us to visit our homeland
00:58:16or our ancestral homeland
00:58:17where our grandfathers were born,
00:58:19meet Armenian people.
00:58:21Maybe my daughter might get married
00:58:23to an Armenian boy one day.
00:58:25Who knows what the future can hold.
00:59:17¶¶
00:59:47¶¶