A Passage to a Forgotten India

New Indian Express

04-05-2025

The 'homeland' Marjorie came back to was an immediate post-war Britain, struggling to recover from damage, challenged by economic hardship, and with basic necessities in short supply. Marjorie's ongoing relationship with her mother continued to hit unexplained and harsh barriers: 'A letter came and I said to my mother 'It's got Indian stamps. Is it from Byah?' And she took the letter out of my hand, and said, 'No, Byah is dead', and walked out of the room'. That brusque revelation of Byah's death further terminated Marjorie's hopes of somehow being reunited with her. Much later Marjorie found her mother's address book and saw an address for Byah. Her mother had been in touch with Byah but had chosen to terminate the bond and never told her daughter that her Ayah was still alive.
Between 1890 and 1940, over 1,200 Ayahs entered Britain on international ships as British administrators travelled back and forth to India. Their subsequent destitution was noted by concerned white British women, who felt that Christian duty should be applied to these: they decided to create a refuge that would not only give them a roof but also civilise the heathen 'other'. The first hostel for Ayahs was founded in 1891 in Aldgate in East London. In 1921 the Home was moved again to a larger house in King Edward Road in Hackney. This Ayahs' Home had 30 rooms and could accommodate over 100 women. The Home not only gave sanctuary to the Ayahs, it also served as an 'employment agency' finding return passages with new families.
In 2009, Marjorie went back to India with her daughter. When she entered Delhi Airport, tears streamed down her face. When they went to the hotel close to where she had lived, the doorman at the front said, 'Welcome to the hotel, Madam' and Marjorie responded, 'But I'm coming home!' The next day she asked how to get to the Lodhi Gardens and he showed them on a map how to walk down the central roads towards the park's principal entrance. However, as memories of her childhood routine surfaced, she turned away from the main streets, followed by her daughter, and worked her way down a busy lane, then another, till she was in front of a doorway. She reached out and opened the door into the back of the familiar, unchanged Lodhi Gardens. Using her memory of the shortcut, she was back in her place of play and safety. Time stood still: she could bring all she had surfaced, shared, relearned, and processed to a place in her mind of love and care. With Byah at her side.