Latest news with #HinduSindhis
Mint
19 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
India's Partition diaspora has been a boon for other Asian economies
Nearly eight decades ago, a community of Hindu Sindhi merchants fled the Indian subcontinent in the aftermath of its bloody division. My family was among them. Scattering worldwide, some in the diaspora rose from refugees to run billion-dollar businesses. Ours was one story among scores, mirroring tales of refugees fleeing violence in recent times. From the aftermath of Syria's civil war to the Rohingya exodus from Myanmar, then, as now, the openness of adopted nations determines whether migrants flourish or fade. It remains a politically charged issue, with bitter debates raging over America's mass deportations to the EU's recent tightening of migration and asylum rules. Partition changed the course of my community's destiny. It is thought that there are around 2 million Hindu Sindhis in Pakistan, nearly 3 million in India and several million more across the world. This exile has birthed a prominent business diaspora. Also Read: Partition Museum gallery commemorates the lost homeland of Sindh You might recognize the names. The Singapore-based Hiranandani brothers for example. Their father migrated from Sindh, a province in what is now southeastern Pakistan, in 1947, and started a small shophouse near a British military enclave. Today, his descendants are billionaires, ranked among Singapore's richest. An entrepreneurial spirit defines the community, notes Singapore's former ambassador to the United Nations Kishore Mahbubani in his book, Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir. When Hindu Sindhis began fleeing Pakistan, many headed to cities they had been operating in since the late 1800s, he writes. The Partition of British-ruled India in 1947 forced one of the largest mass migrations in human history: About 15 million people were displaced and it's estimated that a million died in communal violence. As part of the transfer of power, two new nations were created: Muslim-majority Pakistan and Hindu-majority India. Both have just marked their independence days on 14 and 15 August respectively. The British devised the split along religious lines, despite the fact that many communities had, for the most part, peacefully coexisted. It meant that vast numbers suddenly found themselves on the 'wrong' side. Also Read: Pet paranoia and anti-immigrant rants reveal economic myopia My father has vivid memories of that time. He lived in Hyderabad in the Muslim-majority Sindh province, as his ancestors had done for centuries. An ancient trading hub in South Asia that bridged East and West, Sindh was swallowed whole into Pakistan. His family was sitting down to lunch in the days before Partition when a Muslim friend burst in, urging them to leave immediately. A mob was on its way, and they were angry. In a frantic rush, my father—just five years old at the time—remembers having barely enough time to grab his shoes. They ran, a few precious possessions in hand, and boarded a train to what was then Bombay, ending up in a refugee camp. From there, they travelled by ship to Indonesia, where my grandfather had business ties. Eventually, they became citizens there. If Indonesia had turned its back on us eight decades ago, families like mine might never have survived. The journey from refugees to entrepreneurs illustrates a wider point: Migration can be a powerful driver of economic growth. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, each additional working-age migrant creates 0.2 extra jobs through entrepreneurship—nearly 4 million jobs between 2011 and 2021. Also Read: US President-elect Trump's crackdown on immigration is likely to be highly disruptive For the family that settled in Indonesia, Partition meant new beginnings. They started in textiles, but now are known as the 'Kings of entertainment'—a household name in the entertainment and media industry. In 2021 Tencent bought a 15% stake in PT MD Picture, a company co-founded by one of the family's next generation scions for some $50 million. Not everyone fled because of Partition. The Harilelas of Hong Kong left Sindh in 1922, developing business links across southern China and exporting antiques worldwide. That trade collapsed during the Great Depression, forcing them to Hong Kong to start over. Over the decades they established a hospitality group with properties in Asia, Europe and the US, becoming one of the region's wealthiest families. The debate over immigration around the world today is complex and deservedly so. Integrating new communities and cultures is challenging. Those pressures can affect local populations. But rejecting contributions can mean that both migrants and host nations lose out. My family isn't among the Sindhi billionaires, but we've contributed to our adopted country in many other ways. Others should have that chance. ©Bloomberg The author is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Asia politics with a special focus on China.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
How India's partition forged a diaspora empire
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills Nearly eight decades ago, a community of Hindu Sindhi merchants fled the Indian subcontinent in the aftermath of its bloody division. My family was among them. Scattering worldwide, some in the diaspora rose from refugees to run billion-dollar was one story among scores, mirroring tales of refugees fleeing violence in recent times. From the aftermath of Syria's civil war, to the Rohingya exodus from Myanmar, then, as now, the openness of adopted nations determines whether migrants flourish or fade. It remains a politically charged issue, with bitter debates raging over the enforcement of America's mass deportations to the European Union's recent tightening of migration and asylum changed the course of my community's destiny. Estimates vary, but it is thought that there are around 2 million Hindu Sindhis in Pakistan, nearly 3 million in India, and several million more across the world. This exile gave birth to a prominent business might recognize the names. The Singapore-based Hiranandani brothers are one example. Their father migrated from Sindh, a province in what is now southeastern Pakistan, in 1947, and started with a small shophouse near a British military enclave. Today, his descendants are billionaires, regularly ranked among Singapore's richest. The eldest, Raj Kumar, and his son Kishin RK run the Royal Holdings and RB Capital property empire. Younger brother Asok Kumar runs the Royal Group with his son Bobby. It owns the 215-room Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort and the island's second Raffles entrepreneurial spirit defines the community, notes Singapore's former ambassador to the United Nations Kishore Mahbubani in his book, Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir. When the Hindu Sindhis began fleeing Pakistan, many headed to cities they had been operating in since the late 1800s, he Partition of British-ruled India in 1947 forced one of the largest mass migrations in human history: About 15 million people were displaced, and it's estimated a million died in the communal violence. As part of the transfer of power, two new nations were created: Muslim majority Pakistan and Hindu majority India. Both have just marked their independence days on Aug. 14 and 15 British devised the split along religious lines, despite the fact that many communities had — for the most part — lived peacefully together. It meant that vast numbers suddenly found themselves on the 'wrong' side. My father has vivid memories of that lived in Hyderabad in the Muslim-majority Sindh province, as his ancestors had done for centuries. A key ancient trading hub in South Asia that bridged East and West, Sindh was swallowed whole into Pakistan. His family were sitting down to lunch in the days before Partition when a Muslim friend burst in, urging them to leave immediately. A mob was on its way, and they were angry. In a frantic rush, my father — just five years old at the time — remembers having barely enough time to grab his ran, a few precious possessions in hand, and boarded a train to what was then Bombay, ending up in a refugee camp. From there, they traveled by ship to Indonesia, where my grandfather already had business ties. Eventually, they became citizens in their adopted home. If Indonesia had turned its back on us eight decades ago, families like mine might never have journey from refugees to entrepreneurs illustrates a wider point: Migration can be a powerful driver of economic growth. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, each additional working-age migrant creates 0.2 extra jobs through entrepreneurship — nearly 4 million jobs between 2011 and the Punjabi family of Indonesia, (who are Sindhis despite their last name) Partition meant new beginnings. They started in textiles, but now are known as the 'Kings of entertainment' and have become a household name in the entertainment and media industry. In 2021 Tencent Holdings Ltd. bought a 15% stake in PT MD Picture, a company co-founded by one of the family's next generation scions, Manoj Punjabi, for some $50 everyone fled because of Partition. The Harilelas of Hong Kong left Hyderabad in Sindh in 1922, developing business links across southern China and exporting antiques worldwide. That trade collapsed during the Great Depression, forcing them to Hong Kong to start over. Over the decades they established a hospitality group with properties in Asia, Europe and the US, becoming one of the region's wealthiest debate over immigration around the world today is complex, and deservedly so. Integrating new communities and cultures is challenging. Those pressures can affect local populations. But rejecting contributions can mean that both migrants and host nations lose out. My family isn't among the Sindhi billionaires, but we've contributed to our adopted country in many other ways. Others should have that chance.
Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
How India's partition forged a diaspora empire
TIL Creatives AI-generated image for representative purpose Nearly eight decades ago, a community of Hindu Sindhi merchants fled the Indian subcontinent in the aftermath of its bloody division. My family was among them. Scattering worldwide, some in the diaspora rose from refugees to run billion-dollar businesses. Ours was one story among scores, mirroring tales of refugees fleeing violence in recent times. From the aftermath of Syria's civil war, to the Rohingya exodus from Myanmar, then, as now, the openness of adopted nations determines whether migrants flourish or fade. It remains a politically charged issue, with bitter debates raging over the enforcement of America's mass deportations to the European Union's recent tightening of migration and asylum rules. Partition changed the course of my community's destiny. Estimates vary, but it is thought that there are around 2 million Hindu Sindhis in Pakistan, nearly 3 million in India, and several million more across the world. This exile gave birth to a prominent business diaspora. You might recognize the names. The Singapore-based Hiranandani brothers are one example. Their father migrated from Sindh, a province in what is now southeastern Pakistan, in 1947, and started with a small shophouse near a British military enclave. Today, his descendants are billionaires, regularly ranked among Singapore's richest. The eldest, Raj Kumar, and his son Kishin RK run the Royal Holdings and RB Capital property empire. Younger brother Asok Kumar runs the Royal Group with his son Bobby. It owns the 215-room Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort and the island's second Raffles entrepreneurial spirit defines the community, notes Singapore's former ambassador to the United Nations Kishore Mahbubani in his book, Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir. When the Hindu Sindhis began fleeing Pakistan, many headed to cities they had been operating in since the late 1800s, he writes. The Partition of British-ruled India in 1947 forced one of the largest mass migrations in human history: About 15 million people were displaced, and it's estimated a million died in the communal violence. As part of the transfer of power, two new nations were created: Muslim majority Pakistan and Hindu majority India. Both have just marked their independence days on Aug. 14 and 15 British devised the split along religious lines, despite the fact that many communities had — for the most part — lived peacefully together. It meant that vast numbers suddenly found themselves on the 'wrong' side. My father has vivid memories of that lived in Hyderabad in the Muslim-majority Sindh province, as his ancestors had done for centuries. A key ancient trading hub in South Asia that bridged East and West, Sindh was swallowed whole into Pakistan. His family were sitting down to lunch in the days before Partition when a Muslim friend burst in, urging them to leave immediately. A mob was on its way, and they were angry. In a frantic rush, my father — just five years old at the time — remembers having barely enough time to grab his shoes. They ran, a few precious possessions in hand, and boarded a train to what was then Bombay, ending up in a refugee camp. From there, they traveled by ship to Indonesia, where my grandfather already had business ties. Eventually, they became citizens in their adopted home. If Indonesia had turned its back on us eight decades ago, families like mine might never have survived. The journey from refugees to entrepreneurs illustrates a wider point: Migration can be a powerful driver of economic growth. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, each additional working-age migrant creates 0.2 extra jobs through entrepreneurship — nearly 4 million jobs between 2011 and 2021. For the Punjabi family of Indonesia, (who are Sindhis despite their last name) Partition meant new beginnings. They started in textiles, but now are known as the 'Kings of entertainment' and have become a household name in the entertainment and media industry. In 2021 Tencent Holdings Ltd. bought a 15% stake in PT MD Picture, a company co-founded by one of the family's next generation scions, Manoj Punjabi, for some $50 million. Not everyone fled because of Partition. The Harilelas of Hong Kong left Hyderabad in Sindh in 1922, developing business links across southern China and exporting antiques worldwide. That trade collapsed during the Great Depression, forcing them to Hong Kong to start over. Over the decades they established a hospitality group with properties in Asia, Europe and the US, becoming one of the region's wealthiest debate over immigration around the world today is complex, and deservedly so. Integrating new communities and cultures is challenging. Those pressures can affect local populations. But rejecting contributions can mean that both migrants and host nations lose out. My family isn't among the Sindhi billionaires, but we've contributed to our adopted country in many other ways. Others should have that chance. (Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates) Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. IndiGo's GIFT City unit: Simple expansion or is there more to it than meets the eye? GST cut to benefit; but who gains the most? Good, bad, ugly: How will higher ethanol in petrol play out for you? Why are mid-cap stocks fizzling out? It's not just about Trump tariffs. Stock Radar: This hotel stock is showing signs of bottoming out; time to buy? Logistics sector: Be tactical in the face of head & tailwinds; 6 logistics stocks with an upside potential of over 30% Stock picks of the week: 5 stocks with consistent score improvement and return potential of more than 25% in 1 year History of wealth creators: Everything should be in context, whether it is PE or PEG; on a standalone basis they mean nothing
The Print
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Owners of Karachi Bakery stress its ‘Hyderabadi, Indian' roots fearing protests, calls for name change
However, every time tensions flare up between India Pakistan, such as during the Pulwama attacks in 2019, the bakery witnesses some collateral damage as some people and organisations link the name with Pakistan. The owners—Hindu Sindhis—had migrated from Pakistan post-1947 partition and had set up the bakery in 1953 at Moazzam Jahi Market area in the old city. The bakery, especially known for its fruit biscuits, became iconic over the decades with branches opened in many other areas of Hyderabad and in cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Visakhapatnam. Hyderabad: Amid escalating India-Pakistan tensions and Operation Sindoor, owners of the famous Karachi Bakery in Hyderabad have appealed to the Revanth Reddy government in Telangana for support, apprehensive of protests over their brand named after the city in Sindh, Pakistan. A protest was staged at one Karachi Bakery outlet in Visakhapatnam earlier this week, in condemnation of the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 tourists were shot dead, including two from Andhra Pradesh. One of the victims, J.S. Chandramouli, a retired banker, was from the port city. Activists of local group Janajagrana Samiti, who carried national and saffron flags, reportedly termed the bakery's name as 'inappropriate, and demanded the managers to immediately change the name'. They also wanted the government to lodge a case of treason if the name was not modified. The incident took place a day before India launched cross-border missile strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK). On Thursday, as tempers further escalated against the neighbouring country, Karachi Bakery owners Rajesh and Harish Ramnani sought to clarify that their 'Karachi Bakery is a Hyderabadi, Indian brand (and not Pakistan's)'. 'The bakery was founded here in Hyderabad in 1953 by our grandfather Khanchand Ramnani, who migrated to India during partition. It has been 72 years. He chose the name Karachi as a mark of his love and attachment (to his hometown, which went to Pakistan),' the partners told a media outlet. 'We request the CM, DGP, police commissioner to support us. We understand the situation and there are protests over the name 'Karachi', but please do not make us change our name. The reality is that Karachi Bakery is a Hyderabadi, India brand.' According to the owners, Indian flags are being put up at some outlets, while a source said tricolours at the main bakery branch at Moazzam Jahi were fixed to show solidarity with the nation against Pakistan and placate any protesters. In the days following the dastardly Pulwama attack in February 2019, in which 40 jawans of the Central Reserve Paramilitary Force were killed by a suicide bomber from Pakistan-based terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed, a Karachi Bakery store in Bengaluru was attacked by a group of men demanding that the name 'Karachi' be masked. In 2021, the bakery faced Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) activists' ire over its 'Pakistani name'. Also Read: India thwarts Pakistan's attack on military installations, retaliates with own CM leads solidarity march On Thursday evening, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy led a sanghibaava (solidarity) rally from the state secretariat along the Necklace Road and Hussian Sagar, in support of India's action against Pakistan-based terrorism. Deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, Chief Secretary Ramakrishna Rao, senior police and other ministers and officials took part in the foot march. 'Our march is to convey that we are all one, regardless of politics, when it comes to the nation's security and sovereignty. We are here today to extend our thanks and support to our jawans,' the CM said. 'We are peace-seekers but when our sisters' sindoor is wiped off, we respond with Operation Sindoor. We stand solidly behind our army in erasing terrorism.' On Wednesday, Reddy and Vikramarka reviewed the state's preparedness after the launch of Operation Sindoor and ordered strict security measures to prevent any untoward incident anywhere in the state. All the departments were asked to work in coordination and ensure that people do not face any problems or shortage of essential commodities, ensuring no disruption in the supply chain. The CM ordered special security measures at all army and other defence offices and establishments in Hyderabad and also ordered the police to tighten security at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport and increase surveillance at all foreign consulates and embassies in Hyderabad. Adequate protection will be provided to foreign tourists, the CM said as the state is hosting the Miss World pageant starting Saturday. Asking the police to be on high alert, the CM also ordered them to detain Pakistan and Bangladesh nationals residing in Telangana illegally. 'Strict action will be taken against those who disturb peace and security.' Leaves of employees of departments engaged in emergency services have been cancelled. Ministers and officials should be available for any contingency and cancel all foreign trips, if any, Reddy said, according to a statement from the Chief Minister's Office. State intelligence teams were directed to coordinate with the central intelligence agency and a special information centre will be established to closely monitor the security system from the Command Control Centre in the heart of Hyderabad. The officials concerned were asked by the CM to stockpile blood in blood banks and emergency medicines. 'Information about the availability of beds in private hospitals should be updated from time to time. Strengthen coordination with the Red Cross. Food stock should also be made sufficient,' he directed. (Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui) Also Read: Op Sindoor 'ongoing', killed 'at least 100' terrorists—govt at all-party meet chaired by Rajnath Singh
