Ahmedabad, GUJARAT :

Ahmedabad :

The World Heritage City of Ahmedabad saw many revered men who silently documented the various tales the city’s monuments, structures and literature had to tell. 

One such relentless pursuit was that of publisher, author and a keen student of the medieval history of Gujarat, Shahed Kalimi, who not just ran the nearly-century old Kalim Book Depot but also spent 20 years of voluntary service to set up the library at Sarkhej Roza.

A little over a month after he passed, Kalimi’s contributions to Ahmedabad’s heritage were remembered by academicians, renowned historians and heritage enthusiasts at a remembrance meeting organised in the city on Sunday.

Kalimi was the sole force behind revamping the library at one of the ASI-protected monuments of the Heritage City of Ahmedabad, Sarkhej Roza.

AS Saiyed, President of the Sarkhej Roza Committee, narrated Kalimi’s two decades of voluntary contribution at the Sarkhej Roza and lauded him for his dedication and perseverance. “Kalimi was instrumental in reviving the library at the Sarkhej Roza and setting up a publishing department at the Roza through which many books were translated and published under the aegis of the Sarkhej Roza Committee,” Saiyed said.

During his lifetime, Kalimi had translated nearly 50 books from Urdu, Persian and Arabic, into Gujarati, in a bid to bring forth the little pieces of history about Gujarat to the people here.

In fact, two of his last books – A Bird’s Eye View of Sarkhej Roza and Yaad-e-Ayyam, were released during the remembrance meet.

“Kalimi’s sole aim was to bring forth anecdotes of Gujarat’s history to the state. Being an ardent reader of history himself, he translated many books written about Gujarat and its history, Persian and Arabic to Gujarati. He has translated close to 50 works by now about various aspects of Ahmedabad and Gujarat which the state would have otherwise lost,” said Professor MH Bombaywala, curator and founder, Peer Mohammad Shah Library, one of the oldest in Ahmedabad who was present at the meeting.

Being an ardent enthusiast of medieval history of Gujarat, Kalimi turned his place of work – the Kalim Book Depot – around by diligently sourcing, procuring, even translating if needed to make history books available to people here.

Students of History and even architecture and design often frequented his book store, which was once upon a time, a fulcrum for intellectuals to gather and discuss new, radical ideas through expressions of poetry and Shayari.

The Kalim Book Depot will be a century old in 2026 and till date is known for rare books. “We have retailed the Urdu versions of Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita to people. Father used to procure a series of Urdu books from warehouses of libraries, book exhibitions, flea markets including the Gujari Bazar and wherever he travelled and patiently sorted them, to find the right kind of books for history students and later translate them,” said Mushir Kalimi, Shahed’s son.

“Father’s interest was not in the business but instead in letting the younger generation read and delve into the history about Gujarat to the people of Gujarat by translating works of authors from Persian, Arabic and Urdu languages. Therefore, if he realised someone’s interest in books, he would gift them a second book for free besides the ones they’ve bought,” said Mushir.

Kalimi was working on one of his last books just before he passed — Makbaras and Masjids of Ahmedabad. Mushir along with members of the Sarkhej Roza Committee are working towards publishing the book which will soon be out.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Ahmedabad News / by Niyati Parikh / TNN / March 28th, 2022