The dream daremeher

Pray together, stay together and always go forward,” urged Dastur Khurshed Dastoor of Udvada when addressing the gathering of nearly 250 Zoroastrian residents of New Bombay and other parts of the city who had come to witness the inauguration of the Shirinbai and Khurshedji Hormusji Doongaji Daremeher on May 14, 2018. Twenty-five years after The New Bombay Zoroastrian Association Charitable Trust (TNBZACT) was registered, its members got to pray before their own duly consecrated fire temple, "to attune themselves with Ahura Mazda.”

Sharukh Doctor at the entrance of the Doongaji Daremeher

Lauding the Association for creating "a legacy that will be left for the community,” Dastoor who led the inaugural jashan on the Monday morning, mah Dae, roz Hormazd according to the Shahenshahi calendar declared, "I am really proud to be attached with this project… May Ahura Mazda guide us, the Padshah saheb bless us. Let us enlighten our mind. May good wisdom prevail on those who thought otherwise.”
On behalf of the Association, president Sharukh Doctor publicly commended Dastoor for "guiding and supporting us at each and every step.” As he further noted, "We the residents of New Bombay had a dream of having a dadgah saheb or an agiary…which by the grace of Pak Dadar Ahura Mazda and Pak Iranshah of Udvada has materialized.” Whilst the Daremeher edifice had been ready since mid 2016 (see "In memory of Mehroo,” Parsiana, May 7, 2016), two years after the foundation stone laying was done in June 2014 (see "Faithfully laying the foundation,” Parsiana, July 7, 2014) the fire temple could not be inaugurated. Plans to bring the sacred fire from the Pestonji Aslaji Doongaji Agiary in Bharuch were waylaid by two residents from Ankleshwar who obtained a stay from the district court in Valsad on the shift. The Doongaji Agiary trustees have gone into appeal in the High Court of Gujarat where the matter is pending.
Rather than wait indefinitely, it was decided by TNBZACT trustees — Doctor, Dr Dorab Daruwalla, Noshir Parlewalla, Nozer Mirza, Pervin Umrigar and Farokh Bachana — to start the Doongaji Daremeher in New Bombay with the consecration of a dadgah fire. With the blessings of Dasturs (Drs) Kaikhusroo JamaspAsa and Firoze Kotwal, and the active involvement of Khurshed Dastoor, for five days, Ervads Adil Bhesania of the Anjuman Atash Behram and Kaizad Kotwal of the H. B. Wadia Atash Behram performed the ceremonies to ready the dadgah for consecration. The first boi in the Havan gah on May 14 was performed by Ervad Farhad Kudiyanewala, the newly appointed resident priest at the Doongaji Daremeher who has been provided mobed quarters. The Trust has also employed Urvaksh Mehta to assist in the upkeep of the Daremeher.
For Parsi Irani Zoroastrians who came from different parts of Bombay to experience the inauguration of a new fire temple after nearly two decades, the excitement was palpable. Those who had come ahead of time were happy to occupy vacant seats inside the daremeher. Neither the warmth of the fires in the kebla and the inaugural jashan, compounded by the innumerable oil lamps, nor the smoke smarting their eyes could deter them from witnessing the jashan led by Dastoor. Other priests who joined in the prayers were Ervads Bhesania, Kotwal, Minoo Umrigar, Farhad, father Homi and son Navroze Kudiyanewala.
All those who endured the stifling May heat, and particularly those who had to stand through the jashan prayers or to sit on the verandah of the Daremeher, gladly partook of a welcome drink and the chasni in the airconditioned confines of the Dr Mehroo Dara Hansotia Memorial Hall in the neighboring building where the function continued. The contributions of those whose faith, fervor and financial support had resulted in the dream Daremeher were acknowledged with a shawl and a memento in the form of a laminated photograph of the Daremeher printed on rock. Caterer Neville Dordi of Anmol Caterers had organized a hearty lunch for the assembly.

Well on the precincts

Framed photo of Khurshedji and Shirinbai Doongaji at the Daremeher

Faith and funding
The seeds for the Daremeher project were sown by TNBZACT founder member Aspi Dadachanji. Farhad Elavia was instrumental in arranging the meeting with the chief minister that led to the plot at Koparkhairane being sanctioned at a reduced price. Hoshang Ambapardiwala helped clear all formalities with CIDCO (City Industrial and Development Corporation of Maharashtra) and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, acknowledged Doctor.
Funding for the fire temple received a fillip with an initial contribution of Rs 10 lakhs by Rustom Vakil of F. H. B. Sethna Legacy Trust. It was then taken forward by the executors of the estate of Shirinbai Khurshedji Doongaji who donated Rs 1.3 crores to have a Daremeher established in the memory of Shirinbai and her husband Khurshedji. Doctor appreciated the Doongaji family’s "immense trust in us and their benevolent financial support.”
Of the two executors present at the inaugural function, Khurshed Doongaji briefly expressed his delight at the enthronement of the sacred fire whilst Aspi Darukhanawala thanked TNBZACT trustees for "allowing us to commemorate the memory of Shirinbai and Khurshedji who were philanthropists who lived well and helped others to live well too.” From her estate, a wing at the Masina Hospital, funded at a cost of Rs 50 lakhs, was to be opened on June 1; the serology department at the Nair Hospital was given Rs 15 lakhs. There are also plans to upgrade the physiotherapy department at The B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital, and support the Shanti Avedna Ashram and the Tata Memorial Hospital. In addition to these permanent legacies, made possible with donations totaling nearly four crores, they have also sanctioned lakhs of rupees to meet the emergency medical and educational needs of deserving applicants.
Dara Hansotia "has been a pillar of strength for us,” remarked Doctor valuing his munificent donation to build the airconditioned Hall in his wife Dr Mehroo’s memory in the annexe building. The income earned from hiring out the Hall is expected to finance the maintenance of the Daremeher. Hansotia also contributed the afarganiu and other implements required in the kebla. Youhan Dadabhoy donated the carpet, book case and prayer books in memory of his mother Dolat.
The old age home envisioned on the third and fourth floor of the annexe building will be built and managed by Capt Percy Master and his family, announced Doctor.
Young architect Jamshid Bhiwandiwalla who designed the Daremeher "handled the project as if it is his own baby, many a times even overruling us,” stated Doctor. Contractor Mahindrabhai Pokar was thanked for building the edifice. Senior engineer Firoze Ghadiali’s commitment was remarkable too, acknowledged Bhiwandiwalla.
In his vote of thanks, Association secretary and trustee Mirza thanked "Doctor, the president of our Trust, without whose initiative and all the hard work this project would not have seen the light of day.”
Dastoor reminisced of his first encounter with Doctor who approached him in Udvada seeking guidance to build a new agiary in New Bombay. Assuming it was wishful thinking, Dastoor told him to first arrange for the land. When informed that the land had been obtained, Dastoor suggested that a sacred fire from one of the agiaries that have fallen into disuse could be shifted to New Bombay. Knowing that Bharuch is left with four fire temples serving a Zoroastrian population of 120, of whom 80 are over 70 years of age, Dastoor felt that the fire from the Doongaji Agiary which reportedly does not have a single footfall in the entire year could be brought to New Bombay. The trustees of the Agiary and the members of the Anjuman passed resolutions supporting this move but two Ankleshwar residents put a spoke in the wheel. With the matter now pending in the High Court of Gujarat in Ahmedabad, Doongaji Agiary trustee Cyrus Doongaji is required to make umpteen trips for court hearings. "Maintaining a fire is not enough, it needs worshippers,” believes Darukhanawala.
"I don’t know whether we want to survive as a community,” lamented Dastoor. The implicit reference was to the umpteen messages on social media castigating TNBZACT trustees for not specifying in their original trust deed that the beneficiaries would be "Parsi Irani Zoroastrians.” Fearing that the Doongaji Daremeher would be open to all Zoroastrians, the critics persistently attacked the trustees. Even a letter purportedly signed by Yazdi Desai, in his capacity as chairman of the World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis and the Bombay Parsi Punchayet was in circulation wherein he wrote to the trustees: "Your trust deed states only Zoroastrians and not Parsi Irani Zoroastrians as beneficiaries… In simple words it means that entry to your dadgah is NOT restricted to Parsi Irani Zoroastrians as per your trust deed… Any undertaking by your current board of trustees can neither change what’s in your trust deed nor bind your successors. Therefore, as a matter of fact what you will be having in New Bombay will not be a Parsi Irani Zoroastrian dadgah but a cosmopolitan dadgah… In 2016 … you all stated that you would change the trust deed but you have not done so… Please don’t fool the community.”
In a clarification repeatedly issued prior to and subsequent to the inauguration, the Association trustees asserted, "Some miscreants are trying to obstruct… by spreading totally baseless and false rumors on social media about our dadgah saheb. We the trustees are unanimous in forcefully rebutting the above rumors. The dadgah saheb was consecrated according to the tenets of the Zoroastrian religion performing the necessary prayers of yazashne, vendidad, etc under the guidance and with the permission and blessings of the Vada Dasturjis (JamaspAsa, Kotwal and Dastoor)…. We are not reformist as alleged… We now wish to put this subject to rest forever and move on confirming to all that the dadgah which has started is only for Parsi Irani Zarathushtis.”