Anglo Indians

3rd August is world Anglo Indians Day ,

Many youngsters though may not have heard about them, or do not know much on them ,as since Independence the community has gradually dwindled as many had migrated to Western countries mostly to UK (Home )Australia ,New Zealand ,Canada ,Singapore ,Malaysia etc .

In 16th century when East India company slowly spread its tentacles in India , its main British retinue were male and the company encouraged many of its staff to marry local ladies ,later the Army increased in size and this practice continued till the time Memsahibs from Britain came down to India to find a suitable match .

Similarly the Portuguese ,Dutch ,French colonies in Cochin ,Pondicherry ,Goa all produced Eurasian communities .

Anglo Indians were seen all over from Kolkata to Madras ,Cochin and wherever the British went .

They were usually given a special place by the British who had a fondness for the community and were usually employed in the customs ,Police ,Railways etc .

When India got freedom many migrated to UK and other countries and this continued over time but the community had also assimilated well with its Indian ethos and had left its shores only for better prospects as they were accepted in most Common wealth countries as immigrants easily .

Post Independence the contribution of the community had been immense ,in all fields from music, Dramatics ,teaching ,Railways customs post and Telegraph departments etc

They were naturals in Nursing ,Education in forming excellent schools and noteworthy teachers Secretarial jobs and clerical jobs .

To me as a child in Madras in the sixty to ninety period Anglos were part of our life those days .

One thing I remember they never had the snobbishness or stiff upper lip of the British ,they were warm large hearted people who loved a good life and was cheerful to the country they were born and assimilated its culture melding it well with theirs .

It was a period when English was the language most spoken in most cities at least in corridors of power and regional languages and Hindi though becoming common then or local languages one never hated English .

The accent of Anglo Indians were loved for their cuteness and mix up with local language spoken in their own style ,

I still remember Thelma miss in my Upper Kindergarten or was it first standard in Bon Secours convent in Santhome where a sprinkling of Anglo Indian families lived , telling our maid bringing tea and snacks for me in evening for I had tuition with her in the evening ( embarrassed of that now ! why did my parents give me tuition at that age ? )

so Thelma miss would tell our maid

"You go tell Haarys amma no more Chaaya in flask or Bajji as he is not doing his home work ,nee poi sollu ! ennaaa "

And I would grind my teeth at the loss of my soul food "

Even at that age I knew Thelma miss was not at all like the mother superior the principal who was a Tamil Christian ,Thelma miss wore nice skirts and talked with that sing song Tamil .

In Madras Perambur was a hot spot for Anglo Indians as many worked in Integral coach factory there and many more in the Railways all over India post independence ,

I had written of a post on desolate villas empty now longing up all along the railway track from Arakkonam to Madras .

The railway club was also a party place and wedding hall where regular dances and functions were held with Anglo Indian families in their best came to enjoy an evening with clinking glasses waltzes and good Anglo Indian food .

there was one hall opposite the Santhome cathedral which had regular dance competitions and we school boys used to watch from outside

Another favorite place was Vepery ,Purasawalkam ,Kilpauk etc .

Many Anglo Indians were excellent engine drivers during the steam engine era again something many youngsters would never know about ,the menacing black machine with an eye in its center and what looked like a grinning sun had hot coal thrown into its hold for burning the water into steam , it was hard work and sweaty coal covered assistants would work with bandanas on their heads and the chief engine driver generally an Anglo Indian would watch them as he hooted the engine and ran it like a feudal lord .

The famous Malayalam film Chatakkari remade as Julie in Hindi was on an Anglo Indian family where the father was a railway engine driver .

I don't know if my first guitar master the famous Dhanraj master who also taught AR Rehman and Ilayara]ja along with an unfitting me was an Anglo Indian but he lived like one as a bachelor sozzled mostly but a genius who I was really not worth enough to have as a teacher

later on I would become Reggie masters disciple when in high school .

He a was more of my kind and would teach one any song for suitable remunerations and no hassles like you need piano lessons first young man before you show off as a guitarist by Dhanraj sir a great soul indeed .

Reggie was a quintessential Anglo and lived in large family with wife, children ,wife parents ,as it was their house ,

his brother in law younger to him was his most favorite enemy and both were always at war

Braganza oh that unreliable fellow Reggie would twist his mush looking like the dancing Rose of Sarpetta ,and Braganza would say look at this fellow he drinks by the gallon ...munjiya paaru ! this in Tamil

I knew a lot of the state secrets of Reggies house as I was always part of the Christmas carols of Reggie to whom it was more of a commercial affair than a spiritual one ,

so we would sail out at around 10pm in a run down tempo van go to Reggies students house and sing a medley of songs the likes of me just strumming any available guitar for the crowd effect ,

Reggie would swig from his flask all along and once when we returned he rolled on the floor with tummy ache and when all were worried and brought the doctor home at midnight Braganza would say let the man burst his tummy you all would go high looking at it ,and Reggie would glare at him .

Reggie once famously sold my guitar to a viscous Tamil politician and I went to the said politicians house more a lions den with dangerous dark mustachioed political Mafiosi's of the dangerous kind glaring at me for daring to ask their emperor to return his guitar on which he said Boy Reggie sold it to me so it belongs to me for which I replied well MLAs shouldn't buy stolen goods and I

would complain ,so he asked his minions to send me packing with my guitar and whispered to them not to push me into nearby cooum i think as I am still alive .

In Cochin we had Rufus sir of Anglo descent who taught young children football as he was a long time player , a bachelor he did this into his late seventies and if my son was number TEN and captain of IIT BHU Rufus sir is the sole responsibility .

Fort Cochin had streets like Elizabeth street ,Rose street ,with its Anglo community but they were a breed apart from the madras ones

In a Malayalam movie with Mohanlal as a Fort cochin Anglo called Freddie with blue eyes and a drunk dad who was his close chum too

The recent Tamil film of the seventies Sarpetta parmabarai has a lovable character called Daddy an Anglo Indian who has done a great job in the film

Even the menu was nostalgic of British and Indian melding like the Ball curry ,chutneys ,coconut rice ,mulligatawny soup and the famous Anglo Indian Biriyani .

we used to get the famous Railway chicken curry in central station non vegetarian refreshment stall right up to the early eighties .

The community still have significant numbers many in good positions Business men etc though they lost their reserved seats in 2018 .

so lets celebrate this vibrant community being a part of us forever

One cant but love this boisterous well meaning good natured community who melded English and Indian so gently and are loved by all Indians for this uniqueness as well as their Indian ness