The Calcutta Story
Shalon Cohen, an ambitious young merchant, was one of the
first settlers to arrive in Calcutta (now Kolkata), from his native
Aleppo, in 1798. Calcutta was a flourishing centre of trade and commerce
at the time. Early Jewish settlers in Calcutta were traders who
established trading links from London to Shanghai - dealing in indigo,
cotton, yarn, silk, Veniceware, precious stones, gold leaf, ivory and
coffee. Calcutta Jewish community was set up by Shalon Cohen and
consolidated by his nephew/son-in-law Moses Duck Cohen, who is remembered
for his dedicated service to the community. "He played a leading role in
framing the first constitution of the community (29 August 1825) and in
establishing the first formal synagogue, Neveh Shalome (Abode of Peace) in
1826, as well as first purpose built synagogue, Bethel in Pollock Street,
where it still stands." Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the
wealthier members of the community began to adopt western dress and
etiquette. The first generations of Calcutta Jews spoke Judeo-Arabic at
home, but by the 1890s English was widely spoken. They also moved to
select residential area South of Park Street and took a prominent part in
Calcutta’s public life.
The community increased from 15 in 1799 to 200 in 1825,
and in 1860 they numbered 600 and rose to 2000 by the end of the century.
"Japanese invasion of Burma (Myanmar) led to an influx of Jews fleeing
from that country raising the Jewish population of Calcutta to an all-time
high of about 5000 in early 1940."
David Joseph Ezra is associated with some of the
city’s most imposing buildings – Esplanade mansions, Ezra mansions and
Chowringhee mansions as well as Ezra street. David Joseph Ezra made his
fortune from prime real estate.
Elia David Ezra, son of David Joseph Ezra built the
city’s most magnificent synagogue - the Magen David Synagogue.
D.J Cohen and Reverend E.M.D Cohen played a
more direct part in civic work and social uplift. Under Reverend E.M.D
Cohen’s proprietorship the Hebrew newspaper Pariah had a circulation of
500 copies a week in 1880s.
Calcutta Jews left for Israel, England and the US, and
today only a few remain in this bustling city.
Of
the five synagogues, only two remain open for a population of about 60
Jews: Neveh Shalome Synagogue established in 1825, the first Synagogue in
Calcutta and rebuilt in 1911, and the Magen David Synagogue, built by Mr.
Elias David Joseph Ezra to perpetuate the memory of his father, Mr. David
Joseph Ezra who died in 1882. This is the largest Synagogue in the East
and is magnificent in architecture and design. There are still about 60
Jews in Calcutta and all are over 65 years of age. Each week on Erev
Shabbat, prayer services are held, alternating between the Synagogues.
"The keeper of both these synagogues, the individual who
is also the keeper of the sanctum sanctorum, where the Torahs are kept, is
a Muslim. Only in India will you witness such a level of spiritual
neighborliness between two religions which seem to optimize violence to
us, living in the West."
"The
synagogues built by the Baghdadis still survive. David Sassoon built the Magen
David Synagogue in 1861 in Byculla, where the family first lived. This was then
the best location in Bombay before other areas were developed. The large
synagogue was set in extensive grounds, which were to prove very valuable. Built
in the spacious style of Victorian architecture, it was fronted by pillars and a
clock tower. David Sassoon also built an elementary school on one side in the
same large compound to provide an education for the community's children in
Torah and proper behaviour. This was later expanded into a high school by his
grandson Jacob Sassoon, and renamed "The Sir Jacob Sassoon Free High School".
The synagogue and school grounds became in effect a community centre for the
Jewish community of Byculla, where young and old would meet together in the
evenings." - Rachel Manasseh
