Mohammad Rahimtoola

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Mohamed Rahimtoola had learned Gujarati, had a fine handwriting and knew accounts. He knew very little English. He worked with his father, Rahimtoola Kadebhai in the yarn business. His younger brother, Ibrahim also joined in the business. The family business which, later on, was mainly the Bone Mill, was built up and the family fortune grew from Rs. 1,00,000/-at the time of Rahimtoola’s death in 1880 to Rs. 9,00,000/-at the time of Mohamed’s death was 1901.

Mohamed had no children and brought up Hooseinally, the second son of his younger brother Jaffer, as a son. Hooseinally, may be for sentimental reasons, was therefore known as Hooseinally M. Rahimtoola.

Mohamed was a man with very simply habits. He was a loving and charitable person. The family came to know of his silent charity only of after Mohamed died when a number of people mentioned that he used to personally all on them regularly and give them a monthly allowance to most their basic needs. The family gave a donation in Mohamad’s memory and in memory of Jaffar the youngest son of Rahimtoola who died in 1914, to the Bombay Municipality to start a Municipal Dispensary and School in Dargah Mohalla/The Dispensary and School opposite this Ismaili Burial Ground are functioning even today.

Mohamed died on Friday, the 25th October 1901 in the night and the funeral took place on Saturday the 25th. Hazrat Imam Sir Sultan Mohamed Shah Aga Khan III, the 48th Imam, had come to the Jamatkhana on the 26th and on hearing of Mohamed death, asked the Jamat to attend the funeral. He also instructed that a brocade shawl be placed on his behalf on the coffin (Janaza).

The family, in the 1890s, was residing at Bandra, a suburb of Bombay, continuing, all the same, to maintain the residential quarters in the Tandel Street property. The family continued to maintain these 2 residential units till a few years after the turn of the century when their bungalow was constructed at Peddar Road, a good and prestigious locality in the Western Bombay. The Bandra residence was given up, and the residential quarters in the Tandel Street property were permitted to be used as such by some relations and this practice continued till the property was sold in 1955.

Mr. Hooseinally M. Rahimtoola had round about 1940, prepared some Family Notes. He had also kept, prior to his departure for Africa, some rough notes with his younger brother Suleman and, later on, some more notes with his son Jaffar.

This paper is an attempt to put together the available data for future generations of the family. It is hoped that the younger members of the family will periodically up-date this paper.''

Sultanali Rahimtoola, Bombay 1988