After a lull of two years necessitated by the pandemic, The Bombay Parsee Association (BPA) resumed its decades-long practice of paying homage to Sir Hormusji Cowasjee Dinshaw (Adenwalla) on his birth anniversary (165th) on April 4, 2022. BPA president Xerxes Dastur garlanded the statue of the pioneering businessman at Flora Fountain on behalf of the Association. Others who garlanded the statue were great grandson Saroosh Dinshaw, great-great-grandson Hirji Adi Jehangir, Cmde Aspi Marker (retd), behdin pasban Marazban Wadia and president of the Federation of Zoroastrian Associations for Welfare and Culture (FOZAWAC) Adi Mehta.
Top: garlanded statue of Sir Hormusji Cowasjee Dinshaw;
above: well-wishers and Adenwalla family members, Vispi Dastur in wheelchair (l),
Xerxes Dastur in yellow tie Photo: Bomsi Tavaria
BPA president emeritus Vispi Dastur mentioned the highlights of Adenwalla’s life and achievements. A founder patron of BPA and founder president of the Iran League, family members recalled Adenwalla’s philanthropic nature. Floral tributes were paid on behalf of the BPA, Iran League, Cowasjee Dinshaw Trust, Navsari Parsee Association and Bombay Municipal Corporation. Around 25 persons were present, noted Xerxes.
According to a newspaper report on the statue’s inauguration on November 30, 1949 by Bombay governor Raja Sir Maharaj Singh, Singh spoke of "the philanthropic spirit and the large hearted catholicity” of Adenwalla who he said had "founded several charitable institutions in Aden and donated freely towards deserving causes in Bombay” irrespective of caste and creed.
S. K. Patil, the then mayor of Bombay while requesting Singh to unveil the statue by noted sculptress Sheroo Dinsha Daruwalla, "revealed that Sir Hormusji was a consistent supporter of the Congress, though in his own way.”
Welcoming the guests at the statue unveiling, Sir Rustom Masani said that the late "Sir Hormusji was an outstanding figure in Aden for many years. He was a patron of learning and a quiet supporter of the national struggle, and was enamored of the Gandhian philosophy of life.
"A vote of thanks by Joachim Alva, sheriff of Bombay, terminated the function.”