As a Hodiwala, albeit with a "w” and not a "v,” I read with much interest "Unsung scholar” (Parsiana, December 21, 2020-January 6, 2021), the profile on the author Shapurshah Hormusji Hodivala (1867-1944) by Murali Ranganathan. Ranganathan’s extensive 
and enduring portrait was so much more than I could have bargained for, knowing how little we know of our legends of yesteryears. What a pleasant surprise it was therefore to read of Hodivala’s undeniable scholarship, exactitude, temperament and learning, not to forget his remarkable output! I honestly had no idea such a persona even existed, leave alone the fact that his classics are still readily available on Amazon (at a very steep price though). And yet the fact that he was virtually passed over for any sort of gratitude or the barest remembrance from the community that should have actually taken pride in his achievements is a matter of some regret.
In fact it was a surprising coincidence on my part to have come across his profile just a week after I sat and Googled on a whim to see if there were any famous Hodiwala authors from the past, and came across not one, but two.
If your readers must know, the other famous Hodivala was Shapurji Kavasji Hodivala (ironically a Shapur again!), who too has produced a few tomes (at least one of which, Parsis of Ancient India, is still readily available), was also well regarded, and was Shapurshah’s contemporary, junior to him by just three years (1870-1931). His other classics include Zarathustra and his contemporaries in the Rigveda and Cuneiform Inscriptions transcribed into Sanskrit and Avesta.
I wonder if the paths of these legendary scholars ever crossed, what they did make of each other’s contributions and reputations, and why both names were visited upon by the curse of anonymity in later years. There is precious little to be found on the internet on the man himself, and it would be gratifying if Ranganathan were to do justice to him too in an equally elaborate profile for the readers of Parsiana. I, for one, would truly feel indebted for the effort.
VISTASP SAM HODIWALA
vistasphodiwala@gmail.com