The Hindu, India
September 21, 2004

RETURN TO ROOTS

WHILE A business commitment brought U.S.-based media consultant
Kesiglo Garbis to Chennai, a desire to establish a connection with
Armenian history took him around the city.

First stop: The Armenian Church on Armenian Street. At first glance,
he was impressed with what he saw. But on further inspection, he
could not but deplore the mess that the church was in. “The courtyard
and the tombstones looked cluttered. There were cats, ducks and dogs
around. The English wife of the late caretaker was in a small room
that was short on comfort. And the 252-year-old church cries for
renovation. It’s high time the Armenian Association in Kolkata
allocated funds for repairs. As the oldest Armenian church in India
and the only Christian church, east of the Suez, with six bells and a
separate belfry, it deserves greater attention,” pleads Garbis.

Fearing that this criticism will overshadow his deep admiration for
India, he quickly adds, “I should say that Indians have been
preserving all the Armenian legacies with a tolerance that could be
an example for some nations.”

Narrowing down his focus to Chennai, he says, “Chennai has an
important place in Armenian culture.” He then goes on to peel layers
of history and decipher them one by one. “According to Portuguese
sources, Armenian merchants were trading in Chennai in the early 16th
Century. Armenian merchants from Julfa/Iran flourished here during
the 17th and 18th Centuries and carried on a lucrative trade with
Europe and the Philippines. An Armenian manuscript tells us that in
1666 Armenians settled permanently’ in Chennai. Actuated by
philanthropy, these opulent merchants helped the downtrodden. They
also contributed to the advancement of Armenian classical literature
in India. The first ever Armenian newspaper’ in the world was
published in Chennai in 1794 by Father Harutiun Shmavonian.

Next stop: St. Thomas Mount. “In 1726, Choja Bedros Woskan (Petrus
Uscan) built with his own money the long-arched Marmalong Bridge
enabling easy access to St.Thomas Mount. He also built the 160 steps
that lead up to the church on the Mount. Unfortunately, today there
is only a stone plaque commemorating his contribution in Persian,
Latin and Armenian. This plaque is dirty and in bad shape. I hope the
city administration will ensure that it is cleaned and hung at a
proper place on the new bridge, so that everybody can see it. Choja
Bedros extended his financial resources for the construction of the
Chapel Nossa Senhora de Milagres in Vepery, in whose yard he was
buried. When the French captured Chennai in 1746 under Count Lally,
40 of his houses were levelled to the ground and his wealth was
confiscated. After his death in 1751, his heart was taken out and
sent to his birthplace, Julfa (Iran). Today the St. Matthias Anglican
Church occupies the site where his chapel once stood. It will be a
nice gesture to give his name to a place or a street in Chennai.”

<image> <credi> </credi> <img src=”../images/2004092100350102.jpg”
align=center width=”350″ border=1> <caption> Kesiglo Garbis
connecting with Armenian history. </caption> </image>

Peering further into the past, he comes up with more capsules of
history. “The oldest Christian grave in Chennai, dated 1663, is that
of an Armenian named Khoja Margar, on St. Thomas Mount. And inside
the church (on the Mount), lies the tombstone of Choja Safar
Zacarias, dated 1725. Many Armenian inscriptions mark the wooden
support of the pulpit and 14 oil paintings in Armenian throw light on
the Apostles.”

Stop Three: St. Mary of Angels, Armenian Street. Garbis says that it
was a pleasure tracing the “footprints” of those “respected Armenian
citizens” of this city. “Today they have no presence in Chennai,
except their tombstones and stone plaques. Famous Roman Catholic
Armenian benefactors such as Samuel Migirditch Moorat, Edward Samuel
Moorat and Anna Raphael were buried inside the Roman Catholic
Cathedral, St. Mary of Angels on the Armenian Street. The Moorat and
Raphael families financed the famous Armenian College,
Moorat-Rapahaelian in Venice, for the benefit of Armenian children in
Europe. Unfortunately, the Mechitarist Fathers closed this college a
couple of years ago. Edward Raphael was one of the founders of the
Carnatic Bank.”

He also wanted to scour the city for Armenian citizens. But a hectic
schedule led him to abandon this plan. He could not even meet the two
Armenians he knew of – the caretaker of the Armenian church and the
other, a rugby trainer. Defining the character of the quintessential
Armenian, Garbis says wherever Armenians go, they fit in well with
the locals. There is a flip side to this – assimilation. “Very much
so in America where many youngsters claim they are Americans but
their parents are Armenians.” Inter-racial marriage is another factor
diluting Armenianness’. “Except in Arabic countries where
inter-racial marriages are rare, many Armenians are marrying into
other communities.

Garbis, however, sees insensitivity to Armenian culture and not
miscegenation, as the biggest threat to Armenian identity. He is
concerned that in many countries the Armenian ethos is fading into
obscurity because the rhythms of modern life have been allowed to
drown what it has to say. “But, India is the silver lining.”