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So often we would cycle past it to Jeevan Bakery where, in the evening, the aroma wafting would reel us in and have us hooked on the still oven warm bread and buns. I would look at the church but with no desire to explore it. Full marks for curiosity, zero for bravery! Another church in Mhow which I discovered recently when I was dragged to light a candle in its grotto is St Antony’s church, in the Infantry School area, built by an Italian priest- Pius Benevento, a prolific church builder. The location maybe decided by the fact that the saint is a patron of horses and this area was called Ghod Khata or the horse stables. I found the Baobab next to it fascinating- much like a hydra trunked elephant with its massive girth. A sea of humanity during St Antony’s feast day, the church is popular with the Tamilians here.
Mhow, all of 5 km probably from end to end, has been such a cosmopolitan melting pot with people from all faiths and walks of life. There are numerous churches here, of all denominations, dotting the undulating vistas, catering to the spiritual needs of the Christians and the remnants of the Anglo-Indian community. The Parsis have their Agairy or Fire Temple tucked in one of the back lanes and their Tower of Silence still stands strong and proud on a ridge outside town. Bohra muslim women can be seen walking to the market mosque in their gay burkhas. The deities in the assorted temples, standing cheek by jowl with shops on the main market street, look benignly at people bustling about waiting for some to take a break from more materialist pursuits to pay obeisance. Our hometowns have their own distinctive zeitgeist. When was the last time you set out to rediscover your town’s?
Acknowledgement- A big shout out to Denzil Lobo, our resident Mhow aficionado, whose enthusiasm about anything to do with Mhow is truly infectious.
Concluded....