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"Henna" Ceremony in Bombay, India, 1980
"Henna" Ceremony in Bombay, India, 1980

The Jewish Community of Mumbai

Mumbai

मुंबई  Also known as Bombay, the official name until 1995

The capital of the state of Maharashtra, India. The largest city in India and the proverbial "gateway to India."

Mumbai enters Jewish history after the cession of the city to the Portuguese in the middle of the 16th century. Then a small fishing island of no great economic significance, Mumbai was leased out around 1554--55, to the celebrated Marrano scientist and physician Garcia da Orta, in recognition of his services to the viceroy. Garcia repeatedly refers in his Coloquios (Goa, 1563) to "the land and island which the king our lord made me a grant of, paying a quit-rent." After the transference of Mumbai to English rule the Jew Abraham Navarro expected to receive a high office in the Mumbai council of the east India Company in recognition of his services. This was, however, denied to him because he was a Jew. In 1697 Benjamin Franks jumped Captain Kidd's "adventure galley" in Mumbai as a protest against Kidd's acts of piracy; his deposition led to Kidd's trial in London.

The foundation of a permanent Jewish settlement in Mumbai was laid in the second half of the 18th century by the Bene Israel who gradually moved from their villages in the Konkan region to Mumbai. Their first synagogue in Mumbai was built (1796) on the initiative of S.E. Divekar. Cochin Jews strengthened the Bene Israel in their religious revival. The next largest wave of immigrants to Mumbai consisted of Jewish merchants from Syria and Mesopotamia.

Prominent was Suleiman Ibn Yaqub or Solomon Jacob whose commercial activities from 1795 to 1833 are documented in the Mumbai records. The Arabic-speaking Jewish colony in Mumbai was increased by the influx of other "Arabian Jews" from Surat, who, in consequence of economic changes there, turned their eyes to India.

A turning point in the history of the Jewish settlement in Mumbai was reached with the arrival in 1833 of the Baghdad Jewish merchant, industrialist, and philanthropist, David Sassoon (1792--1864) who soon became a leading figure of the Jewish community. He and his house had a profound impact on Mumbai as a whole as well as on all sectors of the Jewish community. Many of the educational, cultural, and civic institutions, as well as hospitals and synagogues in Mumbai owe their existence to the munificence of the Sassoon family.

Unlike the Bene Israel, the Arabic-speaking Jews in Mumbai did not assimilate the language of their neighbors, Marathi, but carried their Judeo-Arabic language and literature with them and continued to regard Baghdad as their spiritual center. They therefore established their own synagogues, the Magen David in 1861 in Byculla, and the Kneseth Elijah in 1888 in the fort quarter of Mumbai. A weekly Judeo-Arabic periodical, Doresh Tov le-Ammo appeared from 1855 to 1866 which mirrored their communal life.

Hebrew printing began in Mumbai with the arrival of Yemenite Jews in the middle of the 19th century. They took an interest in the religious welfare of the Bene Israel, for whom - as well as for themselves - they printed various liturgies from 1841 onward, some with translations into Marathi, the vernacular of the Bene Israel. Apart from a short-lived attempt to print with movable type, all this printing was by lithography. In 1882, the press of the Mumbai educational society was established (followed in 1884 by the Anglo-Jewish and vernacular press, in 1887 by the Hebrew and English press, and in 1900 by the Lebanon printing press), which sponsored the publication of over 100 Judeo-Arabic books to meet their liturgical and literary needs, and also printed books for the Bene Israel. The prosperity of Mumbai attracted a new wave of Jewish immigrants from Cochin, Yemen, Afghanistan, Bukhara, and Persia. Among Persian Jews who settled in Mumbai, the most prominent and remarkable figure was Mulla Ibrahim Nathan (d. 1868) who, with his brother Musa, both of Meshed, were rewarded by the government for their services during the First Afghan War. The political events in Europe and the advent of Nazism brought a number of German, Polish, Rumanian, and other European Jews to Mumbai, many of whom were active as scientists, physicians, industrialists, and merchants. Communal life in Mumbai was stimulated by visits of Zionist emissaries.

The Jewish population of Mumbai was estimated to be 11,000 in 1968, but a strong emigration movement to Israel was gaining momentum. Mumbai remained as the last major center of organized Jewish life in India. The Baghdad community, which was the leading element in organized communal life, had decreased to some 500 people, the Bene Israel becoming numerically predominant. Over 80% of the Jews were concentrated in two of the poorer districts of Mumbai, 1,500 lived in middle-class suburbs of the town, and another 500 in the best residential areas, Malabar Hill and Kolaba. The small number of European Jews in Mumbai lived exclusively in these districts.

The community, with government aid, supported two Jewish schools, and was served by six Bene Israel and two Baghdadi synagogues. Membership in a particular synagogue seemed to be a function of social, economic, and educational status as well as of religious difference. The umbrella organization, the Central Jewish Board of Mumbai, with which all synagogues, organizations, and institutions were affiliated, served as a spokesman for Indian Jewry as a whole. Similarly, the Mumbai Zionist Association was the representative Zionist body in the country. Zionist activities constituted an important part of communal life, and the Jewish Agency provided direct aid in the form of Hebrew teachers and emissaries. All three of the Jewish periodicals in India were published in Mumbai. Communal activities were further supplemented by a number of youth, welfare, and charitable organizations. The Israel consulate is situated in Mumbai. In 1997 there were 6,000 Jews living in India; most of them in and around Mumbai.

Lloyd Moses Sassoon (Kandlekar) (Flt. Lt) (1942-1971), pilot with then rank of Flt. Lt. in the Indian Air Force, born to Mozelle and Moses Sassoon Kandlekar on July 15, 1942 in Bombay (now Mumbay), India. His father was a Chief Engineer of the Bombay Region in the Bombay Port Trust Authority. Being from a well established family, Sassoon attended St. Mary’s High School in Mazagon, Bombay, a prestigious Catholic Missionary School. Upon matriculation he studied up to the Inter-Science Level at K.C. College Churchgate in Bombay.

He then applied for and was selected as a cadet at the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakvasla, Deolali, Maharashtra, India in 1962. Upon completion of his officer’s Course at the NDA in 1965, he proceeded for his pilot’s training at the Indian Air Force flight training center in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Sassoon rapidly rose from Pilot Officer to Flt Lt. and was trained to be a Fighter/Bomber pilot. His last posting was to the 5th Squadron-Canberra Bombers. This was a very reputed and prestigious squadron and one of the coveted units of the Indian Air Force. Between the years 1967 to 1969 he saw service in Madras (Now Chennai) and Agra. In 1969 his squadron was posted to Ambala.

On 27 Nov 1966 Lloyd Sassoon married Sybia, daughter of Elizabeth and Robert Jacob Kasukar. Two sons were born to them, Dov (b. Nov 17, 1968) and David (b. Dec. 19, 1970).

In The India Pakistan war; which ultimately resulted in the establishment of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan), Sassoon fought on the western front against West Pakistan. On one of the sorties on Dec. 4, 1971, his Canberra bomber was shot down near Lahore, Pakistan. It should be noted that the Canberra bomber had a crew of two persons, a pilot and a navigator. The pilot had a parachute and the navigator did not have a parachute. When the plane was shot down the foregone conclusion was that the navigator was killed. During the war the Pakistani Government did parade some captured Indian pilots on television and many in India remember seeing Flt Lt. Lloyd Sassoon. But at the end of the war the Indian government declared Sassoon as missing in action and the Pakistani government claimed that Lloyd was killed when his plane crashed. Discrete inquiries through friends in senior positions in the Pakistani Air Force claim that he was brutally murdered by the local inhabitants (not officially confirmed or verified) when his plane was shot down near Lahore.

In 1974 his widow and her sons immigrated to Israel. Lloyd has a brother Norman, a captain in the merchant navy residing in Bombay, India

Years later the Indian casualties of the India-Pakistan wars from 1947 to 1999 were honored by the Indian Air Force and the Government of India and their names were inscribed on a monument in New Delhi on Nov. 27, 1999. The government of India invited the families of the fallen soldiers to this ceremony and presented them with mementoes.

Jacob Immanuel Ashton (1939- ), entrepreneur, leader of Freemason movement, born in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. After completing his schooling in Bombay he together with his family immigrated to Israel in 1958. Ashton joined the IDF in 1961 and rose to rank of rav seren (major) in the air force specializing in advanced rocket air defence systems.

After retiring in 1980 he was appointed commander of an air force base in northern Israel. In 1981 he began to study business administration at the Haifa Technion after which he opened a business to export advanced products to India. Together with several associates he persuaded the Israel Lands Development Authority to establish a new settlement Adi near Shfaram in the Galilee. For many years very active in the Freemason movement, Ashton rose to the position of Grand Chaplain of the Israel Lodge.

Haeems Ralph Samuel Bamnolkar (1940-2005), jurist, born in Mumbay (Bombay), India, into a prosperous Bene Israel family. He graduated in engineering from the University of Bombay and then went to London, England, with the intention of obtaining a master's degree in chemistry. In order to support himself during his studies in London, however, he found work at a solicitors' office where he discovered an aptitude for law. He was given the assignment of supervising the defense of a man charged with murder. After his client’s acquittal, Haeems formally became an articled clerk at well known solicitors' office.

During his apprenticeship he represented several well known persons accused of criminal activities among them members of the Nash, Fraser and Mc Vicar gang, Charlie Wilson, the great train robber, and Charlie Mitchell, the alleged racing dog doper. Ralph played a major roll in the preparation of the defense of Ronnie and Reggie Kray in the first big blackmail trial when they were acquitted. He also acted for the Krays in the George Cornell, Jack “the H at” McVitie and Frank Mitchell “the Mad Axeman” murder trials of 1968 and 1969, and was involved in the trial of George Ince, who was acquitted of the Essex Barn murder.

In 1972 he qualified as a solicitor in his own right and opened his own office in London. He quickly acquired a reputation as a first class defense lawyer and he appeared in court in many criminal cases which hit the headlines in Britain. He defended the serial killer Denis Nilsen, Russell Bishop who was charged and acquitted of the Brighton Babes in the Wood murders, several defendants accused of involvement with the Brinks Matt bullion robbery, a number of police officers and such famous underworld characters as Joey Pyle and Dave Courtney. Another of his clients was the transvestite David Martin, who escaped from court and in mistake for whom the police shot Stephen Waldorf in traffic in Earls Court Road.

His son is a barrister and two daughters are both solicitors in the UK.

Samuel Marshall (b. 1935), businessman, born and educated in Mumbai (Bombay), India, into a family of four children. His main interests during his formative years included sports, history, archaeology and political science. Marshall’s entrepreneurial skills emerged at a very young age as he was already organizing Badminton tournaments in Mumbai, in which multinational corporations including Hindustan Levers, ESSO, Caltex and the Tata Group of Companies participated. He was very adept at applying his leadership talents and facets to the commodity business. He is considered the doyen of the commodity trading business in India, and his success has been illustrated by the fact that more than 500 of his former trainees successfully run their own companies around the world in countries such as Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Japan, Philippines, Brazil, Argentina, United States and in Europe.

Marshall received awards from the Grain and Pulses International Association, recognizing the services rendered by him to the industry. “He has been declared as the Father of the Indian Oil, Fats and Pulse trade and at one time his Company were the No.1 worldwide Brokers in Edible Oils”. He setup a brokerage company in Mumbai called Marshall Produce, and then he immigrated to London in 1965, where he setup Marpro Limited with which proceeded to open offices in over 25 countries and became the market leaders and No.1 in the world for Edible Oils. They were pioneer brokers in exports of Canadian, Australian, Turkish and Myanmar pulses to India establishing a substantial market share.

Marshall, had three children: Joseph, Maria and Veronica. Joseph (Yosi) is a leading musician. Maria is a renowned film maker, achieving fame at the Sundance Film Festival where she exhibited 14 of her boutique films and Robert Redford took her under his wings. His third daughter Veronica is an English Teacher.

Nissim Moses (1942-), son of Menachem son of Daniel Moses Talkar and Sophie daughter of Captain Solomon Samson Penkar, born in Bombay (Mumbay), India. He attended the Christ Church High School Byculla Bombay, and then studied for two years at the K.C. College completing his Inter Science Exams and then his Junior B. Sc. at the Institute (earlier Royal) of Science within the framework of Bombay University.


Nissim Moses graduated as an engineer in electronics and communication engineering from Birla Institute of Technology in Ranchi, India. He immigrated to Israel in 1966. He established and was Head of the Acoustic Department of Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd. (IAI). While in this position he was appointed as an Advisor to the Environmental Protection Service later to become the Israel Ministry of the Environment. He established their Acoustic Unit and in parallel taught acoustics on a voluntary basis at the Masters Level at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and was a guide for candidates at the Master's and Doctoral level.

In 1982 Moses was elected by a landslide victory to the IAI Eng. Trade Union and went on to become a member of the Central Secretariat of both the Histadrut of Engineers and The Lishkat Ha-Mehandesim in Israel.

In 1993 he was appointed Director and given the task of establishing the Liaison Office of Israel Aircraft Industries in New Delhi, India. During his tenure of four years the sales of IAI to India went from zero to US$ 450 million. He won 19 contracts without loosing one; in addition contracts worth US$ 200 million were won during his tenure, but signed at a later date.

Moses has published several papers in acoustics and has been an advisor to the Supreme Court of Israel. In 1993, ninety percent of the professionals working in acoustics in Israel were his students.

In 1999 Moses initiated the project of creating a Communal Family Tree of the Bene Israel of India. Ten years later the data bank has more than 12,900 names and 10,000 photographs and several hundred biographies emphasizing the contribution of the Bene Israel community to the development of modern India. Several branches of the Family Tree go back to the year 1650. In parallel, he has undertaken the task of updating and writing the heritage and history of the Bene Israel (in digital format). The book includes the history, the cuisine, the recordings of prayer chants and a pictorial presentation of selected synagogues in India and most of the synagogues in Israel that were established by the Bene Israel community. He further researched the origin of the Bene Israel family names and has shown that they have a Hebrew/Aramaic origin. During his research he uncovered several important artifacts and historical facts.

In late 2000s, along with interested colleagues, he was instrumental in establishing The Bene Israel Heritage Museum and Genealogical Research Center foundation both in India and Israel. The aim of the foundation is to disseminate information about the Bene Israel community, their traditions, customs, social and cultural values and to try and establish a museum, a genealogy website and thus to enhance the exposure of talented artists, writers, and other professionals from the members of the Bene Israel community.

Haeem Samuel Kehimkar (1830-1907), Bene Israel pioneer educator and historian, born in Alibag, Konkan India. Kehimkar, his three brothers and some friends came together and, in the year 1875, under the auspices of the Benevolent Association decided to establish The Israelite School for the children of the Bene Israel community. The Israelite School was later renamed the Sir Eli Kadoorie School.

Kehimkar was the one who pioneered education for girls and his daughter Rebecca was the first girl from the Bene Israel community to graduate from this school. Kehimkar introduced Hebrew as a subject for studies and personally brought Bene Israel boys and girls from the Konkan villages to attend the school.

At first the Israelite School functioned out of rented rooms in Mandvi. The rent was Rs. 100. In April 1879 this branch had classes only up to English Std III. One class was added each year, till, in 1890, it had a matriculation class. The first group of students from the Israelite School took the matriculation examination in 1891.

The school moved, from Khadak to Umarkhadi, to Juna Bhootkhana and Samaji (Samuel) Hall. In the Samuel Hall branch Kehimkar later opened a night school where working persons could attend a Hebrew Class. At the time the Israelite School was the only Bene Israel institution teaching religion and the Hebrew language.

Kehimkar also established the Etz Haeem Synagogue on Jail Road Umerkhadi in Bombay. Besides these projects Kehimkar pioneered several other social and welfare projects for the community and obtained a large amount of funding from International Jewish Organizations.

Sheva Berachot ("Seven Blessings" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

"Ele Shlosh Esre" (the concluding lines from Yigdal), followed by the Sheva Berakhot ("Seven blessings"). The Cochin custom of beginning the marriage service with a few lines from the end of Yigdal was also adopted by the Baghdad Jewish community in Bombay. The second text line is a modified version of the original last two lines of Yigdal. The melodies of both sections are of the Baghdad tradition, and encompass the range of a major 6th and perfect 5th, respectively. The blessings are led by the cantor, with responses by a small male chorus.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Ki Eshmera Shabat ("If I Safeguard the Sabbath" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

A piyyut for the Sabbath. A florid, rapidly ascending and descending phrase on harmonium introduces the singer, who sings a more reflective vocal to aah, exploring the semitone and chromatic pitch organization of this melody. The range is an octave from Pitch 1. The solo vocalist is joined, gradually, by the rest of the group singing this hymn. The melody comprises four short phrases, characterized by repeated melodic and rhythmic motifs (ab; ac; de; fb). An added beat at the end of each phrase yields a 7 beat pattern (2+2+3).

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Maazha Yosef ("My Joseph" - in Marathi)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

The harmonium introduces the melody of this hymn, sung by the solo vocalist in Marathi. Hymns recounting the biblical story of Jacob's pain at the disappearance of his son, Joseph (yosefache git), are part of a large repertoire of devotional songs in the vernacular. The melodic range is a major 6th, beginning on pitch 1 and ending on lower pitch 5. The first phrase of the refrain ascends to the highest note (pitch 3), the remainder of the melody being characterized by mainly falling phrases. The melody's rhythmic pattern consists of 9 beats: 3+2+4.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Az Tapil ("Then You Will Cause" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

This hymn appears as part of the bakashot ("Supplications") in the morning prayer; it also appears in the Bene Israel book of hymns, in Marathi transliteration. It is introduced by a short, reflective prelude, decorated and harmonized on the harmonium, evoking the Western plagal cadence; this is followed by a brief exploration of the melodic pitches, sung to "aah" by the solo vocalist. The melodic range is a minor 7th, from the lower 7th to the major 6th above pitch 1. The setting is meditative and chant-like, with recitation tones on pitches 3 and 2. The melodic phrases (generally structured abac) are sung freely, supported by chordal accompaniment and long held notes on harmonium.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

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The Jewish Community of Mumbai

Mumbai

मुंबई  Also known as Bombay, the official name until 1995

The capital of the state of Maharashtra, India. The largest city in India and the proverbial "gateway to India."

Mumbai enters Jewish history after the cession of the city to the Portuguese in the middle of the 16th century. Then a small fishing island of no great economic significance, Mumbai was leased out around 1554--55, to the celebrated Marrano scientist and physician Garcia da Orta, in recognition of his services to the viceroy. Garcia repeatedly refers in his Coloquios (Goa, 1563) to "the land and island which the king our lord made me a grant of, paying a quit-rent." After the transference of Mumbai to English rule the Jew Abraham Navarro expected to receive a high office in the Mumbai council of the east India Company in recognition of his services. This was, however, denied to him because he was a Jew. In 1697 Benjamin Franks jumped Captain Kidd's "adventure galley" in Mumbai as a protest against Kidd's acts of piracy; his deposition led to Kidd's trial in London.

The foundation of a permanent Jewish settlement in Mumbai was laid in the second half of the 18th century by the Bene Israel who gradually moved from their villages in the Konkan region to Mumbai. Their first synagogue in Mumbai was built (1796) on the initiative of S.E. Divekar. Cochin Jews strengthened the Bene Israel in their religious revival. The next largest wave of immigrants to Mumbai consisted of Jewish merchants from Syria and Mesopotamia.

Prominent was Suleiman Ibn Yaqub or Solomon Jacob whose commercial activities from 1795 to 1833 are documented in the Mumbai records. The Arabic-speaking Jewish colony in Mumbai was increased by the influx of other "Arabian Jews" from Surat, who, in consequence of economic changes there, turned their eyes to India.

A turning point in the history of the Jewish settlement in Mumbai was reached with the arrival in 1833 of the Baghdad Jewish merchant, industrialist, and philanthropist, David Sassoon (1792--1864) who soon became a leading figure of the Jewish community. He and his house had a profound impact on Mumbai as a whole as well as on all sectors of the Jewish community. Many of the educational, cultural, and civic institutions, as well as hospitals and synagogues in Mumbai owe their existence to the munificence of the Sassoon family.

Unlike the Bene Israel, the Arabic-speaking Jews in Mumbai did not assimilate the language of their neighbors, Marathi, but carried their Judeo-Arabic language and literature with them and continued to regard Baghdad as their spiritual center. They therefore established their own synagogues, the Magen David in 1861 in Byculla, and the Kneseth Elijah in 1888 in the fort quarter of Mumbai. A weekly Judeo-Arabic periodical, Doresh Tov le-Ammo appeared from 1855 to 1866 which mirrored their communal life.

Hebrew printing began in Mumbai with the arrival of Yemenite Jews in the middle of the 19th century. They took an interest in the religious welfare of the Bene Israel, for whom - as well as for themselves - they printed various liturgies from 1841 onward, some with translations into Marathi, the vernacular of the Bene Israel. Apart from a short-lived attempt to print with movable type, all this printing was by lithography. In 1882, the press of the Mumbai educational society was established (followed in 1884 by the Anglo-Jewish and vernacular press, in 1887 by the Hebrew and English press, and in 1900 by the Lebanon printing press), which sponsored the publication of over 100 Judeo-Arabic books to meet their liturgical and literary needs, and also printed books for the Bene Israel. The prosperity of Mumbai attracted a new wave of Jewish immigrants from Cochin, Yemen, Afghanistan, Bukhara, and Persia. Among Persian Jews who settled in Mumbai, the most prominent and remarkable figure was Mulla Ibrahim Nathan (d. 1868) who, with his brother Musa, both of Meshed, were rewarded by the government for their services during the First Afghan War. The political events in Europe and the advent of Nazism brought a number of German, Polish, Rumanian, and other European Jews to Mumbai, many of whom were active as scientists, physicians, industrialists, and merchants. Communal life in Mumbai was stimulated by visits of Zionist emissaries.

The Jewish population of Mumbai was estimated to be 11,000 in 1968, but a strong emigration movement to Israel was gaining momentum. Mumbai remained as the last major center of organized Jewish life in India. The Baghdad community, which was the leading element in organized communal life, had decreased to some 500 people, the Bene Israel becoming numerically predominant. Over 80% of the Jews were concentrated in two of the poorer districts of Mumbai, 1,500 lived in middle-class suburbs of the town, and another 500 in the best residential areas, Malabar Hill and Kolaba. The small number of European Jews in Mumbai lived exclusively in these districts.

The community, with government aid, supported two Jewish schools, and was served by six Bene Israel and two Baghdadi synagogues. Membership in a particular synagogue seemed to be a function of social, economic, and educational status as well as of religious difference. The umbrella organization, the Central Jewish Board of Mumbai, with which all synagogues, organizations, and institutions were affiliated, served as a spokesman for Indian Jewry as a whole. Similarly, the Mumbai Zionist Association was the representative Zionist body in the country. Zionist activities constituted an important part of communal life, and the Jewish Agency provided direct aid in the form of Hebrew teachers and emissaries. All three of the Jewish periodicals in India were published in Mumbai. Communal activities were further supplemented by a number of youth, welfare, and charitable organizations. The Israel consulate is situated in Mumbai. In 1997 there were 6,000 Jews living in India; most of them in and around Mumbai.

Written by researchers of ANU Museum of the Jewish People
Lloyd Moses Sassoon (Kandlekar)

Lloyd Moses Sassoon (Kandlekar) (Flt. Lt) (1942-1971), pilot with then rank of Flt. Lt. in the Indian Air Force, born to Mozelle and Moses Sassoon Kandlekar on July 15, 1942 in Bombay (now Mumbay), India. His father was a Chief Engineer of the Bombay Region in the Bombay Port Trust Authority. Being from a well established family, Sassoon attended St. Mary’s High School in Mazagon, Bombay, a prestigious Catholic Missionary School. Upon matriculation he studied up to the Inter-Science Level at K.C. College Churchgate in Bombay.

He then applied for and was selected as a cadet at the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakvasla, Deolali, Maharashtra, India in 1962. Upon completion of his officer’s Course at the NDA in 1965, he proceeded for his pilot’s training at the Indian Air Force flight training center in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Sassoon rapidly rose from Pilot Officer to Flt Lt. and was trained to be a Fighter/Bomber pilot. His last posting was to the 5th Squadron-Canberra Bombers. This was a very reputed and prestigious squadron and one of the coveted units of the Indian Air Force. Between the years 1967 to 1969 he saw service in Madras (Now Chennai) and Agra. In 1969 his squadron was posted to Ambala.

On 27 Nov 1966 Lloyd Sassoon married Sybia, daughter of Elizabeth and Robert Jacob Kasukar. Two sons were born to them, Dov (b. Nov 17, 1968) and David (b. Dec. 19, 1970).

In The India Pakistan war; which ultimately resulted in the establishment of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan), Sassoon fought on the western front against West Pakistan. On one of the sorties on Dec. 4, 1971, his Canberra bomber was shot down near Lahore, Pakistan. It should be noted that the Canberra bomber had a crew of two persons, a pilot and a navigator. The pilot had a parachute and the navigator did not have a parachute. When the plane was shot down the foregone conclusion was that the navigator was killed. During the war the Pakistani Government did parade some captured Indian pilots on television and many in India remember seeing Flt Lt. Lloyd Sassoon. But at the end of the war the Indian government declared Sassoon as missing in action and the Pakistani government claimed that Lloyd was killed when his plane crashed. Discrete inquiries through friends in senior positions in the Pakistani Air Force claim that he was brutally murdered by the local inhabitants (not officially confirmed or verified) when his plane was shot down near Lahore.

In 1974 his widow and her sons immigrated to Israel. Lloyd has a brother Norman, a captain in the merchant navy residing in Bombay, India

Years later the Indian casualties of the India-Pakistan wars from 1947 to 1999 were honored by the Indian Air Force and the Government of India and their names were inscribed on a monument in New Delhi on Nov. 27, 1999. The government of India invited the families of the fallen soldiers to this ceremony and presented them with mementoes.

Jacob Immanuel Ashton

Jacob Immanuel Ashton (1939- ), entrepreneur, leader of Freemason movement, born in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. After completing his schooling in Bombay he together with his family immigrated to Israel in 1958. Ashton joined the IDF in 1961 and rose to rank of rav seren (major) in the air force specializing in advanced rocket air defence systems.

After retiring in 1980 he was appointed commander of an air force base in northern Israel. In 1981 he began to study business administration at the Haifa Technion after which he opened a business to export advanced products to India. Together with several associates he persuaded the Israel Lands Development Authority to establish a new settlement Adi near Shfaram in the Galilee. For many years very active in the Freemason movement, Ashton rose to the position of Grand Chaplain of the Israel Lodge.

Haeems Ralph Samuel Bamnolkar

Haeems Ralph Samuel Bamnolkar (1940-2005), jurist, born in Mumbay (Bombay), India, into a prosperous Bene Israel family. He graduated in engineering from the University of Bombay and then went to London, England, with the intention of obtaining a master's degree in chemistry. In order to support himself during his studies in London, however, he found work at a solicitors' office where he discovered an aptitude for law. He was given the assignment of supervising the defense of a man charged with murder. After his client’s acquittal, Haeems formally became an articled clerk at well known solicitors' office.

During his apprenticeship he represented several well known persons accused of criminal activities among them members of the Nash, Fraser and Mc Vicar gang, Charlie Wilson, the great train robber, and Charlie Mitchell, the alleged racing dog doper. Ralph played a major roll in the preparation of the defense of Ronnie and Reggie Kray in the first big blackmail trial when they were acquitted. He also acted for the Krays in the George Cornell, Jack “the H at” McVitie and Frank Mitchell “the Mad Axeman” murder trials of 1968 and 1969, and was involved in the trial of George Ince, who was acquitted of the Essex Barn murder.

In 1972 he qualified as a solicitor in his own right and opened his own office in London. He quickly acquired a reputation as a first class defense lawyer and he appeared in court in many criminal cases which hit the headlines in Britain. He defended the serial killer Denis Nilsen, Russell Bishop who was charged and acquitted of the Brighton Babes in the Wood murders, several defendants accused of involvement with the Brinks Matt bullion robbery, a number of police officers and such famous underworld characters as Joey Pyle and Dave Courtney. Another of his clients was the transvestite David Martin, who escaped from court and in mistake for whom the police shot Stephen Waldorf in traffic in Earls Court Road.

His son is a barrister and two daughters are both solicitors in the UK.

Samuel Marshall

Samuel Marshall (b. 1935), businessman, born and educated in Mumbai (Bombay), India, into a family of four children. His main interests during his formative years included sports, history, archaeology and political science. Marshall’s entrepreneurial skills emerged at a very young age as he was already organizing Badminton tournaments in Mumbai, in which multinational corporations including Hindustan Levers, ESSO, Caltex and the Tata Group of Companies participated. He was very adept at applying his leadership talents and facets to the commodity business. He is considered the doyen of the commodity trading business in India, and his success has been illustrated by the fact that more than 500 of his former trainees successfully run their own companies around the world in countries such as Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Japan, Philippines, Brazil, Argentina, United States and in Europe.

Marshall received awards from the Grain and Pulses International Association, recognizing the services rendered by him to the industry. “He has been declared as the Father of the Indian Oil, Fats and Pulse trade and at one time his Company were the No.1 worldwide Brokers in Edible Oils”. He setup a brokerage company in Mumbai called Marshall Produce, and then he immigrated to London in 1965, where he setup Marpro Limited with which proceeded to open offices in over 25 countries and became the market leaders and No.1 in the world for Edible Oils. They were pioneer brokers in exports of Canadian, Australian, Turkish and Myanmar pulses to India establishing a substantial market share.

Marshall, had three children: Joseph, Maria and Veronica. Joseph (Yosi) is a leading musician. Maria is a renowned film maker, achieving fame at the Sundance Film Festival where she exhibited 14 of her boutique films and Robert Redford took her under his wings. His third daughter Veronica is an English Teacher.

Nissim Moses

Nissim Moses (1942-), son of Menachem son of Daniel Moses Talkar and Sophie daughter of Captain Solomon Samson Penkar, born in Bombay (Mumbay), India. He attended the Christ Church High School Byculla Bombay, and then studied for two years at the K.C. College completing his Inter Science Exams and then his Junior B. Sc. at the Institute (earlier Royal) of Science within the framework of Bombay University.


Nissim Moses graduated as an engineer in electronics and communication engineering from Birla Institute of Technology in Ranchi, India. He immigrated to Israel in 1966. He established and was Head of the Acoustic Department of Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd. (IAI). While in this position he was appointed as an Advisor to the Environmental Protection Service later to become the Israel Ministry of the Environment. He established their Acoustic Unit and in parallel taught acoustics on a voluntary basis at the Masters Level at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and was a guide for candidates at the Master's and Doctoral level.

In 1982 Moses was elected by a landslide victory to the IAI Eng. Trade Union and went on to become a member of the Central Secretariat of both the Histadrut of Engineers and The Lishkat Ha-Mehandesim in Israel.

In 1993 he was appointed Director and given the task of establishing the Liaison Office of Israel Aircraft Industries in New Delhi, India. During his tenure of four years the sales of IAI to India went from zero to US$ 450 million. He won 19 contracts without loosing one; in addition contracts worth US$ 200 million were won during his tenure, but signed at a later date.

Moses has published several papers in acoustics and has been an advisor to the Supreme Court of Israel. In 1993, ninety percent of the professionals working in acoustics in Israel were his students.

In 1999 Moses initiated the project of creating a Communal Family Tree of the Bene Israel of India. Ten years later the data bank has more than 12,900 names and 10,000 photographs and several hundred biographies emphasizing the contribution of the Bene Israel community to the development of modern India. Several branches of the Family Tree go back to the year 1650. In parallel, he has undertaken the task of updating and writing the heritage and history of the Bene Israel (in digital format). The book includes the history, the cuisine, the recordings of prayer chants and a pictorial presentation of selected synagogues in India and most of the synagogues in Israel that were established by the Bene Israel community. He further researched the origin of the Bene Israel family names and has shown that they have a Hebrew/Aramaic origin. During his research he uncovered several important artifacts and historical facts.

In late 2000s, along with interested colleagues, he was instrumental in establishing The Bene Israel Heritage Museum and Genealogical Research Center foundation both in India and Israel. The aim of the foundation is to disseminate information about the Bene Israel community, their traditions, customs, social and cultural values and to try and establish a museum, a genealogy website and thus to enhance the exposure of talented artists, writers, and other professionals from the members of the Bene Israel community.

Haeem Samuel Kehimkar

Haeem Samuel Kehimkar (1830-1907), Bene Israel pioneer educator and historian, born in Alibag, Konkan India. Kehimkar, his three brothers and some friends came together and, in the year 1875, under the auspices of the Benevolent Association decided to establish The Israelite School for the children of the Bene Israel community. The Israelite School was later renamed the Sir Eli Kadoorie School.

Kehimkar was the one who pioneered education for girls and his daughter Rebecca was the first girl from the Bene Israel community to graduate from this school. Kehimkar introduced Hebrew as a subject for studies and personally brought Bene Israel boys and girls from the Konkan villages to attend the school.

At first the Israelite School functioned out of rented rooms in Mandvi. The rent was Rs. 100. In April 1879 this branch had classes only up to English Std III. One class was added each year, till, in 1890, it had a matriculation class. The first group of students from the Israelite School took the matriculation examination in 1891.

The school moved, from Khadak to Umarkhadi, to Juna Bhootkhana and Samaji (Samuel) Hall. In the Samuel Hall branch Kehimkar later opened a night school where working persons could attend a Hebrew Class. At the time the Israelite School was the only Bene Israel institution teaching religion and the Hebrew language.

Kehimkar also established the Etz Haeem Synagogue on Jail Road Umerkhadi in Bombay. Besides these projects Kehimkar pioneered several other social and welfare projects for the community and obtained a large amount of funding from International Jewish Organizations.

Sheva Berachot - Tradition of the Bene Israel of Bombay

Sheva Berachot ("Seven Blessings" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

"Ele Shlosh Esre" (the concluding lines from Yigdal), followed by the Sheva Berakhot ("Seven blessings"). The Cochin custom of beginning the marriage service with a few lines from the end of Yigdal was also adopted by the Baghdad Jewish community in Bombay. The second text line is a modified version of the original last two lines of Yigdal. The melodies of both sections are of the Baghdad tradition, and encompass the range of a major 6th and perfect 5th, respectively. The blessings are led by the cantor, with responses by a small male chorus.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Ki Eshmera Shabat - Tradition of the Bene Israel of Bombay

Ki Eshmera Shabat ("If I Safeguard the Sabbath" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

A piyyut for the Sabbath. A florid, rapidly ascending and descending phrase on harmonium introduces the singer, who sings a more reflective vocal to aah, exploring the semitone and chromatic pitch organization of this melody. The range is an octave from Pitch 1. The solo vocalist is joined, gradually, by the rest of the group singing this hymn. The melody comprises four short phrases, characterized by repeated melodic and rhythmic motifs (ab; ac; de; fb). An added beat at the end of each phrase yields a 7 beat pattern (2+2+3).

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Maazha Yosef - Tradition of the Bene Israel of Bombay

Maazha Yosef ("My Joseph" - in Marathi)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

The harmonium introduces the melody of this hymn, sung by the solo vocalist in Marathi. Hymns recounting the biblical story of Jacob's pain at the disappearance of his son, Joseph (yosefache git), are part of a large repertoire of devotional songs in the vernacular. The melodic range is a major 6th, beginning on pitch 1 and ending on lower pitch 5. The first phrase of the refrain ascends to the highest note (pitch 3), the remainder of the melody being characterized by mainly falling phrases. The melody's rhythmic pattern consists of 9 beats: 3+2+4.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.

Az Tapil - Tradition of the Bene Israel of Bombay

Az Tapil ("Then You Will Cause" - in Hebrew)

Original recording from Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay. Produced by Beit Hatfutsot in 2001.

This hymn appears as part of the bakashot ("Supplications") in the morning prayer; it also appears in the Bene Israel book of hymns, in Marathi transliteration. It is introduced by a short, reflective prelude, decorated and harmonized on the harmonium, evoking the Western plagal cadence; this is followed by a brief exploration of the melodic pitches, sung to "aah" by the solo vocalist. The melodic range is a minor 7th, from the lower 7th to the major 6th above pitch 1. The setting is meditative and chant-like, with recitation tones on pitches 3 and 2. The melodic phrases (generally structured abac) are sung freely, supported by chordal accompaniment and long held notes on harmonium.

Text by Dr. Sara Manasseh, originally published by Beit Hatfutsot in Eliahoo Hanabee: The Musical Tradition on the Bene Israel of Bombay CD booklet.