Simplicity sometimes achieves feats that ornamentation doesn't even come close to. Simple objects somehow seem more meaningful, or as they say in contemporary parlance, less is more. If you are roaming around in a zone which is dotted with pre-partition constructions that are heavily embellished (as most of them on M.A. Jinnah Road are with pilasters, cornices, fenestrations, etc being their key architectural features) a low-profile, rather nondescript structure squeezed between imposing buildings like the Mama Parsi and NJV schools is bound to make you look its way. The reference is to the Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) building.
There's nothing fancy or swashbuckling about the YWCA stonemasonry. Yet it draws you into its premises rather involuntarily. The trees, which you presume are quite old, complement the tiny but well-mowed lawn. If you go straight from the YWCA entrance you'll see a tennis court. The main building is to the left. There's an air of stillness about it, as if time is not a progressive phenomenon. The neatly-patterned woodwork on the façade is pronounced, an indication that it has nothing to do with the present-day sense of construction.
On the right side of the wall that faces the lawn, a plaque covered by leafy foliage reads “This Stone Was Laid By Her Excellency Lady Lloyd Jan 7, 1920.” The date suggests that just two days prior to that (Jan 5, 1920) Lady Lloyd officially opened the Jehangir Kothari Parade (whose foundation stone was laid by her husband George Lloyd, then governor of Bombay , in 1919) and a little more than year after (March 21, 1921) she inaugurated the Lady Lloyd Pier. The woman must've had a busy, and useful, stint in the subcontinent.
You walk into the structure and the dimly-lit passage gives off a strange feeling, in a pleasant way. You stay there for a while and try and imbibe the atmosphere. See straight and there's an opening that leads into the court. Don't go there yet. Nuzhat Williams' room is to the left. She is the president of the YWCA.
Ms Williams says “The YWCA is a 121-year-old NGO and working in this part of the world for the last 119 years. It originated in Britain during the Industrial Revolution. At the time women who came from the rural areas into the bigger cities needed 'safer abodes'. And that's exactly what the YWCA provided them with. The gesture reflects the compassion of God. Today the association exists in more than a hundred countries.”
“We have a school, a vocational centre and a hostel here for the girls, mostly underprivileged. We do our best to make them feel comfortable and at home. Today we have hundreds of students belonging to different caste, colour and creed. We don't discriminate. I must mention this that it was the YWCA that gave birth to APWA. Also, many people forget or overlook the fact that after partition the association welcomed the refugee women here.”
“With respect to its construction and architecture, not much is known. What can be said with certitude is that it's at least a century-old building and has a colonial design made in Gizri stone. I feel its woodwork suggests that it may have Hindu architectural influence as well. I'm not an expert on that, but we know our history so we try and keep the place as well-maintained as we can,” says Ms Williams.
For some inexplicable reason the YWCA structure has not been, or yet to be, declared a protected heritage building.
Architect and conservationist Aneela Naeem says “It's a simple prototype structure, a kind of architecture introduced in the colonial period in this region. Basically the prototype was employed for schools and public buildings. Such structures usually have their front portions always having a colonnaded or arcaded verandah, and windows open onto that verandah.”
“It's a typical colonial era typology used specifically for public buildings. The Jinnah Courts in Karachi , for example, is also based on the same concept. Since the facility was supposed to have a lot of rooms, the best way to go about it was to have a long verandah which served as circulation space.”
“It also gave shadowed area in front of the building to protect the rooms from sunlight, thereby creating a micro-climate kind of a thing. You can see the woodwork in front; again used as a screen against sunlight.”
“If you talk about the building's architectural attributes, it's pretty much traditional, a style developed in the colonial era,” says Ms Naeem.
Before leaving the YWCA, let's look at its tennis court. The portion adjacent to the square, now part of YWCA offices, has a framed commemorative inscription. According to it, “This Tennis Court And Dressing Room Was Donated Through The Generosity Of Rao Sahib Mukhi Wadhumal Naraindas In Memory Of The Late Mukhi Bagomal Hotchand Of Hyderabad Sind Opened On March 28, 1941 By Lady Graham.” Here's a bit about the two generous men.
Mukhi Wadhumal was a simple man. At a tender age he joined his uncle Mukhi Bagomal who used to do business under the name Mukhi Hotchand Khemchand. Mukhi Bagomal made a charitable hospital in Hyderabad near the Fort and was president of the Hyderabad Bhaibund Club and director of the Hyderabad Electricity Corporation. He died in March 1940 of a heart attack and left a portion of his wealth to his nephew Mukhi Wadhumal.
Paida kahan hai aisa paraganda taba loag
mohammad.salman@dawn.com
