38 August 2018 www.bahrainthismonth.com indiaindependence It was 1888 when Damordardas Kewalram stepped onto Bahrain’s shores to dabble in pearling. “He was later joined by his son, and my father, Haridas,” says Baboo Kewalram, chairman of Kewalram & Sons Co WLL. “They would finance divers to source pearls for trading in those days.” Circumstance led Damodardas to return to Thatta, a city near Karachi, in the then undivided India. With the reins in his hands, Haridas ventured into foodstuffs and thereafter into textiles, establishing Kewalram & Sons, the first of many outlets, that still stands in Manama’s souq. A freshly graduated twenty-year-old, Baboo boarded a ship to Bahrain in 1955. He says: “By this time, our family had left Thatta and moved to Bombay [now Mumbai]. My brother, Sunder, had already joined our father here. The journey had five stopovers over 10 days.” He recalls that the area that is now Bab Al Bahrain was a jetty in the sea, where small boats would dock. Large vessels would anchor away from the shore, and dhows would bring passengers to land. “My job was at the textile retail shop. Early in the morning, I would go to clear our goods from customs. That way I learnt what we were importing, and at what prices, so I knew our stock well. By 9am, I would be at the shop, meeting customers. I used to know everybody around me then as the souq was a much smaller market than now. Over the weekends, customers from Saudi Aramco were our regular clientele.” He reminisces: “When we came here, there were no schools, and houses had very limited electricity. No refrigeration or airconditioning, of course. In the summers, we would splash water on the terrace at night, to go and sleep there. Donkeys used to carry sweet water to households from a source in Salmaniya.” The enterprise soon diversified into jewellery, home electronics and appliances, security systems and, most recently, real estate, with 10 outlets spanning the Kingdom. It associates with world-famous brands such as Titan, Casio, VIP and Carlton luggage, Commax, Brother, Black & Decker and all the top textile names in Japan and India. The Kewalrams are also managing partners of Bahrain’s Quality Education School and have textile operations even in the UAE. While tending to a flourishing business, the family has significantly contributed to the community, both local and expatriate. “My father was involved in founding the Bahrain AN ILLUSTRIOUS LEGACY When we came here, there were no schools, and houses had very limited electricity.” The patriarch of Bahrain’s Kewalram clan, Baboo Kewalram, talks to Behnaz Sanjana about his family’s history and achievements over more than a century. Baboo Kewalram Young Baboo (second from left) and Sunder Kewalram (third from left) managing their first department store in Bab-Al-Bahrain Three generations of the Kewalram family at the helm of the business, from left, Anoop, Kishore, Vinod, Hishang, Aditya and Raj with Baboo Kewalram
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