Mumbai's landmark church, Churchgate's St Thomas Cathedral enters its 300th year

The nave of Forts St Thomas Cathedral which celebrates its 300th anniversary since its first service on Christmas Day 1718 PicsPradeep DhivarOur first visit to Forts iconic St Thomas Cathedral 15 years ago wasnt a particularly memorable one Being 40 minutes late for an hourlong heritage walk meant having to lose out on all the interesting nuggets of trivia that was shared by the wise silverhaired guide who was a history professor at one of SoBos elite collegesOf the many gems that we missed during that session one that intrigued us the most was the back story about a marbled memorial that honoured one of the citys longest serving governors Jonathon Duncan he held the post for 16 years until his death The memorial comprises a dhoticlad Brahmin and a statue depicting the symbol of justice This was set against the backdrop of a marble banyan tree while a group of smiling cherubs rounded off this curious scene It irked us that we missed out on a historic footnoteThe first row of the church has the original chairs where King George V and Queen Mary sat during a service prior to their departure for the Delhi Durbar in 1911The opportunity to get a closer look arose again last week and who better than the Presbyter in charge of St Thomas Cathedral Reverend Avinash Rangayya to throw light on the fascinating IndoAnglican memorial Duncan was a visionary who abolished infanticide in Indiahellip those cherubs denote this good deed He was an Indophile mdash the Brahmin and the banyan tree depict his deep association with India while the statue portrays his fairness in judgement despite being a colonial rulerA hattrickThis walk is a special one too The cathedral enters its tercentenary year it opened for service on Christmas Day 1718 and the Reverend insists on playing guide We plan to introduce heritage walks school outreach programmes and create a general sense of awareness about its intrinsic role with Bombays emergence as the Urbs Primus in Indis Latin foremost city in India A postage stamp will also be issued We are in talks with CSMVS to organise a public exhibition Parts of the outer faccedilade including its stained glass panels are being sensitively restored the Reverend elaborates On October 6 we will have a grand service to celebrate St Thomas birthday he adds brimming with enthusiasm at the 150odd parishioners zeal to make it a successThe cathedrals iconic belfryWe have Richard Cobbe Chaplain of Bombay from 1715ndash20 to thank for completing this historic structure remarks Dr Kamal Jadhav PR in charge of the celebrations While the groundbreaking was way back in 1676 work was stalled due to lack of funds that were possibly diverted for other needs of the British East India Company The enterprise of this 30something chaplain ensured it was built the Reverend reveals as we stop to imagine the world in those times mdash the Mughals still ruled over north India and Mozart wasnt even bornThe memorial of Indophile Jonathan DuncanAs we leave the nonoperational fountain near the exit piques our interest And so we ask the Reverend if now might be the perfect time to restore it Yes wed like to he admits and with a broad smile signs off Oh and by the way this was built thanks to the benevolence of Sir Cowasji Jehangir Readymoney a Parsi entrepreneur If this cathedral didnt set the precedent for a cosmopolitan Bombay pray then what didAlso read MUMBAI CHHAAP Visit the Holy Name Cathedral church