Firangi Mahal was a preferred place for Gandhiji

Telegrams sent by the Mahatma to Sufi scholar Maulana Abdul Bari could soon be available online

“I would respectfully tell you, the citizens Lucknow, which is inhabited by respectable Muhammdans and big pundits, which is a capital and which is a fine city of United Provinces. I do not want to see pleasure in it. I want to see ‘fakeeri’ in it. I found that in Firangi Mahal and that dry bread could be had, so I agreed to stay there,” said Mahatma Gandhi in one of his famous addresses at Rifah-e-aam (opposite City Station), Lucknow on October 15, 1920.

“In those days, I shocked Hindus by dining with Musalmans. Maulana Bari told me, however that though he would insist on having me as his guest, he would not allow me to dine with him. I had an occasion to stay with him, he called a Brahmin cook and made special arrangements for separate cook- ing. Firangi Mahal, his residence, was an old styled structure with limited accommodation,” stated Mahatma Gandhi in his address before the AICC on August 8, 1942 in Bombay.

LUCKNOW: Images of the iconic Firangi Mahal in Chowk - the place where Mahatma Gandhi preferred to stay during his visits to Uttar Pradesh - could soon be available online for Net-users and tourists.

The old mansion is the residence of renowned Sufi scholar Maulana Abdul Bari - the highly active member of Khilafat Movement (1919-1924).

“Tourists and visitors had long been demanding that the heritage structure be brought on a digital platform. In a recent visit to Firangi Mahal, princess of Thailand Maha Chakri Sirindhorn too had given the same suggestion. So, we thought of making its 360 degree view available for the online users,” said Adnan Abdul Wali, the direct descendant of Maulana Abdul Bari, on the eve of Gandhi Jayanti.

“Be it the front portion, its huge wooden gates and its pillared structure - all could be viewed in a single click,” added Wali, who has also contacted experts in 360-degree photography.

The move, Abdul Wali, believes will unravel various untouched aspects of the freedom movement and will also make the current generation aware of the importance of Firangi Mahal. The mansion got its name from the fact that it was initially inhabited by French traders.

“When they failed to pay off taxes, Aurangzeb confiscated the mansion and handed it over to our ancestors in 1695 and since then we are living here,” said Wali while showing the original decree (property transfer order) from Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

“We are going to digitalise the document too. It’s an original decree from Aurangzeb,” added Wali.

Mahatma Gandhi had heard about Maulana Abdul Bari from his disciple, barrister Hussain Kidwai during a meeting in England in 1914. Abdul Bari was introduced to Gandhi as a trusted person who could help him take forward the freedom movement.

“Gandhiji first met my great grandfather Maulana Abdul Bari in 1916 during the Congress session in Lucknow,” said Wali.

It was then he visited the Firangi Mahal for the first time.

“It’s from this place, the Khilafat Movement actually started,” said Abdul Wali, who has preserved all the telegrams from Mahatma Gandhi to his great grandfather, mentioning about the movement.