Unpacking local history
VETERAN journalist and author Fakir Hassen said he learned a few new facts and tricks through the release of his two latest books.
In one of his most recently-released books, On the Gandhian Trail, he explores and documents some unknown facts about Mahatma Gandhi.
In another book, released late last year, called 500 Bollywood Encounters, he unpacks anecdotes and trivia about the film industry and has added a collection of personally developed Bollywood-themed trivia word puzzles. He also designed the book, a first for Hassen, after teaching himself the skill from a computerised design tool. The books were co-published by Sammy Naidoo of the Apple Group of print companies.
Known for his passion for documenting local histories, Hassen said his way of life stemmed from his upbringing. The 68-year-old grew up in Marabastad in Pretoria.
“The passion that I have for people and community and preserving history, I would credit to my family, specifically my mother. I grew up in a poor family. I grew up in a well-knit community of Indian, coloured and black people in Marabastad, which the government eventually broke up during apartheid.
“But I had a good grounding in community. My mother, in particular, always taught us that whatever you do, always think about others while you are doing it. That stayed with me all my life.”
He said in October last year, during celebrations to mark India’s 75th independence anniversary and to mark Gandhi’s birthday, the consul-general in Johannesburg, Anju Ranjan, came up with the concept of touring known Gandhi sites in South Africa by bus, with 75 people.
“We travelled on two buses to accommodate social distancing. The tour started in Johannesburg to Pietermaritzburg, then to the Phoenix Settlement and back to Dundee, Newcastle, Volksrust, all those places where Gandhi stayed or visited and was imprisoned.”
The group trip was cut short due to some roads being in a bad state, but Hassen and Gandhian follower, Mohan Hira continued by car.
“We finished the trip, and then we came back to Johannesburg and toured the Johannesburg sites. Over the years, I’ve written two books about Gandhi, and I thought that between those two books, I had covered everything there was to know about him and his sites in South Africa. To my surprise and delight, there was a lot more.
“For example, we went to Heidelberg. It was a popular travel route between Johannesburg and Durban in the old days. And there, in the old Transvaal
Republic days, when Gandhi travelled between Johannesburg and Durban, he was once arrested at the station. During the trip, we found a guy who had started his own craft beer brewery. And he has a beer called Gandhi’s Ale.
“That surprised us because Gandhi never drank alcohol, and here's a brewery marketing an ale named after him, which they said was doing well because it's a historic site and Gandhi had been there. This is also in the book.
“In a small town like Dundee, there's a massive museum on Gandhi. He and his wife were at the courthouse there. So the community have put up a lot of monuments around him, and I think the late King Goodwill Zwelithini was also instrumental in this. There's a massive Gandhi museum as well. So there was a lot of learning for me in this third book on Gandhi. It is a small book, mostly pictorial, of the iconic sites with some anecdotal moments from the group trip.”
Bollywood
In November, Hassen launched 500 Bollywood Encounters – another of his passions.
He said the book was divided into three parts.
“The first being columns that look at diverse Bollywood issues. Some years ago, the then editor of The Witness newspaper, Kuben Chetty, called me and said he wanted to start a regular Bollywood column with behind-the-scenes looks and unpacking issues like what was Bollywood doing about gender issues; any changes on the music scene, etc.
“Initially, I was sceptical, and I wasn't sure if I could pull this off long-term, but it was successful, and it continued for about three years before it ended. So the first part of the book is a collection of about 150 columns that I wrote for The Witness and other media over the years, each with an unusual oddity about the diversity in Bollywood.”
The second part of the book is a collection of pictures that Hassen had taken over the years related to Bollywood.
“I also had the idea of going on to social media and asking people to share their pictures with Bollywood stars to add to the pictures that I have taken over the years.”
The third aspect is a personal one: a spin-off of two of Hassen’s passions, Bollywood and word puzzles.
“I'm a huge fan of word puzzles. Over the years, I've been doing these and I had the idea to develop my own Bollywood-themed word puzzles. I compiled these myself, and they have been included in the book. They range from easy to testing the avid Bollywood fans’ knowledge of the industry.”
He said with support from many sponsors, his books were available freely at municpal libaries in Durban and Gauteng.
The book on Gandhi is available for free on email as a PDF: fakir@vodamail.co.za