Mumbai’s syncretism can be best explored at Dr E Moses Road – named after the city’s first Jewish Mayor Dr Elijah Moses. The two-kilometer stretch is dotted with graveyards of different faiths.
Between two of the city’s best-known locations, the Mahalaxmi Race Course and the Worli sea-face, lies a large Hindu open-air cremation ground, the equally large St Peter’s Catholic cemetery, a lesser-known Japanese cemetery, and a graveyard for Bene Israeli Jews.
During his tenure in 1937-38, Moses undertook the provision of setting up cremation grounds and cemeteries in the city. The Jewish cemetery is one of them.
Over the years, Mumbai’s Jewish population has dwindled from a peak of 30,000 in the late 1940s to some 3,500 today. And for some of this time, one solitary man has been engraving Jewish tombstones: a follower of Islam, Muhammad Abdul Yassin.
He has worked on over 3,000 graves, and will continue till his son takes over.
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