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The
origins of the Gujaratis in Malaysia go back to the 14th century
when the Gujarati traders use to travel from India to Malacca
to sell their spices as it was one of the major ports for
trade in this region.
It
is therefore not surprising that Malacca & later Penang
became the springboard for Gujarati businessman, initially
for trade purposes and later for migranting to the then Malaya
. These young enterprising and dynamics Gujaratis who braved
themselves to seek fortune far beyond the Indian sub-continent
with their hard work and rich cultural values soon become
a potent force gaining widely acclaimed respect of the various
other Indian communities in Malaya. The ancestors of the current
generation of Gujaratis in Malaya are believed to have migrated
to Malaya in the early 20th century.
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piece together some important events which would capture the
historical legacy of Gujaratis, we know that the early pioneers
in Kuala Lumpur were the Doshi Families, i.e. Messrs C. J.
Doshi, T. J. Doshi, Prabhudas Doshi, M.K. Doshi. On November
21, 1941 the first Gujarati marriage in Malaya was solemnized
in Kuala Lumpur. The bridegroom, Mr Damodar Manekchand Damani
brought his wedding party from Kajang to wed his wife to be,
Miss Lalita, daughter of Manilal Kamani. The marriage was
solemninsed at the residence of Shri Chunilal Jagannath Doshi
in Princess Street, [now known as Jalan Raja Muda] Kuala Lumpur.
It was a grand affair for all concerned and celebrated in
true traditional style with much pomp and splendors.
The
Japanese occupation of Malaya during the Second World War
stifled the growth of the Gujarati community. When the Japanese
surrendered in 1945, marking the end of a reign spanning three
and a half years, many Gujaratis who had been separated from
their families left for India . Some left never to return
again.
A
steady rise in the Gujaratis population was noticeable after
the war. Many more Gujaratis came to Malaya to seek their
fortunes in a foreign land. The business community, shattered
by the long devastating war, has to pick up the loose ends
and start anew. The road to recovery, through painstaking,
was indeed very slow. Nevertheless with determination and
strong commitment, the Gujaratis as they always are, were
able to progress themselves to greater heights as time went
by. |
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As
the community grew, more regular interaction between the families
developed. Besides the normal visits, the community also got
together to celebrate Diwali and other Hindu festivals at
the Shree Lakshmi Narayan Temple , Gombak Lane , Kuala Lumpur
. In similar fashion, Jain festivals were observed and celebrated
by the Jains. In the absence of a proper religion hall, the
annual Savantsari or Paryushan pratikraman was usually held
at No. 91, Batu Road . [now known as Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman].
It
was only in late 1950s, there were concerted effort by some
prominent Gujarati personalities to set up community association
for betterment of the community as well as preserving our
rich cultural value and religion believes. To achieve this
goal, Shri Jashbhai M. Patel, Shri Dhirajlal K.Avlani, Shri
Chandulal T. Gorasia, Shri Natwarlal Bodiwalla and Shri
Narbheram H. Seth as well as other concerned individuals
pooled their minds and energies towards this common objective.
The Kuala Lumpur Gujarati Samaj was formed in 1959 with
Shri Jashbhai M. Patel as it's first President.The Samaj
had acquired a rented premises at CA-4, Sulaiman Court [where
the Sogo Shopping Complex is now built] to serve a center
for communal and religious activities. In 1961, the K.L.
Gujarati Samaj hosted a dance by the famous Javeri Sisters
from Bombay in aid of the TB Foundation. The Guest of Honour
was the Minister of Health and the Indian High Commissioner.
It raised RM1,001.00 ( a big sum those days) for the TB
Foundation.
The
committee immediately enlisted the services of Shri Vrajlal
Thaker to educate the younger Gujarati children, to read
and write in the Gujarati language. The response was enthusiastic
and overwhelming. Later, following the footsteps for the
first teacher, Smt Fatimaben Gulam Hussain and Smt. Sushilaben
R. Patel made significant contributions to the community
by sacrificing their time and imparting their knowledge
to these children. It was around the same time that the
Annual Deepavali Picnic was introduced. It provided a platform
to wish one another “Saal Mubarak” and to foster
greater interaction and unity among the community members.
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It was only in late 1950s, there were concerted effort by
some prominent Gujarati personalities to set up community
association for betterment of the community as well as preserving
our rich cultural value and religion believes. To achieve
this goal, Shri Jashbhai M. Patel, Shri Dhirajlal K.Avlani,
Shri Chandulal T. Gorasia, Shri Natwarlal Bodiwalla and Shri
Narbheram H. Seth as well as other concerned individuals pooled
their minds and energies towards this common objective. The
Kuala Lumpur Gujarati Samaj was formed in 1959 with Shri Jashbhai
M. Patel as it's first President.The Samaj had acquired a
rented premises at CA-4, Sulaiman Court [where the Sogo Shopping
Complex is now built] to serve a center for communal and religious
activities. In 1961, the K.L. Gujarati Samaj hosted a dance
by the famous Javeri Sisters from Bombay in aid of the TB
Foundation. The Guest of Honour was the Minister of Health
and the Indian High Commissioner. It raised RM1,001.00 ( a
big sum those days) for the TB Foundation.
The
committee immediately enlisted the services of Shri Vrajlal
Thaker to educate the younger Gujarati children, to read and
write in the Gujarati language. The response was enthusiastic
and overwhelming. Later, following the footsteps for the first
teacher, Smt Fatimaben Gulam Hussain and Smt. Sushilaben R.
Patel made significant contributions to the community by sacrificing
their time and imparting their knowledge to these children.
It was around the same time that the Annual Deepavali Picnic
was introduced. It provided a platform to wish one another
“Saal Mubarak” and to foster greater interaction
and unity among the community members.
In
1965, Shri Jashbhai Patel, with the support for the other
members of the community, was instrumental in organizing the
first Navratri festival in Kuala Lumpur . The Navratri Celebrations,
organized under the auspices of the Shree Lakshmi Narayan
Temple at Gombak Lane , was a resounding success. Since its
humble beginning, the festival is now celebrated every year
on a grand scale with active participant from the Gujarati,
Punjabi and Sindhi communities. In 1971 the Shree Lakshmi
Narayan Temple moved to Kampong Kasipillay. As the premises
of the Temple was small to accomdate the crowd for Navratri,
the celebrations for Navratri then were moved to Appar Tamil
School in Jalan Raja Laut. They then moved to their current
premises when the Temple was completed in 1982.
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At about the same time, a group of energetic and enthusiastic
youngsters, with the blessings of their peers, started organizing
activities for the community. This group successfully organized
picnics to Port Dickson, Templer's Park and Pangkor Island
. For two consecutive years Deepavali parties to cater for
the youths were organized and were well received by the
community. In 1973, these youths undertook the organization
of the first cultural show in Kuala Lumpur . Financial support
was lacking from the senior members but the sheer determination
and dedication of the core group produced a show with the
limited resources available, and with immeasurable success.
It also served as a catalyst for increasing support for
subsequent activities.
Despite all these earlier successes, the Gujarati had nothing
tangible to show. There was no organization or a building
that we could proudly call our own. We could not turn the
hands of time back and lament our lack of commitment to
cater for the community. The only step to take was forward.
At an informal group discussion amongst certain youngsters
at the annual Gujarati Deepavali picnic at Batu Caves in
1975, it was perceived that much more could be achieved
through an official vehicle. A motion was moved to establish
an association and Shri Arvind K Shah was selected to take
lead in formalizing the registration with authorities. Following
a series of consultative discussion, a draft constitution
was prepared and lodged with the Registrar of Societies.
The sudden departure of Shri Arvind K Shah to assume an
overseas appointment did not dampen the spirit but rather
it strengthened the resolve to see the Association formally
registered. A Gujariti Youth Association was duly registered
in October 1977, which subsequently changed its name to
the present Gujarati Association Wilayah Persekutuan &
Selangor.The formation of the Association provided the vehicle and
impetus for organized activity to cater for the community.
Whilst the progress has been relatively slow, the Association
has come a long way since its inception. There were problems
and there was lack of interest and support. However, the
foresight, grit and determination of committed members did
produce positive development. To these devoted and committed
individuals we must record a deep sense of gratitude and
appreciation for sparing time and effort to forge a stronger
bond within the community and enhance the standing of the
Association as a center and medium for the planning and
implementation of organized activities. In the absence of
access to documented records, it is difficult to identify
and trace the progress of the Association over the years,
but the major activities and achievements of the Association
are highlighted as follows:Later with the strong support of the Gujarati community,
the Association were able to buy their own building in Kampong
Kasipillay in the year 1984. From time to time the building
was used to have annual general meetings and other gathering
as and when required.
In order to be able to focus and look after the interest
of the youngters of the Gujarati community, GAWPS took important
step to form the Youth Wing in 1997. Later in 2001 the Ladies
Wing named Mahila Mandal was form to take care of the womens
need within the community. Both the above organisation comes
under the direct umbrella of the GAWPS. Since their formation,
they have been very active in helping the GAWPS to organise
events as well as maintain good harmony among the community
to much greater height.
With the fast growing of the Gujarati community population,
there was greater needs for a better and more suitable facility/building,
the Association made a very big step to buy a new and bigger
building closer to the main residential areas of Gujaratis
in Klang Valley, at 38, Lorong Maarof, Bangsar Park, Kuala
Lumpur. The above was made possible with the continued and
strong support of all GAWPS members who willingly contributed
generously for the Building Fund.
In keeping with the rapid pace of the modern world driven by info technology, on 12/6/2004 GAWPS took another giant step to launch their own website
linking ourselves firmly with the outside world. It is hoped with this website, Kuala Lumpur & Selangor Gujaratis will explore the whole world and make more friends and contacts for the future benefit of the Gujarati communities everywhere.
To keep up with the latest trend in the communication technology, GAWPS started sending messages through SMS for urgent messages starting from 1st August 2005.
While awaiting for appropriate approval from the authority for extensive renovation of the existing building, the Management Committee decided to carry some minimal renovation for immediate need to cater for a crowd of 300 to 350 people. With the help of generous donors, a substantial renovation were done with state of art equipment be installed from 14-06-2005 and completed by end October 2005. The beautiful renovation which not only gave us a more comfortable premises but had raised the image of our community among the Malaysian communities. The renovation was only made possible through the tireless effort of Ir. Ashok H. Patel, Mr. Sailesh Kamani and Mr. Rajesh Kamani. The renovated building was officially opened by Mr. Harsukhlal M. Kamdar on 30-10-2005 on the Dhanteres day.
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Click on
for more history photographs
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In keeping with the rapid pace of the modern
world driven by info technology, today, i.e
on 12/6/2004 GAWPS took another giant step to
launch their own website linking ourselves
firmly with the outside world.
It
is hoped with this website, Kuala Lumpur &
Selangor Gujaratis will explore the whole world
and make more friends and contacts for the future
benefit of the Gujarati communities everywhere. |
Following are the photographs after the building was renovated and ready in October 2005.
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MAIN ACTIVITIES ORGANISED BY GAWPS |
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Every year the Association organise variety of social,religious,
cultural and entertainment events for the the Gujarati community.
Some of th regular yearly function carried out by the GAWPS
are as follows :
Religious cum Welfare Week
Janmashtami Celebration
Dhanteras Celebration
Jain Paryushan Festival
Diwali Salmubarak Gathering
Jain Ayambil Festival
Raksha Bandhan
Sangh Bhojan
Besides
the above regular functions/event, the association also from
time to time organise some talks/disclosures by prominient
religious/spiritural figures or other organisation that benifits
the members. Every alternate years the association take parts
in the Gujarati Sports Carnival organised in turns by the
GAWPS, Melaka Belia Sakti /Gujarati Samaj and Penang Seva
Samaj.
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