What’s love got to do with it?


Love has nothing to do with religion is the motto the Armenians, small in numbers as they may be, live by. And live, they do. Mathures Paul reports

An Armenian rugby team no longer exists and the few enthusiasts today play for other teams. Of the many thousand Armenian merchants who began arriving in India 16th century onward, only a handful remain. When the English arrived, these people lent East India Company money to purchase zamindari rights in Bengal and together pioneered the jute trade.
Kolkata’s Armenian community consists of about 200 members and is best symbolised by their church and college. The latter – the Armenian Philanthropic Academy – was founded in 1821 and later moved to Free School Street. Few know that William Makepeace Thackeray was born here. “The very existence of these two institutions says we are here to stay. There was an inflow after the 1914-15 genocide that saw two million people dead. My grandfather settled here because Kolkata was considered the land of opportunities; Bengal was a thriving trading centre. But for a community to survive, a friendly environment is a must and Kolkata gave us that,” says Zaven Stephen, a young filmmaker.
Though staunch followers of the church, the Armenians are not conservative, at least when it comes to inter-community marriage. Victoria Stephen, employed with a private firm says: “How can I plan beforehand who I should fall in love with? My mother is a Hindu and she follows her customs. The community does not look down upon her; love has nothing to do with religion. Yes, the question of retaining one’s lineage is important, but is it more important than being able to freely choose one’s partner?”
The understanding is echoed by rugby player Henrik Terchoonian: “I married a Punjabi girl but will that make my children less Armenian?” His love for the city is undying: “I came here at the age of nine. Students from Iran often come here for school education. Hopefully some would make the city their home.”
Living in Bengal for more than 400 years has wrought some changes. “I love Indian food; my favourite is biryani. In fact, only on special occasions do we prepare strictly Armenian fare. Moreover, since some of the spices are not available here we have to settle for variations,” says Victoria.
But how does an old-timer feel? “I arrived here in December 1934. Then there were at least 3,600 Armenians. Most of them were into coal mining, jute trade and construction. After 1947, they left for the USA, the UK and Australia as they thought things would change for the worse. They were wrong; India as a business destination is looking up.
But those who left are dead. In fact, there are no marriages or engagements now, only funerals to attend,” rues Mr Charles Sarkies, superintendent of Sir Catchick Paul Chater Home. The Armenians have been great architects. Some of the city’s prided buildings are ample proof of this. TM Thaddeus built Park Mansions, JC Galstaun will be remembered for Queen’s (earlier Galstaun) Mansions, Galstaun Park, Harington Mansions and his own palatial residence, the palace of Nizam of Hyderabad. Another famous landmark is Stephen Court, built by Arratoon Stephen. He is also credited for Stephen House in BBD Bag and the main edifice of Grand Hotel. It is said that at his residence hung a watercolour of Akbar and his Armenian wife, Mariam Zamani.
“The community was undoubtedly very well off. Now women have to work. This may sound old fashioned but women were then not allowed to work,” says Mr Sarkies, the pukka gentleman. But would women – good-looking as they are – take up professions such as modelling? Victoria disapproves of the idea: “Armenian women generally are good-looking but they prefer to use their brains. We are a bit conservative and pick professions that are ‘noble’.”
The Armenians are born champs when it comes to rugby and boxing. None can forget names like Emil Vartazarian, Daniel Janoyan, Hovsep Hovsepian and Haik Sookias in rugby and Baby Arathoon in boxing (he was a rugby hero too). However, the enthusiasts’ only consolation now is that Emil coaches the Tamil Nadu Police. The Armenian Club, earlier a major hot spot, now bustles once in a blue moon. There are only 22 members and they play bingo instead of bridge, which used to be a passion earlier.
“There are more Armenians in Kolkata than in Mumbai or Delhi,” smiles Peter Hyrapiet. “Chennai, where we had a big settlement, does not have a single Armenian today. Yet, the Armenian Association is the trustee of St Mary’s Church in Chennai.” In West Bengal, the situation is much better than it was a decade back – the church has helped in establishing an Armenian trauma care centre and the Rabindranath Tagore International Institute for Cardiac Sciences in Mukundapur.
One should also mention the name of Sir Catchick Paul Chater, the benevolent man of means who bequeathed much of his fortune to the church and the people at Paul Chater Home.
For most, memories are all they have. Mr Sarkies’ eyes glow when he recalls how JC Galstaun’s racehorses ran amuck inside the office of Little Sisters of the Poor. “And when he apologised, they said we’ve been praying for a horse driven carriage! On another occasion, he went to London and placed ‘10,000’ on a horse. When the bookie reminded him that England’s currency was the pound, he doubled the bet and won.”
Reality, however, is different. The church lacks a priest and the community a rugby team. But the Armenians are optimistic. As Zaven says: “Much of my life has been spent with the church choir – it has become an important part of my being. So has India which is my motherland while Armenia is my fatherland. I’ve never been to Armenia, but the church and the school have made up for that. If ever I get an opportunity to go abroad I will, but only to return and serve my community. After all, India is one of the fastest growing economies.”
(The article appeared as part of the Diversity Matters series published in The Statesman)

Comments

Anonymous said…
Very nice article. You have captured well the broad minded, eclectic ethos of the Armenian Indian community, which retains their cultural mores and historical memories while at the same time respecting the customs of their adoptive country.

Was reminded of the ancient tale of another very well regarded immigrant community- The Parsis, who told the Indian king when they arrived, that they would be like the sugar dissolved in milk! Sweetening the society they lived in, without imposing their views/beliefs by force or making unreasonable or arbitrary demands. This truly applies to the very special yet adaptable Armenian community as well.

I got to be acquainted with the community through my "gym buddy" friendship with Armenian-Iranian Emil Vartazarian, when I was working in Chennai a few years ago. We used to work out in the same gym for a long time then, and Emil used to occasionally "spot" me when I was lifting heavy weights.

He was rugby coach of the American International School in Chennai at the time, as well as the Technical Director of the South Indian Rugby Football Association (SIRFA) and coach for the Chennai Cheetahs and the Tamil Nadu police team. He was also of course, a lead player in the Indian National rugby team at that time.

He was truly an inspiration with his intense commitment to physical fitness, his robust athleticism and never-say-die confidence on the field, and yet a good natured sportsman spirit, win or lose. He used to be a pretty good soccer player as well, apart from his excellence in rugby. And a genuinely nice, approachable dude to boot. Many of us then-young lads learned a lot from him, on and off the field.
Anonymous said…
Further to the comment above, heartily concur. Have a lot of regard for the sheer resilience and perseverance of the Armenian diaspora. As well as their adaptability and whole-hearted willingness to blend/synergize with the ethos of their community, whilst also retaining their distinctive home ethos and identity.

I used to admire Emil Vartazarian tremendously as well. He embodied this spirited determination, his can-do ebullience was proof of the saying "Your attitude determines your altitude". At about 5' 6", he definitely wasn't the largest player on his or the opponents' rugby teams by any measure; many others were considerably taller and brawnier than he was. But he'd put in hours of dedicated effort to build his core strength and hone his physique into sculpted, athletic perfection. I remember, in the gym fitness evaluations, his body fat percentage was at an impressive low of 10-12%! He used his speed and explosive power to outrun and outgun players far bulkier than he was. No wonder he used to have so many fans in his "Chennai Cheetah" team days.

Of course, the fact that he was extremely charismatic, good looking and superbly fit also helped. :-) :-) If I could be a bit gushing here, he brought a heady blast of rugged machismo, nonchalant about sporting a natural crop of body hair. Probably another feature of the self confident Armenian-Iranian diaspora, comfortable in their own skin, unlike others who go in for extreme and artificial depilation/ waxing which borders on the androgynous.
Anonymous said…
Thanks to my buddies Jaggy & Sonia for referring this post to me, and I must say it's great fun to have a reunion of sorts of pals from the Chennai days, reading and commenting on this post!

As others have stated above, the Armenian diaspora is truly remarkable. Perhaps one of the very, very few communities which came to India with peaceful intentions, with no desire to conquer/invade/colonize. Maybe this was owing to their own long and rich heritage and history of being invaded by powerful empires like the Ottoman, Persian and Russian Empires. Facing these challenges has given the Armenian diaspora their admirable strengths-- their resilience, their spirited resolve and confidence.

As others have already been giddily complimenting Emil Vartazarian, let me also add my voice to the chorus of appreciation for this admirable dude. One of the best inspirations for fitness and sports for many of us at that time. A rugged, outdoorsy chap with a wryly mischievous sense of humor and a gentleman to boot! I must confess I had quite a crush on him at that time, as did about a dozen ladies and perhaps even 2 or 3 guys I was friends with! :-) :-) The affable and good humored way he used to cope with the admiring glances and not-so-subtle flirtations of his legion of fans, required quite some suave pizzazz!

I'll never forget the first time I met Emil- he was porpoising powerfully through the club pool in a technically perfect butterfly stroke (wearing picturesquely snug speedos!!). Water droplets streaming over his chiseled physique and just-right torso fuzz. Phew! Adonis, indeed!
Anonymous said…
In reply to the 2nd comment above. :-) Emil was less than average in height- as you said, around 5' 6" or max 5' 7". But he was built like a Lamborghini or a Ferrari! All taut and ripped muscle, clearly defined angles and ridges. :-) As you mentioned, the moderately thick smattering of torso hair was a definite bonus!

And---ahem! Judging from the (numerous) times he nonchalantly strolled around the locker room in those snug Jockey briefs, he was *extremely* well endowed in the family jewels department. :-) ;-)
Anonymous said…
Emil closely resembled this hunk, Jonathan Best, who appears in the controversial ace photographer Paul Freeman's work. In fact when Freeman's photos of Best were published a few years ago, I did a double take, 'coz I thought for a moment it was Emil! :-)

That impressively sculpted physique, that nonchalant pose comfortable in his own skin, even when wearing little more than a cheeky grin and a nice manly thatch of body hair-- it just so resembled Emil! :-)

[img]https://66.media.tumblr.com/b3c69b683fdc075bd7f58a3578b37c4f/tumblr_nd8dbhaHDb1rsaj3qo1_1280.jpg[/img]

[img]https://66.media.tumblr.com/5ab4a6e556583c6fd3216fe9722d4400/tumblr_nqfvvzb1za1qc54m8o1_1280.jpg[/img]

[img]https://78.media.tumblr.com/531b0bea57eb6d90d052404719538b78/tumblr_nqfvvzb1za1qc54m8o8_1280.jpg[/img]

[img]https://assets1.ello.co/uploads/asset/attachment/2332586/ello-hdpi-826a9591.jpg[/img]

[img]https://66.media.tumblr.com/9121bcaa658af575ca2a68c27146760d/tumblr_nxibt41Rqg1uvljp0o1_1280.jpg[/img]
Anonymous said…
In regard to the comment above, the images aren't displaying properly. Trying to attach the links here. These are of the model Jonathan Best, taken by the photographer Paul Freeman. Emil used to pretty much resemble him....

the rugged outback

outdoor camping

gorgeous satyr

furry hunk

cheeky grin & body fuzz
Anonymous said…
Some more links of Freeman's photos of Jonathan Best. The model seriously looks like a long lost cousin of Emil Vartazarian's. Possibly Emil was a shade better looking. :-)

chiselled greek god

macho Gandharva by a forest pool

muscular faun

smilin' in the rain

contemplative machismo

hairy adonis
Anonymous said…
Enclosing few more pics of the model Jonathan Best, who has more than a passing resemblance to Emil Vartazarian. Clean cut good looks with sharp features, those broad, muscular shoulders tapering down chiseled lats to a trim waist; and of course those amazingly sculpted arms and taut leg muscles. Those pinkish-brown pebbled nips nestling in the crisp thatch of chest fuzz, too! :-)

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon(and hidden family jewels!)

Chillin' skinny dipping in the pool

Striking a relaxed pose
Anonymous said…
Nice to see a lot of praise coming the way of the Armenian diaspora of India in general (a genuinely nice, hard working and likeable bunch), and the rugby/soccer stud Emil Vartazarian in particular.

Emil had oodles of charisma and this undefinable magnetism--a je ne sais quoi, as the French put it. He'd featured in a few commercials but when he moved to Chennai -- where he was rugby coach of the American International School in Chennai as well as for the 'Chennai Cheetahs' and the Tamil Nadu police team -- he didn't get much modeling opportunities. Chennai obviously isn't as enmeshed as Mumbai or Delhi in the fashion/ ad film scene.

Some of us used to joke that Emil would do very well to feature in some racy calendar photoshoots in the style of the very famous French calendars/books/DVDs of "Dieux Du Stade" (featuring nude & semi nude photographs of players from the Stade Français, a Paris-based French rugby team)!!

Emil certainly had the robustly athletic & magnificently chiseled physique -- not to mention the nonchalance, and the unabashed chutzpah -- to carry off a tastefully nude photoshoot!! A definite inspiration/ parallel could be the shoots of the French rugby player Christophe Dominici.

Like Emil, he was of moderate/ below average height; but (again like Emil), his powerfully built physique sprinkled with a thatch of body fuzz, and his rugged good looks, made him a sex symbol.

Going by the umpteen times Emil strolled around in snug briefs (and even sometimes in the buff!) in the gym locker room/sauna, his superbly toned posterior and *extremely* well endowed family jewels (length and girth both!!) ;-) ;-) , would have made him a superhit in a hypothetical Indian version of the Dieux Du Stade! Pity we didn't have an equivalent calendar shoot here, though.

Attaching some photos of Dominici, to illustrate what we *could* have seen Emil posing as (wishful thinking!). :-D ;-O. Of course, Emil would have been even more dashing!!

Christophe Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe in Dieux Du Stade

Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe in Dieux Du Stade

Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

Christophe Dominici in Dieux Du Stade

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