Nanku Mistri Muhammad Ismail

My Grandfather Muhammad Ismail aka Nanku Mistri , Son of Bhulai Seth a resident of Shafdargunj,Shahidanpur Aurella Barabanki Uttar Pradesh.

Migrated to Kolkata or Calcutta in 1942-43 after the death of his parents and first wife along with 2 children. Being a Dyeing Agent he started working in K.Chunnilal & Co .Beerpara near Dum Dum North Kolkata. His starting salary per month was 15 rupees, his good work won him a hike so finally it was 18 rupees. Subsequently the owner sold the factory to him and that's how Nanku Mistri became the owner of present day Janata Dyeing Factory Estb 1960.

Ancestral home was close to Shafdargunj Station. Youngest among the three sons , his mother passed away very early , father Bhulai Seth took care of him till he also passed away . His father was a Petlad Mill Agent , dyeing of yarn was the family business . He was well known in the locality for his generosity and good work. He breathed his last in the arms of his son , Ismail, saying the following words “ hold me very tight i am feeling very cold “ - our grandfather held him that way till he realized that the soul has left the body .It happened to be the evening of Eid ul Adha .

Nanku Mistri was an expert in the dyeing of yarns which earned him a good name and a few years later the owner wanted to sell the factory and my grandfather purchased it . Its approximately 28,800 sq feet in area .The Factory was renamed as Janata Dyeing Factory which remains so till date.

He was a down to earth person , never shy of working along side the factory workers . A perfectionist when it comes to getting the right tint and tone. Honest to the core in his personal and professional life. Was fondly called ‘Abba’ by the workers .

Consecutive riots and the family's hardships finding shelters gave him the idea to have an alternate home in the city. He purchased a flat in central Calcutta. He along with my father expanded the business , purchased another land in the year 1950 which was around 14500sq feet in size at Beerpara(North Calcutta) to turn it into an extension of the factory where bleaching of the yarn was carried out . He had lands(10,000 sq feet approx) and other properties in Barabanki along with the ancestral home (3600 sq feet approx).He purchased a home at Khidderpore and lived in it for a decade during the riots in Kolkata.Apart from this he gifted his daughters -Ashrafunnisa and Zaibunnisa a house each in Kanpur .

He and my grandma went for Hajj in the year 1967.

I have faint memories of him wearing dhoti kurta ( traditional dress ) coloured and whites too.He was unlettered but pious , generous and caring.He gained popularity locally and people respected him a lot. I distinctly remember the whiff of dyes in his fingers once when he was feeding me.

Diagnosed with throat cancer at an early age of 45 and survived for 25years.Finally at the age of 75 he lost the battle to cancer when it relapsed,had been treated at Chitranjan Cancer Hospital Calcutta. Finally he was burried at Shahar Bangla .

I pray to Allah SWT to bless him with Jannatul Firdaus -ameen May Allah SWT give him the Ajr of my prayers ,sadaqas,Quran and other good deeds-ameen Request you to do Isaal-i-sawaab for him too.