He opened an elegant store selling pearls and jewelry in 1952
Indian merchants are characterized by gentleness, honesty, honesty and trust
The Al-Mannai family has long been considered one of the families known for its members dealing in the pearl trade inside and outside the Kingdom of Bahrain, including: the notable and businessman Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Isa Al-Mannai.
The businessman, the owner of Al-Mannai Jewellery, and the notable Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Issa Al-Mannai, said in an interview with Al-Bilad that he inherited the pearl trade from his grandfather, and learned to craft ornaments and jewelry in India, to be the first Bahraini to study at the Pune Jewelery Institute in the year 1947. The following is the transcript of the meeting:
Tell us about the pearl trade and how to learn it?
– I inherited the pearl trade from my grandfather, and my father sent me to India to learn the design and crafting of ornaments and jewelry in the year 1947, to be the first Bahraini to study at the Bona Jewelery Institute. Among the merchants, the journey took 7 days, and the ship stopped in some ports such as Muscat, Gwadar, and Karachi. Among the things that caught my eye in Bombay were the presence of the “tram”, the telephone, the electric elevator (elevator), and the paved streets. ) And it was a meeting place for merchants, and in the corner where the cafe is located, there is a street that leads to the Al-Qasab Mosque, and one kilometer away there is a beautiful mosque built of white marble that resembles the Taj Mahal. Bombay was a center for import and export, comparable to Western countries.
I opened my high-end shop for selling pearls and jewelry in Bahrain in 1952, and the family business has been extended since 1824. My father and grandfather traveled to India in 1934 and dealt with Hindu and Muslim merchants and Bohras who were distinguished by their gentle morals, honesty, honesty and trust. There are many Bahraini and Gulf merchants and families who have been present for a long time. in Bombay.
How was your dealings with Indian merchants in Bahrain?
– My father, grandfather and I dealt with Indian merchants in Bahrain and they are well known and famous. They are goldsmiths and merchants of foodstuffs, fabrics and other materials known at the time. We dealt with them extensively. Our experience with all of them was and still is honorable and excellent. They are at the highest level of honor, honesty, honesty and morals. They also have the advantage that they trust us with an abnormal confidence, as they can give you any amount you need while you are, for example, on travel or goods without a signature or contract.
What are the most prominent Indian commercial families that you dealt with?
– Some of the Indian trading families we dealt with, including: the Ratilal family, the Dilamil Sardas family, the Chaterboy family, the Shwiter Ram family, the B Haridas family, the Bhatia family, the Kiluram family, and the Kalavani family. And these families we dealt with in gold and general trade.
In India, we dealt with the Indian trading families only in pearls, and they are Muslims, Bohras, Banyans and Hindus, such as: Sarkar family, Kelvin family, Kalbash family, Kamlesh family, Omni family, Sabu family, Simch family, Jeon Bay family, Manilal family, Goksi family, and the Babtilal family. We have dealt with these families in Pearl since the days of my grandfather, Issa bin Ali Al-Mannai, until today.
What are the most prominent Indian cities that you visited?
– From the Indian cities I visited: Bombay for the pearl trade, Delhi where we had an agency with an electrical transformer company (Toshiba factory in India), Jelinek tea trade house, Bengaluru, Shamla, and Hyderabad where an annual exhibition of Indian jewelry is held. I visited several times, Ahmedabad Bona, where she studied design and jewelry making, Assam Oud Trade.
In the city of Bombay, my father, Abdullah bin Issa al-Mannai, had a house on Nikdivi Street, which is parallel to Muhammad Ali Road and Abdul Rahman Street, and close to the Arab coffee shop and the butcher’s mosque.
The house was divided into two parts, a section for housing and an office section for my parents, Abdullah bin Issa al-Mannai, in which he met with Indian and Arab merchants, where transactions were held such as the sale and purchase of pearls.
In the Arab coffee shop, Arab merchants used to meet in it and exchange conversations and news. They also met at the entrance to the Al-Qasab Mosque, where outside it there is a place to sit, from after the Maghrib prayer until the Isha prayer, and after the prayer, each of them goes to his residence.
Who are the most prominent Gulf personalities and merchants that you met in Bombay?
Among the Gulf merchants I met in Bombay were: From Bahrain: Abdullah bin Ahmed Al-Mannai, Isa bin Saleh bin Hindi Al-Mannai, Sheikh Ahmed bin Muhammad Al-Mahmoud, Abdul Rahman Al-Mir, Ahmed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Zayani, Jassim bin Muhammad Al-Zayani, and Jaafar Mandil.
From the State of Kuwait: Khaled Al-Sahli, Issa Yousef Al-Qinai and his son Faisal, who was the Consul of the State of Kuwait in India, Ibrahim Al-Janahi, and Abdulaziz Muhammad Hammoud Al-Shaya.
From the UAE: Abdullah bin Ali Al Owais and his son Sultan, Arhama bin Abdullah Al Shamsi, and Saleh bin Lootah.
From the Sultanate of Oman: Jaafar Abdul Rahim.
And from the State of Qatar: Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Asiri, Ahmed and Mubarak Al-Khulaifi, and Abdullah bin Jassim Al-Maslamani.
And from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Muhammad Ali Zainal, Abdulaziz bin Arfaj, Muhammad bin Ali Al-Bassam, and Ahmed bin Abdullah Al-Qadi.
My father and I always visited Muhammad Ali Zainal in his house, as he was a friend of my father, and we also always visited Muhammad bin Ali Al-Bassam and Ahmed bin Abdullah Al-Qadi, who obtained Indian citizenship in addition to their original Saudi nationality.
My father had agreed with a private tutor to learn book keeping, and the teacher would come to my father’s house and share with me the learning, Abdulaziz Al-Shaya from Kuwait and Khalil Al-Dawi from Bahrain (brothers of Abdullah and Juma Al-Dawi, and they are merchants who have a building in Muharraq to sell ship materials) and the training period lasted for a period the two months.
Among the rulers I met in Bombay: Sheikh Muhammad bin Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa, Sheikh Abdullah bin Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait, where he had a palace in an upscale area called SEA GREEN and it is located opposite Church gate).
And when I was on a visit to Sheikh Abdullah bin Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa, he informed me that he would visit Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah at his house and asked me to accompany him. I said yes to him, so Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem said to me, “Your grandfather is Salem bin Darwish Al-Mannai”.
And Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa built for Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah a palace located between Al-Hidd and Qalali, and it is now the new Arad. God).
Tell us about important events you witnessed in Bombay, India?
– When I visited Bombay for the first time in 1947, I stayed there for about a year, and at that time it was the beginning of India’s independence and its separation from Pakistan, and I saw the dead people in the streets, and they were wearing Arab clothes in order to avoid attacking them from any side, and people were carrying knives to protect themselves, because of the sectarian differences between Muslims and Hindus .
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