R. Jalbhoy was a major Karachi photographer and postcard publisher at the turn of the century, who could often depict people and parts of the city that fell off the usual tourist or landmark circuit. Note the shoes on the sitters in this studio shot.
The Karachi Congress party meeting, held six days after Bhagat Singh was executed on March 23, 1931, was a tense affair.
By the 1920s, Karachi's port had become one of the most commercially significant in the British Empire — by 1910, it was said to already be handling more wheat than any other port in the British Empire.
Sharif al Mujahid in his book In Quest of Jinnah Diary, Notes and Correspondence of Hector Bolitho (pp. 51-2), which collates many unpublished pieces by Jinnah's first biographer, includes this excerpt dated 11 April [1952]:
"Visit to Liaquat Gardens
Nusserwanjee & Co. was a prominent business enterprise in Karachi during the British colonial period, owned by the Parsi Nusserwanjee family.
By 1899, Karachi had become the largest wheat and cotton exporting port in South Asia. The port's significance in wheat exports grew rapidly, and by 1910, Karachi handled greater quantities of wheat than any other port in the British Empire.
Motilal Nehru was the father of Jawaharlal Nehru, and a very popular politician during the early struggle for Independence, and twice President of the Indian National Congress.
Although this is a different view and title, the crowds suggest it was made during the Maha Shivratri Hindu Festival shown in another postcard.
British Royal Air Force biplanes watched by spectators in Karachi. The R.A.F. frequently used aircraft like these in the northwest on the border with Afghanistan against tribal militias.
This hospital was built in the memory of Parsi trader Eduljee Dinshaw. Parsis started major property, shipping, hotel and beverage businesses in Karachi since the late 19th century.
