THE MADRAS PARSI ASSOCIATION

Parsi Club - Phiroj Clubwala Memorial Hall, and The Pavilion

 

The Chennai Zoroastrian community bought a building called Greenfields in 1927, and dedicated it as a memorial hall to Phiroj Clubwala for his gifts to the community. 

It was used as a club, and had a separate indoor badminton court which was opened in 1930. In the same year, The Madras Parsi Association was constituted to promote social and cultural activities within the community, usually at The Phiroj Clubwala Memorial Hall. A committee was formed and Mr Nogi P Clubwala, who was a sports enthusiast, was the chief promoter of the Association.  In his memory, we celebrate 15th November every year as Nogi Day.

At the inception of the “Club” as the Memorial Hall came to be known, about 50 members met every evening and partook in many games.  The Hall has witnessed navjotes, weddings, seminars and other community celebrations.  

With the passage of time, the old Hall became dilapidated, and  in 1972 the Association formed a special committee to collect funds for a new building.  This Committee was headed by Mr J H Tarapore and Mrs Mani J Clubwala.  Many public performances were staged by inviting drama troupes from Mumbai and Chennai, in order to collect funds.  We are indebted to Mr J H Tarapore for the construction of the building and Mrs Mani Clubwala, Mr Noshir Ratnagar & Mrs Sherry Batliwala for their invaluable contribution to this project.  The new Phiroj Clubwala Memorial Hall was consecrated on 11th June, 1980.

In the same year, the Association celebrated its Golden Jubilee, on the 15th of November.  This was a 3-day event with talks, competitions and felicitations.  

In 1986, the Association decided to organise a Gahambar as an annual activity.  Mr J H Tarapore came forward to host the first gahambar. We have tried to keep this tradition going, with the contribution of generous members.  To facilitate the regular meeting of its members, the Association started a monthly fellowship dinner in 1987,  on the last Saturday of every month.  Chennai is one of the few cities where monthly get-togethers are held and we organise a fun activity to liven up the evening.  

On 20th August 2005, The MPA celebrated its Platinum Jubilee with special events and a dinner for the community.  

The main hall underwent extensive renovations again and was fully airconditioned for the Agiary’s Centenary on 10 July, 2010. The community extends their deep gratitude to Mr & Mrs Darius Bahadurji and Mr & Mrs Darayes Dalal, since their generous contributions, added to the contributions from the three community organisations, made these expensive upgradations possible. Similarly, the badminton Pavilion also was refurbished  with the support of funds from Darius and Tehnaz Bahadurji, and inaugurated on 21 March, 2018 nearing the approach of the Agiari’s 110th anniversary.

​Air conditioning and renovating these two halls has been very important for the community, as renting them out has created a steady income stream that has provided long term financial security, as well as the finances to repair and renovate all the Anjuman properties in the short term. Chennai has had a minor influx of young people coming here on jobs, and they have benefited from this economical housing. It has also encouraged a few of them to stay on and put down roots, which replenishes the youthful energy and vigour of the community.

​The Madras Parsi Association continues in its efforts to keep the spirit of community alive, and looks forward to celebrating its centenary in 2030.