Agha Aly Asker (1808–1891; ''née'' Agha Ali Asker Shirazie) was a Persian horse trader and landowner who emigrated to

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

, in India, in 1824 from

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. He is considered the founding father of the Persian diaspora in the city whose legacy still lives on through the various colonial buildings he constructed at the behest of the Commissioner of Mysore Sir Mark Cubbon. Aly Asker was responsible for constructing the Governor's residence, the State Guesthouse- Balabrooie, Leela Nivas off Cunningham Crescent, among many others. He is also credited with putting Bangalore on the horse-racing map.

Early life and family

Aly Asker was born in 1808, in

, Iran. He is the grandfather of Indian statesman Sir

Mirza Ismail Sir Mirza Muhammad Ismail Amin-ul-Mulq (24 October 1883 – 5 January 1959) was an Indian statesman and police officer who served as the Diwan of Mysore, Jaipur, and Hyderabad.P. 254-258, ''Business Legends'' by Gita Piramal (1998) – Publish ...

, the great-grandfather of philanthropist Shakereh Khaleeli and the great-great-great-grandfather of Indian equestrian

Fouaad Mirza Fouaad Mirza (born 6 March 1992) is an Indian equestrian who won silver medals in both individual eventing and team eventing at the 2018 Asian Games. He became the first Indian since 1982 to win a medal at an individual equestrian event at the ...

Career

Agha Aly Asker was 16 when his brothers (Haji Mohammad Hashim & Mashadi Qasim) and he set sail to India from Iran along with 200 horses intending to trade them in

. They disembarked at

Mangalore Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...

and made their way across the Western Ghats. While passing through

Coorg Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged into an enlarged Mysore State ...

, they were arrested on the suspicion of being British spies. Eventually released by the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

, they made their way to Bangalore through

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

and sold their horses at the British Remount Depot in Mathigiri, Hosur to the British. Haji Mohammad Hashim and Mashadi Qasim returned to Iran in 1825 leaving behind Aly Asker to expand the business. Agha Aly Asker grew to be a highly influential businessman with distinguished patrons that included the British Commissioner, Mark Cubbon, Hassan Ali Shah and the Maharaja of Mysore, Mummadi

Krishnaraja Wodeyar III Krishnaraja Wodeyar III (14 July 1794 – 27 March 1868) was an Indian king who was the twenty-second Maharaja of Mysore. He ruled the kingdom for nearly seventy years, from 30 June 1799 to 27 March 1868, for a good portion of the latter period ...

. He was also presented to the Prince of Wales (later

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

) during a ceremonial visit to Mysore around 1889. Ali Asker was commissioned by Sir Mark Cubbon to build around 100 bungalows on Palace Road near High Point, Sankey Road, Cunningham Road and Richmond Road. He also built the Governor's residence and the State guesthouse- Balabrooie. Aly Asker established the Shia Persian cemetery on Hosur Road. He was also responsible for creating the Ali Asker Waqf Estate which owns the land upon which the Windsor Manor Hotel is built in Bangalore.

Death

Agha Aly Asker died in 1891; in Bangalore. He was buried at the Hosur Road Cemetery. Before his demise, Aly Asker willed Rs.800 for a mosque to be built in Richmond Town to meet the needs of the growing Shia community. The Masjid-e-Askari was built in 1909, it still remains as the city's only long-standing Shia mosque.

Legacy

A short section of road between Infantry Road and Cunningham Road is named after Agha Ali Asker in

. "Agha Aly Asker", written by Syeda Mirza deals with the life and contributions of Agha Aly Asker.

References

{{Reflist 19th-century Iranian businesspeople 19th-century Indian businesspeople Indian male equestrians People from Bengaluru Iranian emigrants to India Indian people of Iranian descent

Early life and family

Career

Death

Legacy

See also

Further reading

References