Sir Mangaldas Nathubhoy (15 October 1832 – 9 March 1890), Seth or head of the Kapol Bania

caste Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural ...

, well known for their thrift and keen commercial instincts.

Biography

He was born of a family whose ancestors emigrated from Diu Goghla district to

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the '' de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the sec ...

soon after Bombay came into British possession. Ramdas Manordas, his grandfather, amassed a considerable fortune, which, owing to the premature death of his father, came into the sole possession of Mangaldas at the age of eleven. He had to take charge of the business in early life, though he gave some time to English studies. He was a noted cotton mill merchant and was agent of Bombay United Mill from 1860 to 1874, when he resigned and agency was given to Khatau Maccanji.Shyam Rungta.
The Rise of Business Corporations in India 1851-1900
'. CUP Archive; 2 February 1970 [Retrieved 18 March 2017]. GGKEY:NC1SA25Y2CB. p. 237–238, 328. On the death of Nathubhoy's wife he established a dispensary at

Kalyan Kalyan (Pronunciation: əljaːɳ is a city on the banks of Ulhas River in Thane district of Maharashtra state in Konkan division. It is governed by Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation. Kalyan is a subdivision (Taluka) of Thane district. K ...

in her memory and also a special female ward in connection with the David Sassoon hospital in

Poona Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

. As a merchant Mangaldas was upright and successful. In social matters he stood forth as a reformer, and to him the change to election from hereditary succession to the headship of the caste is due. In 1862 he founded a fellowship in

Bombay university The University of Mumbai is a collegiate, state-owned, public research university in Mumbai. The University of Mumbai is one of the largest universities in the world. , the university had 711 affiliated colleges. Ratan Tata is the appointed ...

to allow graduates to spend some years in Europe. A bequest in his will enabled the university to establish seven similar scholarships. He took keen interest in learning, and in such institutions as the Asiatic and geographical societies. In 1866 he was nominated to the legislative council and sat until 1874. In 1867 he revived the Bombay association, a political body, over which he presided for a time. In 1872 he was made CSI, and in 1875 the dignity of

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are t ...

was conferred on him. Besides a large donation to the Indian Famine Fund, Sir Mangaldas is known to have expended 500,000 on charities. He died at Bombay on 9 March 1890.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nathubhoy 1832 births 1890 deaths Knights Bachelor Indian businesspeople in textiles Businesspeople from Mumbai Members of the Bombay Legislative Council 19th-century Indian philanthropists Gujarati people Gujaratis from Mumbai