Shah Abdul Majid Qureshi (), also known by his

daak naam Personal names in Bengali-speaking countries consist of one or several given names and a surname. The given is usually gender-specific. A name is usually cited in the " Western order" of "given name, surname", though the practise is neither a ...

Moina Miah (), was an early

British Bangladeshi British Bangladeshis () are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots are from Bangladesh. Bengali Muslims have prominently been migrating to the UK since World War II. Migration reached its peak during the 1970s, with ...

restaurateur and social reformer. He is notable for being involved in the early politics of

British Asians British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British people of Asian people, Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with a population of 5.76 million people or 8.6 ...

and pioneering social welfare work for the working-class diaspora in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He claimed to be the first Sylheti to own a restaurant in the United Kingdom. One of his later restaurants, ''India Centre'', often provided facilities and was a location where important meetings were held by the India League attracting the likes of

Subhas Chandra Bose Subhas Chandra Bose (23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian independence movement, Indian nationalist whose defiance of British raj, British authority in India made him a hero among many Indians, but his wartime alliances with ...

and

V. K. Krishna Menon Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian academic, independence activist, politician, lawyer, and statesman. During his time, Menon contributed to the Indian independence movement and India's foreign r ...

Early life

Qureshi came from a traditional

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

family claiming descent from the

Arab tribe The tribes of Arabia () have inhabited the Arabian Peninsula for thousands of years and traditionally trace their ancestry to one of two forefathers: Adnan, whose descendants originate from West Arabia, North Arabia, East Arabia, and Central A ...

Quraysh The Quraysh () are an Tribes of Arabia, Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably including the Banu Hashim, into which Islam's founding prophet Muhammad was born. By ...

. He was born in the Patli village of Jagannathpur in the

Sylhet District Sylhet District (), located in north-east Bangladesh, is one of the four districts in Sylhet Division, which contains Sylhet, the regional capital. History Sylhet District was established on 3 January 1782, and until 1878 it was part of Benga ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

Assam Province Assam Province was a province of British India, created in 1912 by the partition of the Eastern Bengal and Assam Province. Its capital was in Shillong. The Assam territory was first separated from Bengal in 1874 as the 'North-East Frontier' ...

on 25 September 1915. He was the eldest child and had two brothers and a sister. The family residence in Patli was known as Quresh Bari and his father owned some land. However, his father's main goal was to educate his children which was extremely expensive leading to him sell nearly all his land. This led to Qureshi being well educated during his youth. Qureshi decided to become a lascar after being inspired by many other Sylheti men and moved to

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

in 1934. He believed that seafaring was a historical inheritance of Sylhetis due to many Sylhetis being descendants of foreign traders and businessmen. He joined the crew of a ship bound for the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. His intention was to jump ship in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where he believed he would find economic opportunity, but his attempt was foiled in 1935. The next year, in his early 20s, he successfully jumped ship in London.

Career

Qureshi's first job in the

consisted of selling chocolates. After getting into contact with other

, he began working in

South Asian cuisine South Asian cuisine includes the traditional cuisines from the modern-day South Asian republics of Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, also sometimes including the kingdom of Bhutan and the emirate of Afghanistan. Also som ...

restaurants such as Bengal Restaurant in Percy Street. After two years of living in the United Kingdom, Qureshi opened his first restaurant, Dilkush, which was located in

Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

's Windmill Street. He claimed this was the first restaurant to be owned by a Sylheti. The restaurant, located near

Tottenham Court Road Tottenham Court Road (occasionally abbreviated as TCR) is a major road in Central London, almost entirely within the London Borough of Camden. The road runs from Euston Road in the north to St Giles Circus in the south; Tottenham Court Road tu ...

, was destroyed by a bomb in 1940. In 1943, Qureshi, alongside his acquaintance Ayub Ali Master, founded the Indian Seamen's Welfare League with a purpose of promoting the social welfare of lascars. Based in Christian Street, the organisation ensured the rights of Asians and made it easier for them to communicate to their family abroad. On 14 July 1943, the first meeting took place, in King's Hall,

Commercial Street, London Commercial Street is an arterial road in the boroughs of Tower Hamlets and Hackney that runs north to south from Shoreditch High Street to Whitechapel High Street through Spitalfields. The road is a section of the A1202 London Inner Ring Ro ...

. The meeting attracted mostly

Bengali Muslims Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work.are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest et ...

but dozens of Europeans were also present. Later, the organisation was renamed to the Indian Seamen's Welfare League to sound less political and Qureshi was made president of the welfare league. The following year, Qureshi opened another restaurant off Charlotte Street which came to be known as the India Centre. The ''India Centre'' was frequently visited by British Asians, in particular politicians, who held important communal and political meetings there. Qureshi also assisted and attended

's India League and Surat Alley's Hindustani Social Club meetings. He was also involved with the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

and was in contact with the likes of

. Later on, he became a member of the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party founded in 1906 in Dhaka, British India with the goal of securing Muslims, Muslim interests in South Asia. Although initially espousing a united India with interfaith unity, the Muslim L ...

. In 1946, Qureshi returned for the first time to Sylhet, where he married. He divided his time between London and Sylhet until 1976, when his wife and children joined him in the United Kingdom.

Legacy

His sons continue to own

Indian cuisine Indian cuisine consists of a variety of regional and traditional cuisines native to the Indian subcontinent. Given the diversity in soil, climate, culture, ethnic groups, and occupations, these cuisines vary substantially and use locally av ...

restaurants in the United Kingdom.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qureshi, Shah Abdul Majid British restaurateurs 1915 births 2003 deaths British Muslims Bangladeshi emigrants to England Bangladeshi people of Arab descent British chefs Bangladeshi businesspeople Businesspeople from London British chief executives British company founders Chefs of Indian cuisine 20th-century British businesspeople 20th-century Muslims 21st-century Muslims All-India Muslim League politicians 20th-century English businesspeople People from Patli Union

Early life

Career

Legacy

See also

References