Years ago a corporate giant placed an ad on the television which denigrated and mocked the Indo Trinidadian. I immediately sought redress and was locked out of their corporate headquarters. In sheer indignation, I went to Devant Maharaj who was then an activist and columnist of growing importance, and together we were able to have the insulting advert removed from the airwaves. We have remained friends ever since. This is why I was deeply honoured when he contacted me over a year ago to pen a couple chapters in the book which was the result of decades of research into his own genealogy, Line of my People. That volume documents his paternal and maternal ancestry in India as well as Trinidad. Not only was it a labour of love , but the research provided a key insight into several important clans, most notably the Dials. What resulted in print form was a book that is poignant and deep in its very simplicity and its lack of unnecessary ostentation. Masterful in its layout and design, it is a model that owes much as well to Mrs. Kristal Maharaj whose immense influences are evident throughout the volume. Launched this last Wednesday at the Principals Office at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, I was asked to give remarks along with several other dignitaries far superior in their mark on society to my own humble contributions- Prof. Ann Marie Bissessar, Prof. John La Guerre, Prof. Clement Sankat (Pro Vice-Chancellor and Campus Principal, UWI-St. Augustine) , Chairman of the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation Councillor Terry Rondon, Roman Catholic activist Leela Ramdeen, the godfather of local genealogy research, Shamshu Deen and Shri Satnaryan Maharaj (Secretary-General of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha). My commentary then and now remains thus : Line of my People is evidence that we all can find ourselves in our ancestry. Maybe not on a scale with the depth and breadth that Devant has pursued since his early teenage years, but anything is a start. Several copies of the book were presented to NALIS and I urge all those who call and message me on a daily basis with questions on how to trace ancestry, need to read this book. Congratulations to my brother Devant on what is definitely a landmark writing. trinidadexpress/news/Devant-Talk-about-the-past-with-elders-260347401.html
Posted on: Sun, 25 May 2014 14:44:36 +0000
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