It has been five years to the day since the horrific terror attacks in Mumbai, and in many ways, life has moved on. But, those three days are etched in one’s memory forever. This wasn’t just an attack on Mumbai, it was an attack on each and every one of us who were glued to our television screens hoping and praying that the bloodshed would soon end, knowing otherwise.
Fast-forward to 2013 – the Taj, the Oberoi, CST and Leopold have been restored. Bloodstains wiped clean, bullet marks filled in, and life as they say, goes on.
But, Nariman House has taken slower steps towards restoration. Here, it’s a balance of restoration and preservation. Restoring the house to what it used to be and preservation of the memory of Late Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg and his late wife, Rivkah Holtzberg, who were both tortured and killed in the terror attacks.
Timelines of that night have sadly been marked in stone and while the savagery of the terrorists still sends shivers down our spines, there are stories that cheated death and time. MensXP tells you one untold story. Meet Bension Ghosalkar – he’s the man that not only cheated death but probably unwittingly crossed the terrorists before the bloodshed in Nariman House.
Bension (73) is the caretaker of the Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue in Fort, Mumbai. He was at Nariman House that night and after spending time with the Rabbi Holtzberg and Rivkah, he stayed over for dinner. That night, Bension chose to leave after dinner instead of staying on for prayers like he usually did. It was a decision that saved his life.
In fact, the terrorists were instructed to attack Nariman House first and then disperse to the other targets. Since Nariman House was hard to locate, the terrorists got delayed in getting there. In the meantime, Rabbi Holtzberg, Rivkah and his guests finished dinner on the first floor and retired to the third floor for prayers. It was then that Bension decided to leave, then that as he made his way out of Nariman House, in all probability, he crossed paths with the men that unleashed a wave of terror in the next few minutes.
Call this destiny, fate or just a near miss, Bension is a quiet unassuming man who goes about his business as usual. Ask him about his near-death escape and he nods in quiet acceptance, not saying much, just smiling and going on with life as usual. This is the only man alive today who was witness to the late Rabbi, late Rivkah and their guests as they ate their last meal. This is the only man who knows exactly what went on before the sheer senselessness of death and murder unfolded. This is the only man who knows how lucky he is to be alive but he’s quiet, respectful of the days ahead of him.
Ralphy Jhirad, a prominent member of the Jewish community in Mumbai and Publisher of “Bombay – Exploring the Jewish Urban Heritage” said, “Bension is unassuming and even though he had a narrow escape, he doesn’t talk about that night.”
26/11 will forever be a remember of the bloodshed and mayhem, but it’s also a day when people stood up for another, saved one another, a whole city became one in attack, a whole country stood united in face of imminent tragedy, and then there were a silent few who escaped death unknowingly and silently... and these men are still silent about the fact that their existence is miraculous.
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