Although I personally did not experience the horrors of partition, its effects have reached down through generations of Sindhis. The stories of families being torn apart, murder and rape are numerous and horrifying. I was to hear such stories from my paternal grandmother, Dadi Jethibai Khiantani and her sister, my great aunt Dadi Parpati Mirchandani. While my family and I sat around the table after having our evening meal, my grandmother would recount her stories, mostly very sad, about leaving the world that she knew and loved. She took great pride in telling her only grand-daughter what she went through. I remember the wonderful (but sometimes frightening) stories that my grandmother and great aunt would tell me as a young girl about what it was like when they lived in Hyderabad, Sindh, and how they felt to leave their beloved homeland for good. I always thought of my grandmother as a lady of great internal strength. Her frail physical appearance disguised a strong and resourceful personality. She was the only grandparent I ever knew and her memory is very precious to me.

My Beloved Bhabhi

Dadi Jethi Khiantani  1906 -  1994

     When they left Sindh, the two sisters went with their children to live in Gujrat (India), where they lived for the rest of their lives. Many years later, when my parents had grown up and had their own families, they sometimes came over to the United Kingdom to visit my family and these times were wonderful for me. Hearing the stories of their lives, in which partition and its consequences played huge roles, was an unforgettable learning experience for me. I never saw my maternal Grandmother Dadi Rukmani Samtani.

Dadi Rukmani Samtani 1899 - 1966

       However, I know from others that she was another lady of exceptional character and strength. She was forced to sell all of her family's personal possessions on the streets of Karachi before leaving with her two surviving children (one of whom was my mother). My mother often recounts experiences of life before partition when she and her enormous extended family lived in a large mansion. She remembers when they were forced to leave their home, and what little point there was in locking the door of the house before leaving. They were ordered not to do so by Government officials who were preparing Sindh for the new Muslim inhabitants.

        I know that because of partititon, both my grandparents' and my parents' lives were touched by poverty. This site is dedicated to my grandmothers and my great aunt who lovingly brought up their children during hard times. This site is also dedicated to people who, during this time, lost their lives, their families and their loved ones. 

        Thus, I welcome you to the Sindhi Exodus Web site, and hope that I can give you a glimpse of what it was like for people living through the partition of India.