Girdling the globe with his exquisite jewellery dating back to the turn of the last century was N.D.H Abdul Caffoor. Making his country proud at several international exhibitions, Abdul Caffoor’s gems and jewellery have even decorated the crowned heads of England, Belgium, Spain and Rumania. His establishment has braved many business challenges for over 130 years. We travelled back in time to delve into the character of this trendsetting Lankan whose 150^th birth anniversary falls this year.

BY RANDIMA ATTYGALLE

‘Except on Friday- when he goes to the mosque and locks his business, Abdul Caffoor, wearing his fez, stands at the door to welcome customers himself. He invites you in, offers you a seat and spreads out before you not one at a time nor by the meager twos or threes, but by the handful, such jewels as you have read of in the Arabian Nights Entertainments…’ writes Frances Kayes in her article Coral Strands published in Good Housekeeping (1926) giving a tourist’s eye-view of a visit to the establishment of Abdul Caffoor as cited by Asiff Hussein in the book- The Great Days of Colombo (pg 255).

Endorsing his late grandfather Abdul Caffoor’s principles which he never compromised, his grandson Hussein Caffoor, Director- N.D.H Abdul Caffoor (Pvt) Ltd. shares with us today an anecdote: “One day a customer had walked into grandfather’s store to purchase some goods of immense value. However, it had been very close to the mosque time on Friday and he urged one of my uncles who was assisting him in the store to quickly close the doors despite the customer hinting that he was to do a huge transaction. As my uncle would recollect, grandfather had said that if he wished to do so, he had to wait until his return from the mosque and to my uncle’s surprise he found the customer waiting for them for nearly two hours!”

One of the custodians of the N.D.H Abdul Caffoor (Pvt) Ltd today, Hussein Caffoor describes his late grandfather as a “head strong man of integrity and character.” Although not privileged to have ever met his grandfather at the time of his death on November 1, 1948, Hussein relives his ancestor through the stories of his father Rafi (the youngest son of Abdul Caffoor), his uncles and the enduring legacy he had left behind. Having joined the business in 1979, Hussein is joined by his two cousins Iqbal and Zubair Caffoor in keeping their legendary grandfather’s legacy alive.

Hussein Caffoor

Building a business empire

On April 8, 1875, Noordeen Hajiar Abdul Ghaffoor (later known as Caffoor) was born to a well reputed Moor family in Grandpass, Colombo. He was affectionately called ‘NDH’. As grandson Hussein tells us today, NDH whose father was a shroff at the Colombo Municipality, often interacted with British officers including leading businessmen. “This exposed his sons to the world of business and particularly my grandfather who had a strong sense of business from a very young age. With a silver coin given by his maternal uncle, he had bought a couple of ivory fans and sold them for a profit. He would also board large passenger ships that docked at the Colombo harbour with his uncle who was a successful gem merchant at that time.” NDH first learnt the ropes of the gem business, having apprenticed under his uncle. At 19-years of age, he went on to set up his own jewellery shop at the Bristol Hotel Building on York Street.

The Colombo harbour was the nucleus of all NDH’s business dealings. He was one of the few merchants who received exclusive permission to board ships in to sell gems and jewellery. He set up his own offices right across the harbour adjoining the St. Peter’s Church, (bordering the Grand Oriental Hotel) and moving there from the Bristol Building. “My grandfather had a cordial relationship with the church, so much so the church authorities agreed to sell their properties adjoining the church to him. He couldn’t have got a better place for business than No 40 Church Street where those disembarking could directly see his gems and jewels,” says Hussein.

NDH didn’t stop at that point. He went onto expand his business empire by building the iconic Ghaffoor Building which was completed by 1915. The four-storey wedged-shaped building with a striking dome, located on the corner of the present Sir Baron Jayathilaka Mawatha and Leyden Bastian Street in Colombo Fort not only changed the skyline of Colombo but also became a game-changer in business in the island’s commercial capital.

N.D.H Abdul Caffoor

Ghaffoor Building

Hussein, sharing the tale behind the uphill task of erecting the edifice by his grandfather says: “the entire block where the Ghaffoor Building stands today had been part of the Beira Lake then. Under the Lake Development Scheme reclamation work was done (Reclamation Rd nearby holds testimony to this) and as part of development, buildings were put up. I’m told by my father and uncles that due to water seeping in, no contractor came forward to erect the Ghaffoor Building until Walker Sons and Company took up the challenge.”

Describing it as ‘one of the largest and finest structures in Colombo’, Allister Macmillan in his Seaports of India and Ceylon (1928) goes onto note that NDHs’ ‘splendid jewellery emporium is located there.’ Macmillan further documents that, ‘Ceylon is famous for its precious stones and these are displayed in Mr. Gaffoor’s premises in great variety ranging from raw uncut jewels as they are found in the earth to polished gems worth a king’s ransom.’ Gazetted as a protected monument in 2000, the historical Ghaffoor Building which housed many eminent local and international business establishments from time to time is now a property of the Urban Development Authority.

International reputation

By the age of 26, NDH’s growing romance with gems and jewellery had reached dizzying heights locally and in other continents. In 1901 he was was invited to display his finest pearls, rubies, sapphires and other jewellery art to the Prince and Princess of Wales at the Kandy Pavilion during their Royal visit. Just two years later in 1903, he exhibited at the St Louis Exhibition, USA. Then again, he had a stall at the All Ceylon Exhibition in 1912, and the British Empire Exhibition in 1924. In 1925 he was present at the Wembley Exhibition where Her Majesty Queen Mary visited his stall and took a keen personal interest in the exquisite gems and jewellery he displayed. His final exhibition was at the Philadelphia Sesquicentennial Exposition in 1926, where he was awarded the Grand Prize for the biggest collection of gems ever displayed in the USA. His precious articles were sought by some of world’s richest men who specialized in antiquity including Harry Winston who was dubbed as ‘King of Diamonds’.

Interestingly, Abdul Ghaffoor or NDH eventually came to be known as Abdul Caffoor as the British found ‘Ghaffoor’ hard to articulate. “Subsequently, all his businesses were registered under the name Abdul Caffoor and today the business goes as N.D.H Abdul Caffoor (Pvt) Ltd,” explains grandson Hussein. A great enthusiast of the British architectural tradition, NDH got down British engineers and architects to design not only his offices but also his private bungalows. The Gem Museum he established at his Church Steet offices in 1929 was designed by the well known British architectural firm Edwards Reid and Begg. Several of his personal properties which are now occupied by his descendants around Green Path (present Anagarika Dharmapala Mw) and Ananda Coomaraswamy Mw mirror the British tradition. What he chose as his Kollupitiya residence- ‘Icicle Hall’ was no exception. Originally believed to have been a residence of Chief Justice Sir Alfred George Lascelles before NDH occupied it, this grand property was subsequently sold and became Siri Kotha or the headquarters of the UNP during Prime Minister Sir John Kotelawala’s time.

The York Building on Chatham Street which houses N.D.H Abdul Caffoor Jewellers today is another impressive building built by its founder. The present offices of the jewellery store had originally been a textile shop known as Ghaffoor’s says Hussein.

An ardent horse rider, Abdul Caffoor taught all his sons to ride. “I’m told that he had his stables on present Dharmapala Mawatha. His eldest son Falil was a great polo player and he used to ride on Galle Face green with Prime Minister D.S Senanayake. Apparently on the fateful day the Premier fell off his horse, it had been Uncle Falil who had been the first informant of the tragedy,” recollects Hussein.

A great philanthropist

Abdul Caffoor married Ummu Nafeesa and together they had five sons and three daughters. As much as he was known for his achievements in the business world, he was also known for his piety and philanthropy. He was a great benefactor of numerous religious and educational institutions including the Deaf and Blind School (then known as the Deaf and Dumb School) in Ratmalana, Zahira College Colombo, Child Protection Society and many notable mosques. “His commitment to religious and other institutions transcending religious and ethnic divisions was remarkable. My grandfather was such a visionary who believed in the Sri Lankan identity. This was reflected in all his international dealings including coveted exhibitions at which he kept the Lankan flag flying high. He was also an unassuming man who did not want his left hand to know what his right did,” says his grandson.

Visionary Lankan

Ceylon Daily News

of November 2, 1948 reported on his death: ‘Mr. N.D.H Abdul Caffoor, the well-known gem merchant of Ceylon died at his residence ‘Icicle Hall’ Kollupitiya yesterday. The funeral will take place at the Maradana Mosque this morning. Mr. Caffoor started his business in 1894 and it was sheer merit that brought him success. At his own expense he took part in a series of world exhibitions which, while increasing his own reputation, brought publicity to the island.’

In 1993, the government honoured this trendsetting Lankan with a stamp belonging to the National Heroes series, having previously named a street in Kollupitiya ‘Abdul Ghaffoor Mawatha’.

Sir Henry Moore, Governor General in his tribute to this visionary published in the Ceylon Muslim League Senate, November 1, 1953 wrote: ‘Wherever he travelled, he maintained the highest traditions of business and promoted the best interests of Ceylon; but despite his great business acumen and the wealth he acquired by its exercise, he personally eschewed the luxuries of life and lived simply according the devout Muslim tradition.’

(Pic credit: Sujatha Jayaratne, Abdul Caffoor family archives)