24 December,2023 03:48 AM IST | Mumbai | Gautam S Mengle
The Vasai Fort stands as a reminder of the origins of Christianity in Vasai, where the religion is said to have existed since the sixth century. Present day Vasaikars celebrate Christmas with a combination of traditional practices and local cultural influences. Pics/Sayyed Sameer Abedi
Carols are an intrinsic Christmas tradition but in this town, you are more likely to hear Baal Janmale, Vishwa Anandle (the child was born and the world rejoiced) or Gaayichya Gothyaat Khrista Janmala (the Christ was born in a manger) than Silent Night. Along with marzipan and plum cakes, you will also be served shankarpali and laddoos. And they say that this is the best place for a delicious kheema patty.
We're referring to Vasai, a town and village at the same time, located around 55 km from Mumbai, where the traditional Christian values are combined with a unique Maharashtrian touch. While most may know it because of the historical Vasai Fort, few are aware of the history tied to it and what it stands for.
According to the 2011 census, 1,10,860 Christians live in Vasai Taluka, making up 8.25 per cent of the local population. The community is believed to be as old as Christianity itself.
"In historical records, there are references to Christians being present in Kalyan from the sixth century itself," says Father Francis Correa, a retired priest who has also been Editor of Suvarta, the local Christian newspaper. "And we must bear in mind that the Kalyan of today is much smaller that the area that was collectively known by the same name in earlier times, before being divided into towns and railway stations."
He tells us that records of the Archdiocese of Bombay refer to a bishop being present in erstwhile Kalyan, and this indicates a sizeable Christian population.
"The next reference," says the priest, who is also a historian in his own right, "is from 1321, when a certain Father Jordanus, a Frenchman, landed at Thana port. He and four other Franciscan missionaries were on their way to Kerala, but their ship had to halt due to a storm. From Thana, Father Jordanus came to Sopara, where he found a significant number of Christians. However, these were nominal Christians, and he baptised them. From here on, Christianity picked up again."
Then came the 16th century and with it the Portuguese, which led to another wave and the construction of the Vasai Fort. Inside this fort are four Churches - Franciscan, Dominican, Augustinian and Jesuit - standing for the four phases of Christianity in the district.
"With the Portuguese take-over of Bassein (Vasai), Salsette (Suburban Mumbai) and Thana, several people were converted to the Roman Catholic form of Christianity," says Fleur D'Souza, former head of the History department at St Xavier's College, whose research can be found on the Archdiocese of Bombay website. It includes references to the Christian community in erstwhile Kalyan and Father Jordanus.
"These Italians were hosted by the 15 odd Christian (Nestorian) families found in the port city of Thana. Friar Jordanus himself was serving a Christian community in Sopara (now Nallasopara). Since Kalyan, Sopara, Chaul (Revdanda) and Thana have been, at varied points in time, port-cities claiming internationally mixed populations with an ancient tradition of trade links with West Asia, it follows that Christians could be counted among the demographic," the website states. D'Souza adds that there is documentary evidence for all of this content.
Fr Correa has a dark tale to share about the visiting Italians.
"This was during Mughal rule and there was a kazi where the missionaries had landed," he says. "He was hearing a dispute between husband and wife, and incidentally, this same couple was hosting the missionaries. Hence, they appeared as witnesses in the case. When the kazi asked them a loaded religious question, their answer was not to his satisfaction and he sentenced the four missionaries to death. They are recorded as martyrs in historical records."
Subsequently, Jordanus brought their bodies to Sopara and buried them near St Thomas Church. Unfortunately, as the landscape kept shifting and names of places kept changing, this church and the four graves are forever lost in time. Vasai itself has undergone so many changes in name, from Bassie and then Bahadurpur during Mughal rule, Bassein in the Portuguese era and Bajipur after the Marathas liberated it from the Portuguese, before becoming urban Vasai. Sopara, earlier known as Shurparak, was a bustling trade hub since before the birth of Christ, and some of the artefacts in the Temple of Solomon in Mesopotamia are from Sopara.
Present day Christians in Vasai have grown up listening to these stories.
"During British rule, when local Christians learned that the East India Company was hiring Christians from Goa and Mangalore, they were outraged and formed an organisation through which to demand jobs and other rights," says Rachita Dabre, a content writer who lives in Vasai with her parents. "They called themselves East Indians while writing to the Queen of England to pledge their allegiance, and the name stuck."
Today, Vasai's Christians are divided into four sub-communities: There are the Samvedi Brahmins, who converted from Hinduism to Christianity; the Wadvals indigenous people who used to work in the wadis of Vasai; Kolis, the fisherfolk, and the sutaars and the dhobis. Among these, there are some who changed their surnames, and there are also those that didn't. Hence, the Christians of Vasai have a mix of surnames: some are Anglican, while others are Maharashtrian.
"We follow all the tenets of Christianity but we also have our own unique touch," said Vasai based coin and fort historian Pascal Roque Lopez. "We sing more Marathi carols, written by locals performers, than English ones during Christmas. Our snacks include typical Maharashtrian goodies such as chakli and karanji along with the traditional ones marzipan and cakes. And since many of our forefathers would raise their own livestock in their backyards, our meat is always fresh. You won't find better mutton patties anywhere other than Vasai."
