The Iranian Migrant Poor, Teahouses, and Urban Culture in Bombay, 1870-1920

As Iran became incorporated into the world economy over the course of the nineteenth century, the Iranian poor experienced famine, hardships, and widespread unemployment. Over the course of the 1870-1920 period, Iranians migrated to Bombay hoping to find better economic opportunities. In many cases, these emigrant communities found their paths to upward social mobility blocked due to lack of relevant linguistic competencies and already saturated labour markets. As such, Iranian migrants opened up teahouses, small shops, and hotels. Iranian teahouses in Bombay became cultural spaces in their own right marking a distinctive part of the urban fabric. Teahouses were, and continue to be, important social institutions that provide scholars with an opportunity to understand how the urban poor come together in cosmopolitan contexts. Existing studies of Iranians in Bombay emphasize the role of elite merchants, diplomats, religious figures, and political activists, not the conditions of the urban poor. This project will redress the current lacuna in the field by using newspapers, travelogues, diaries, and government reports to reconstruct the economic conditions of the rural poor in Iran. I will explore the new consumption patterns introduced by Iranian migrants, such as the use of Iranian water-pipes and distinctive methods for brewing tea, in addition to the recognizable decorative and architectural features of Iranian shops, teahouses, and hostels. Iranian Zoroastrian (typically referred to as Iranis) and Muslim refugees opened cafes, restaurants, and hostels in Bombay. Since these refugees struggled with the English language that would have allowed them to pursue more lucrative careers in modern professions or the civil service, they carved out a niche for themselves by opening such small businesses. In contrast to similar eateries catering to the urban poor, Irani cafes provided a space for leisure and socializing rather than just a quick meal. Much like its analogue elsewhere, the Irani cafe became associated with criminal activities and middle class anxieties about its subaltern patrons. The popularity of such sites with the poor of Bombay points to the role of Iranian migrants in diversifying leisurely urban spaces. Shi’i passion plays and processions in Bombay and published Persian poetry all to varying degrees bore the imprint of Iranian labour migrants in the cultural life of Bombay.