Wadia family
| Ethnicity | Parsi |
|---|---|
| Current region | Mumbai, India |
| Members |
Ardaseer Cursetjee Bahman Pestonji Wadia Darashaw Nosherwan Wadia Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia Neville Wadia Dina Jinnah Nusli Wadia Ness Wadia Jehangir Wadia |
| Connected families | Jinnah family |
| Traditions | Zoroastrianism |
| Heirlooms | Wadia Group |
The Wadia family is an Indian Parsi family from Surat currently based in Mumbai. They are related to the Jinnah family: Neville Wadia, married Dina Jinnah, the only daughter of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Rattanbai Petit. The present head of the house is Nusli Wadia, son of Neville and Dina, who runs the Wadia Group of companies.
History
Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia began the Wadia shipbuilding dynasty in 1736, when he obtained a contract from the British East India Company for building docks and ships in Bombay (present-day Mumbai). Although the Wadias would eventually come to be considered a Bombay family, many of them remained in Surat, where one branch of the family established a ship breaking yard (where ships are dismantled) that remains one of the largest of its kind in the world.
By the 1840s, the family was one of the leading forces in the Indian shipbuilding industry. By that time they had built over a hundred warships for the British and had trading networks around the world.
The Star Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the United States, was written in 1812 on a Wadia built British Navy ship, the HMS Minden. In 1849, Ardeshir Cursetji Wadia became the first Parsi to visit United States.
They have endowed Nowrosjee Wadia College in Pune. Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia's great grandsons, JBH Wadia and Homi Wadia founded Wadia Movietone in 1933, which had its studios at Lovji Castle (Lovejee Castle) in Chembur, Mumbai. The company has its logo as a ship, honouring their family legacy.[1]
Notable members
- Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia (1702–1774), shipwright, founded Wadia Group in 1736.
- Ardaseer Cursetjee (1808 – 1877), shipbuilder and engineer.
- Bahman Pestonji Wadia (1881 - 1958), theosophist and labour activist
- Darashaw Nosherwan Wadia, (1883 – 1969), geologist, Padma Bhushan (1958)
- JBH Wadia (1901 - 1986), film director, screenwriter, producer
- Homi Wadia (1911 – 2004) film director, screenwriter, producer
- Fearless Nadia (1908-96), notorious film actress, wife of Homi Wadia
- Neville Wadia (1911 – 1996), chairman Bombay Dyeing (1952–1977)
- Dina Wadia (wife of Neville Wadia, daughter of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Rattanbai Petit)
- Nusli Wadia (b. 1944), son of Neville & Dina Wadia, Chairman of Bombay Dyeing since 1977
- Jamshed "Jim" Wadia (born 1947), businessman
- Ness Wadia, businessman, son of Nusli Wadia
- Jehangir Wadia, businessman, son of Nusli Wadia
- Spenta Wadia, Theoretical Physicist, previous director of ICTS-TIFR.
- Nina Wadia (b. 1968), actress
See also
References
- ↑ "Surat's Wadias created Fearless Nadia". The Times of India. Oct 2, 2010. Retrieved 2014-09-18.