'Sindhi family came to India during partition': What’s in a name? Asks Hyderabad’s famed Karachi Bakery as India-Pak war rages on

HYDERABAD: It was just a yearning for his lost home and the need to keep its memory alive that drove Khanchand Ramnani to name his business ‘Karachi Bakery' after his family sought refuge in Hyderabad post the Partition in 1947.Just like many other refugees from Sindh who incorporated Karachi into the brand names of their businesses, the Ramnani family went on to build one of the most sought after homegrown cookie brands on the back of the success of their now globally acclaimed fruit biscuits.Unfortunately, whenever tensions between India and Pakistan simmer, the brand comes under fire. Today too, as India and Pakistan battle rages along the country's borders, this successful Sindhi enterprise finds itself facing the brunt of protests objecting against the name ‘Karachi'. After protests erupted in Hyderabad on Thursday, the promoters approached chief minister Revanth Reddy and the police seeking support in protecting their business."My grandfather fled to India during Partition with his family with just the clothes on their back. He just wanted to keep the name of the place he came from and the legacy and heritage of our roots alive and decided upon the name. But Karachi Biscuits is a proud Hyderabadi brand that was born here," says Vijay Ramnani, one of the promoters of the bakery.Though initially reluctant to talk about the issue for fear of coming into the spotlight, Ramnani told TOI: "Karachi is a popular suffix to many stores adopted by Sindhis Hindus who migrated during the partition to various cities. I don't know why protesters are going after the name, which has nothing to do with nationality or Pakistan. We are just being unfairly targeted," he laments.Though Khanchand Ramnani passed away in the 1990's, the bakery that started out with one store at the iconic Moazzamjahi market in the old city of Hyderabad in 1953, has endured, growing to over 35 outlets across the country."People love us for our taste. Four generations have grown up enjoying our biscuits in Hyderabad. My grandfather first started out supplying coal to transporters and then baking breads on that coal. He later went on to add cookies and fruit biscuits that are shipped across the world," he adds.The secret of the famed Karachi fruit biscuit, he says, is a closely guarded family secret that has travelled from Hyderabad in Pakistan to Hyderabad in India.