The famous ‘Logo of IIM-Ahmadabad’ is
inspired by Jaali (Lattice works) on window of Sidi Sayyad Masjid of
Ahmadabad.
 |
| Lattice work (Jaali’s of Sidi Sayyad Masjid of Ahmadabad |
This write up is a part of my travelogue of
Ahmadabad. We were staying in a hotel
near Laldarwaza.It was first day, while roaming on streets of Ahmadabad, suddenly
my ears catched a call of Azaan (call for prayer)
”Hayya‘alas-Salah,Hayya ‘alal-Falah”, (Come to Prayer, Come to
success).
A call of prayer ,mean there is a masjid near
by. I enquired off “is there is any Masjid nearby”. A streat vendor told me
the location of masjid.
 |
| This Latticework of Sidi Saiyyad Masjid is Logo of IIM-Ahmadabad |
Located
on a very busy street in the Lal Darwaza area of Ahmedabad, Amidst honking
buses, speeding scooters and screeching cars, it stands still and calm at the
eastern end of the Nehru Bridge. the
Sidi Saiyyad Masjid a small masjid that, at first glance, does not seem to
offer anything extraordinary. If you look closely, though, you will notice the
fine lattice windows of the masjid.
 |
| A busy road of Ahmadabad |
Sidi Saiyyad Masjid is perhaps one of the
most well-known Masjid of Ahmedabad, and it’s famous ‘Tree of Life Jaali’ or
latticework done on the semi-circular arch-windows has come to symbolize the city
and its grandeur.
Entrance is from the front of Busy road
side. This entrance opens in a forecourt, which consists of a wazoo khana (a
small pond for ablutions) on the left, a few graves by the sides, and straight
past it, two steps lead to the main prayer hall.
 |
| Lattice works of Sidi Saiyyad Masjid-Ahmadabad |
The
prayer hall is characterized by high arcuated arches supporting a flat roof on
top. The jaalis on either side of the central aisle appear on the Qibla wall
(the western wall facing Mecca) and are
single-stone slabs carved in floral designs of intertwined trees and foliage
and a Date tree keynote.
The
famous ‘Tree of life Jali’ or the latticework Done the Semi-Circular Arch.
Of the 10 lattice windows, the one with the
‘Tree of Life’ is the most popular and is known as ‘Sidi Saiyyad ni jaali‘.
 |
| Latticework beauty from inside of Sidi Saiyyad Masjid |
It is
this design that has come to be recognized as symbolizing Ahmedabad, what you
will find on tourism brochures and websites about the city. The logo of the
Indian Institute of Ahmedabad (IIM-A), one of the country’s premier management institutions,
has been inspired by this particular lattice window.
Who
Was Sidi Saiyyad?
The masjid was built in
1572-73 AD by a learned Abyssinian called Sidi Saiyyad. Sidi is what Guajarati’s
called Abyssinian slaves.They came from all over Africa. Different countries like, Yemen,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Egypt, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi and more).
Saiyyad is an Arabic honorific title. So this was probably not his real name.
Sidi Saiyyad was in the service of Rumi Khan, the second son of Khudavand Khan
Khwaja Safar Salmani, the governor of Surat in the reign of the 10th Sultan of
Gujarat Sultan Nassir-ud-Din Mahmud III.
 |
| Sidi Saiyyad Masjid from inside |
The Mughals under Akbar ended the Gujarat
Sultanate. They added this territory to their massive footprint in India.
Sidi Saiyyad later joined the personal aides
of Bilal Jhujhar Khan, the famous Abyssinian general in the army of the last
Sultan of Gujarat.
He was also a learned man with a valuable
library. Sidi Saiyyad is known as a hero in the history of the Sidi’s. He helped the poor by providing them with
food and shelter. He died in 1576 and his tomb lies near the north wall of the
compound.
 |
The
famous Jaali’s or the latticework on window of Sidi Saiyyad Masjid
The
masjid is entirely arcuate and is known for its ten intricately carved stone
latticework windows (jalis) on the side and rear arches. The rear wall is
filled with square stone pierced panels in geometrical designs.
 |
| Indian Institute of Management -Ahmadabad |
They make for a breathtaking sight when the
sunlight filters through the lattice, with the foliage of trees in the
background.
The two bays flanking the central aisle have
reticulated stone slabs carved in designs of intertwined trees and foliage and
a palm theme.
This intricately carved lattice stone window
is the Sidi Saiyyad Jali, the unofficial symbol of city of Ahmedabad and the
inspiration for the design of the logo of the Indian Institute of Management
Ahmedabad.
Today
one of Jaali depicting the Tree of Life has become a distinguished symbol of the
city of Ahmedabad. The same Jali has also been abstracted for the logo to IIM
Ahmedabad.
The central window arch of the masjid, where one would
expect to see another intricate jaali, is instead walled with stone. This is
possibly because the masjid was not completed according to plan before the
Mughals invaded Gujarat.
The Sidi Saiyyad Masjid is built with yellow
sandstone in Indo-Islamic style of architecture.
The End
