“We are so happy that the Karnataka government went ahead with Tipu Jayanti celebrations despite the long-drawn protests,” says Tipu Waseem Pasha, one of the owners of Book Bonanza in Jayanagar I Block, which is run by Tipu and Sons Enterprises. His paternal grandfather, Tipu Sahib, was the grandson of Tipu Sultan.
Book lovers in Bengaluru are familiar with Book Bonanza, especially for its massive 10 lakh inventory of books. There are annual sales where second-hand books are sold by weight. Brothers Tipu Waseem Pasha and Tipu Shahid Pasha have been running the bookshop for the past 10 years here. “Tipu was known for peace and unity, and his fight against the British was to unite India,” says Shahid Pasha. The engineer brothers, who hail from Bengaluru, shifted to the business of selling books.
“We have a legacy of book lovers in the family that can be traced up to Tipu Sultan saab. Tipu had a passion for books, architecture and horticulture,” he says. “He was a well-educated ruler, who had an interest in medicinal research in Ayurveda and Unani. This is mirrored in his collection of books now in the Museum of London.” The family possesses several antique manuscripts, coins, stamps and books from the Hyder Ali-Tipu era.
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