Jivan Jetha Imports paints the town in colour!
Jivan Jetha Building adds a Creole flair and bright colour to drab Victoria
Drab Victoria may be in for a serious facelift now that some owners of buildings in the world’s capital of the Creole world are finally bringing the Creole touch to the town adding bright colours to the creole architecture of the few original structures left standing.
Jivan Jetha Imports, on the corner of Albert Street and Market Street at the very heart of Old Victoria, has just added a fresh coat of paint and brightly coloured new doors to its façade bringing to life the miserable old Albert Street with its monotonous greys and whites
The Jivan Building is probably one of the oldest in Victoria and holds pride of place in the busiest part of town.
The building, which was constructed in accordance with traditional Creole architecture with the foundations and ground floor of coral blocks, and the first and second floors of corrugated iron sheets on timber frames, dates back to the 1860’s. At the turn of the last century, a Japanese photographer travelling through Victoria stopped long enough to take a number of photographs of the town and life in this colonial backwater. One of his clichés is this building which at the time, was the property of one K.S.K. Naiken, a rich Victoria merchant, who is reputed to have run his office from the building.
The building was later purchased by the Jivan Jetha family and became their principle business outlet to this date. It was until October 2010 run by Mr Kantilal Jivan Shah, a popular and internationally-renowned personality of many trades and professions.
Kanti, as he was colloquially known, sold a wide range of clothing and home furnishing textiles, books and locally manufactured souvenirs and artefacts aimed at the country’s visitors. Until the foreign exchange difficulties decided otherwise, Kanti was a principal supplier of raw materials for the local textile industries and handicrafts sector, providing quality cotton for the tie-dye and batik artists and artisans.
It was in 2007 that Kanti, the trader with a huge soul and a great historian, conservationist, herbalist, healer and believer in the forces of nature with a big heart for his home, Seychelles started his labour of love to arrest the decay caused by the sheer age of the great building, Kanti resisted the temptation of knocking down the structure to build more modern, money-making premises and chose instead to renovate the existing building, retaining all of its original architecture and features, to restore it to its previous glory.
The building at the turn of the 20th century and Jivan Jetha before the renovation in 2007
The late Kanti’s labour of love left Albert Street a renovated building
Kanti has since left the scene and no longer welcomes visitor and residents alike as they enter the shop.
But since his death on 21 October 2010, his son Nirmal has shown himself to be the worthy heir of his father’s legacy and with his wife Manisha continues to keep the spirit of the Jivan Jetha Building alive and well.
The building, an unquestionable national heritage, restored entirely from personal funds with no subventions or concessions from any other source, is still setting the pace. With the bright colours and quaint architecture, it is now adding the multi-coloured hues that are associated with Creole towns all over the world. Maybe a few more buildings could follow suit and help Victoria truly claim its title of Creole Capital of the World.
Source: today.sc 3-7-13