Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw was born in a Parsi family in Amritsar in 1914. One of the finest military commanders of the nation, Sam became India’s first Field Marshal in 1973, attaining the highest rank in the Army. The rank was conferred upon him after his vital role as the Army Chief during the Bangladesh War operations in 1971.

In a function on April 3rd organised by PARZOR, the Field Marshal was felicitated on the day he entered his 90th year, by the release of the film 'In War and Peace - The Life of Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, MC'. The celebration was attended by a number of distinguished persons including Defence Minister Shri George Fernandes , Tourism Minister Shri Jagmohan the three Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces as well as numerous retired war heroes and several former Service Chiefs.

The evening began with the Inauguration of the Exhibiton by Tourism minister Shri Jagmohan. The exhibition displayed a variety of artifacts and PARZOR's collection of photographs from field trips depicting Parsi life and culture.The photographs included pictures of the Jashan and Yasna ceremony. There was also a display of beautiful embroidary in the form of traditional saris and garas. Amongst all this was also an excellent explanatory display on Kusti weaving by Ashdeen Lilowala of NID (National Institute of Design), Ahmedabad. The book 'Painting with a Needle', Priya Mani's monograph on Parsi textiles and embroidery was also on display and attracted great attention.

The central display of the entire exhibiton was occupied by a model of The Dome of Unity. The Dome of Unity is the vision of the PARZOR Foundation's Centre. This will be a seven sided museum and archival centre with the seven major world religions and cultures depicted in huge stained glass. The construction of this museum will be carried forward with funds collected through generous donations. If you're interested in donating click here.

This was followed by an introduction of the project by Dr.Shernaz Cama. The cake was then cut by the field marshal with a khukri, the famous dagger of the Army Gurkha Regiment. The cake was in the form of a bouquet and was generously provided by the ITC group.

A souvenir with articles by noted personalities who have worked with Sam and very rare photographs and interesting anecdotes was released.

The Field Marshal was also presented with a bouquet of 90 roses by Brig. Sahukar, the researcher and Jessica Gupta, the director, of the film 'In War and Peace'. This was followed by the screening of the film.

The film gives details of the life of Field Marshal Sam Maneksaw, MC. Throughout the film, the Field Marshal regales the audience with his wit and humour. The audience was particularly amused when the Field Marshal mentioned that Sherwood, his school, had produced two famous alumni, himself and Amitabh Bachchan, but, he mentioned, Mr. Bachchan came much later.

The film is a rare flashback on Indian history from World War II till the Bangaladesh war. The documentary, is done in the style of an interview by his grandson Jehan and is supported by very rare war footage from Burma in World War II till Bangladesh. Conversations with Sam's contemporaries support the historical documentation. This documentary is a collectors item and provides a rare view into the history of our country. If you would like to obtain a copy of this movie click here.

The evening concluded with some delicious traditional Parsi snacks including 'Akuri' and 'Chicken Farcha.', in proper Parsi style.

It was truly an evening to remember!