The area around Shyamaldas ni chaali in Chamanpura was swarming with policemen on Monday. Just opposite this chawl is Gulberg Society,where the first house is now a police outpost. If so many policemen had come that day,this would not have happened, says Dara Mody whose son,Azar,has been missing since the riots. He and his wife,Rupa,break down on meeting filmmaker Rahul Dholakia whose film Parzania is based on their missing son. In their flat at Gulberg,there are some toys and crockery. I left my teddy bear behind, says Binaifer,their daughter. In the flat below the Modys,Fakir Mohammad Saiyed points out his sons room. I had four sons,one became a victim here and then I moved to Juhapura, he says. Zakia Jafris daughter,Nishrin,who now lives in the US,is among the riot victims,survivors and witnesses accompanied by their security guards who have gathered at the Gulberg Society to pay homage to their loved ones. Thats where I sat to read, she says,pointing to a loft in one of the rooms as she hugs a neighbour. On one of the pillars of the Jafri home,the words,Abba,I love you,is scribbled with charcoal. My fufi is crying, says another message on the wall in a neighbouring flat. There are many other messages too: I miss my grandfather,his name is Anverkhan Pathan, My uncle is very nice,I miss you uncle.
