Business and Social Relationships in Nineteenth-Century Bombay

Abstract

This chapter consists of narratives of three people who became insolvents. Each is about the circumstances of particular merchants and brokers. Jamshedji Tata was an emerging entrepreneur. His proximity to representatives in the colonial order enabled him to overcome the crisis in his business. Premchund Roychund, a prominent broker who became insolvent, also had close ties with the colonial bankers whose support helped him to survive. Kahandas Narandas belonged to the traditional business elite who did not have the advantage of colonial support. He was totally ruined. The stories of these three merchants reveal the activities and relationships that governed their lives. They illustrate the networks through which money, credit, and loans circulated in the world of business. These stories connect the economic trajectories to the social and cultural world of people and their lives.