Background
Adamjee Haji Dawood was born in 1880 in Jetpur, Gujarat.
Adamjee Haji Dawood was born in 1880 in Jetpur, Gujarat.
Whilst still in his teens, he ventured out to Burma and started operating as an independent businessman. The first few years of his career were spent in the rice, matches and jute trade. By 1922, he had accumulated sufficient resources and a strong presence in the commodities markets, enabling him to set up his first industrial venture - a match factory in Rangoon.
In 1927, he returned to India to establish a jute mill in Calcutta.
To capture this emerging niche, Adamjee along with Mr. G.D. Birla of Birla Jute, broke into this monopolistic trade controlled by the East India company.
He was also an avid educationist and philanthropist. He was responsible for financing and helping a number of educational institutions.
In recognition for his services to his countrymen, the British government knighted him in June 1938.
By the 1940s, Dawood had become a prominent figure in the business circles of India and Burma. Following financial difficulties in Pakistan in January 1948, Jinnah invited him to participate in the establishment of the State Bank of Pakistan, it was during this meeting that he suffered an heart attack and later died on the night of January 27, 1948.