The Parsis of India: Preservation of Identity in Bombay City

Contents: Preface. Introduction. 1. Education and the Parsis. 2. The reform of religion. 3. The growth of Parsi opinion: identity and the law: i. Laws for the Community: the Parsi laws. 2. Identity and the law courts: the Parsi Punchayet case. 3. Law and ideology: the debate over modernity and the Rangoon Navjote case; identity and political nationalism: 1. Dadabhai Naoroji. 2. The Parsis and Nationalist Politics. The contributions of Pherozeshah Mehta and D.E. Wacha. Epilogue. Identity and the present day Parsis. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.
 
"The Parsis of India examines at much neglected area of Asian Studies. The book traces key points in the development of Parsi history, and accounts for the Parsis \'ability to preserve, maintain and construct a distinct identity amidst historical change.

The book amply details the Parsis\' evolution from an insular minority group to a modern community of  pluralistic outlook, and the significant role the Parsis played in the commercial, educational, and civic development of colonial Bombay City. 

Filling a lacunae in the literature on British colonialism, Indian society and history, and, last but not least, Zoroastrianism, the book broadens our knowledge of the interactions of colonialism and colonial groups, and elucidates the important role of one of the world\'s smallest communities to history."