Mirza Ahmad Ispahani was the patriarch of the Ispahani family and a Perso-Bengali merchant located in Chittagong. He was the founding chairman of Pakistan International Airlines and the creator of Orient Airways (PIA). He was the founder and CEO of the Ispahani Group.
Bangladesh’s top tea firm, as well as other important food brands, are owned by Ispahani group. It also has business holdings in hotels, real estate, textiles, agriculture, shipping, jute, and packaging. At the Bangladesh Business Awards in 2003, the organization received the “Enterprise of the Year” honor. M.M. Ispahani is one of the most recognized corporate companies in the subcontinent, according to The Daily Star.
Life of “Mirza Ahmad Ispahani” At a Glance:
- Known For: Owner of M.M. Ispahani Limited
- Profession:
Founder and CEO of Ispahani Group
Founder of Orient Airways
Businessperson - Born: 1898
Place of Birth: Rangoon, Burma - Nationality: Bangladeshi
- Father: Mirza Mohammed Ispahani
- Mother: Sakina Sultan Ispahani
- Siblings:
Abul Hassan Isphani
Mirza Mahmood Ispahani - Spouse: Rokia Ispahani
- Children: Mirza Mehdy Ispahani
- Grand-Children:
Mirza Ali Behrouze Ispahani
Mirza Salman Ispahani
Mirza Sajid Ispahani
Mirza Shakir Ispahani
Mirza Imran Ispahani
Farah Khanum Ispahani - Death: 1986
- Death Age: 87-88 Years Old
- Notable Awards for Ispahani Limited:
2003 – Enterprise of the Year – Bangladesh Business Awards
2004 – AmCham Business Executive of the Year (for managing director M. Salman Ispahani) – American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh
2017 – Green Business Climate Award
2018 – Best Brand Award 2018
Early Life :
Born in Rangoon, Burma, in 1898, Mirza Ahmad Ispahani was the eldest child of Mirza Mohammed Ispahani. In India’s Madras, he attended school. He joined his father’s company in Calcutta at the age of 20 after graduating from high school.
Business
A short time after joining the business, Ispahani was made a junior partner. When his father died in May 1925, he became the senior partner of the firm along with two other partners, his brothers, Mirza Abol Hassan Ispahani and Mirza Mahmood Ispahani. In 1934, M. M. Ispahani and partnership was converted to a limited liability company in Kolkata. Orient Airways was founded by Mirza Ahmad Ispahani and Adamjee Haji Dawood on 23 October 1946.In 1947 the company was moved to Chittagong, East Pakistan. In 1965 he founded the Ispahani Islamia Eye Institute and Hospital in Dhaka.On 11 March 1955 Orient Airways was merged with a proposed airline of the Pakistan Government and turned into Pakistan International Airlines Corporation, the national airline of Pakistan.The company expanded into multi-dimensional business activities including jute, tea, textiles, engineering, shipping, matches and plywood. He was the first exporter of tea from Bangladesh. After the Bangladesh Liberation War, his properties were nationalized under the Enemy Property Act. Ahmad Ispahani personally went to meet Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and requested that his properties be denationalized. Mujib had the law specially changed for Ahmad Ispahani and handed all his properties back to him. When Ziaur Rahman became the president, he requested that Ahmad Ispahani become the chairman of Biman, because of his expertise in the aviation industry. However, he politely turned down the offer.
Career:
Mirza Ahmed Ispahani became a junior partner soon after beginning work for the company. He and his brothers, Mirza Abol Hassan Ispahani and Mirza Mahmood Ispahani, shared the role of senior partner in the business when their father passed away in May 1925. M. M. Ispahani and Partnership in Kolkata was transformed into a limited liability company in 1934. On October 23, 1946, Adamjee Haji Dawood and Mirza Ahmad Ispahani formed Orient Airways. [5] The business was relocated to East Pakistan’s Chittagong in 1947. The Ispahani Islamia Eye Institute and Hospital was established by him in Dhaka in 1965. On March 11, 1955, Orient Airways merged with a government-sponsored airline to become Pakistan International Airlines Corporation, the country’s official carrier.
The company diversified by entering the jute, tea, textiles, engineering, shipping, matches, and plywood industries. He was Bangladesh’s first exporter of tea. His assets were nationalized under the Enemy Property Act following the Bangladesh Liberation War. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was personally visited by Ahmad Ispahani, who asked that his assets be denationalized. Ahmad Ispahani received all of his possessions back from Mujib when the legislation was specifically amended for him. Because of Ahmad Ispahani’s experience in the aviation sector, Ziaur Rahman asked that he take over as chairman of Biman after he was elected president. He graciously declined the offer, though.
Legacy:
The Ispahani Islamia Eye Institute and Hospital, which is now Bangladesh’s biggest multispecialty eye hospital, was founded by Mirza Ahmad in 1960. In 1962 and 1979, he founded the Cumilla and Ispahani Public Schools and Colleges, respectively. The Mirza Ahmed Ispahani High School was founded in 1987 by Sadri Ispahani, his lone child. The company, which is now one of the most reputable corporations in Bangladesh, is still run by his grandchildren Behrouze Ispahani, Sajid Ispahani, Salman Ispahani, and Shakir Ispahani.
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