Name: Mahendra Huq Zalil
Aliases: Ali, Mahi, Huq, Turban
Age: 31
Birthday: June 8th, 1891
Ethnicity: Bengali Indian
Birth Place: Kolkata, West Bengal, British Raj
Residence: Shepheard's Hotel - room 2158
How Long In Cairo: Three weeks
Gender: Male
Major/Minor: Geology
Occupation: Geologist. Formerly Lance Naik, Indian Army
Languages: Bengali & English
Height: 5ft 8 inches
Weight: 147lbs
Build: Average
Eyes: Dark brown
Hair: Coal black
Skin Tone: Brown
Tattoos/Scars/Piercings: Scar across his left arm after being slashed by a sabre.
Personal Style: After his time in Britain, Mahendra took a liking to more European style of fashion, though by no means has left the traditional styles from his homeland. He's like a cameleon, adapting and changing his attire in regard to his surroundings and company. As they say, "When in Rome, do as Romans do."
When in the company of Europeans, he prefers decent suits, white shirts and polished shoes. All clean and ironed straight, he knows that diligence in appearance is highly valued. Same applies for hair and facial hair, which are finely trimmed and combed back in an orderly fashion. When in the company of natives like himself and like-minded people, or simply when to impress or show his heritage, you might find a slightly different man. One who wears more traditional clothing, like a Kurta worn over a louser shirt, wider pants and a turban, alongside sandals. His moustauche is then still finely trimmed, while his hair is neatly hidded undearneath the turban.
Helpful * Stubborn * Polite * Judgemental * Brave * Superstitious
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Relationship Status: Married
Personality: First impression matters a whole lot for Mahendra. To those who's left a good impression on the shorter man, he's a polite and generous man. He's usually seen wearing a friendly smile under than black moustache, nodding and giving friendly gestures to known friends and strangers alike. He's a man who firmly believes that there's good in all men, as long as they're ready to admit their wrong-doings and ask for forgiveness. And for those he cares for, he'll go far to help them in any way he can.
Then there's the more conservative, traditional side of Mahendra, the one who shows his true self if left a bad impression. A firm believer in karma, he's under the impression that certain things happen for certain reasons, and that what befalls a man is justly deserved. Be rude or behave in a bad manner, and you'll find it difficult to be seen by Mahendra as anything else but a scoundrel, a baffoon or worse, destined to be reincarnated as a bug.
Habits: - Scratching his moustache.
- Kicking around rocks and dirt.
- Running his fingers down the scar on his arm.
Hobbies: Tea-drinking & walks outside of civilization.
Fears: - Omens of uncertain death
- Being reborn as something other than a man
- Losing his wife
Likes: - Showing his ancestry
- Spicy food
- Like-minded colonials
- Classical music
- Seeing new sights and places
- Peace and quiet
Dislikes: - Cold
- Rude or brash behaviour
- Prejudice
- Jazz music
- Cynics
- Criminals
General World Skills: - Understanding of local Egyptian superstition
- Geology
- Natural geography
- Excavation
- Social cameleon
- Bartering
- Drawing
- Animal-handling
Combat Skills: - Bolt-action rifle
- Sabre fighting
- Horse riding
- Stamina
- Whip
What Is On Your Person:- Clothing - Black polished boots, dark blue pants and suit-jacket, white shirt, and dark red turban.
- Wallet - 27£ 6p, passport (British Indian), geologist- and military-certificates, picture of his wife and child.
- Notebook
- Pencils
- Pocket watch
- Magnefying glass
- Canteen
Residence:- Spare clothes
- Geologist-kit; brushes, small shovels, microscope, small pick and chisel, etc.
- Books on various geologic areas; Europe, Britain, India, Asia, Africa, Egypt
- Sketch-book filled with various digs and finds
- Meditation matt
- Unwritten letters and envelopes
- Suitcase
- This spot is for an animal only - Cat, Goat, Horse, Camel (Basic animal, nothing special about it. It may not even obey every command.)
What Brings You To Cairo: Work does, amongst other things. Seen as the interest for Egypt and the Land of the Pharoes are at it's peak, Mahendra hoped that he would be able to find a fair-paying job amongst the archelogical sights as a well-educated geologist. His thinking was that because many treasures are still waiting to be found underground, who else better to hire than someone who knows what the ground should or should not look like? But there's also a more personal reason, one to do with his time of service there back during the War. He misses not the killing or slaughter of innocent lives, but the times of friendship and excitement that accompanied it. So now he's there, trying to find both work and memories.
Life Before You Moved To Cairo: Mahendra Huq Zalil was born into a lower-class family, and was raised in the middle of Kolkata, the heart and center of West-Bengal in the British Raj. His father was a travelling salesman, dragging Mahendra and his younger brothers around and outside the city on their trusted horse to do business. His mother was a maid for a prominent British family living in the more luxurious parts of Kolkata, who took care of the younger siblings back home.
The only kind of education Mahendra recieved, was the little reading he was taught by his parents and the wife of the prominent family his mother worked for, while he learned some basic math from his father's business dealings. Other than that, Mahendra stood little out from the millions of other Indian children in the British Empire. And like so many others, he was married at the age of 16 to a younger girl, one he had never met. He would slowly start to care for her though, and come to accept that their marriage would be a fine one. This, alongside him working odd-jobs beside helping his father, was Mahendra's everyday life until he was 21 years old.
The Great War; the War to end all wars, the War with many names. It was something else for Mahendra. It was the war to finally prove he was a true man, and the war to possibly give India the rights She deserved. The British generals welcomed the mass of voluenteers who wanted to serve, seeing the need for manpower and finding their pool in British India. Mahendra was assigned to the 11th Indian Divison and sent for training in Egypt. He was saw combat during the Actions of the Suez where he and his unit fought of the Ottoman forces attempting to seize the Canal.
He was later transferred to the Indian Expeditionary Force D once his previous division was disbanded, now serving in Mesopotamia. It was fighting up the Tigris River than Mahendra's luck ran out; first he was severly injured in an Ottoman cavalry attack where he was badly cut in his arm. Then as he was recovering in a military hospital in Egypt, he recived the news from home; his father was dead, died of disease.
With the war over, Mahendra was afraid of what kind of life he'd return in India, but for once fortune seemed to be at his side. The prominent British family his mother worked for found pity in the family's sorrow, and offered them help; they would pay for Mahendra's education anywhere in Britain to ensure that his family wouldn't end up in povetry after their death. This was how the short Indian ended up in Britain and was able to attend the University of Oxford, in the end gratuating with a degree in Geology. It wasn't easy, but he pulled through after long, tedious work. He then worked on several projects, both in Britain and India regarding both geological and archelogical digs, and in construction.
Life Since You Moved To Cairo: It has been exciting to say the least, even if the lack of work is getting to him. Mahendra has spent much of time seeking work, specifically amongst the archelogical sights. So far no one has offered the Indian man a position, even a temporary one. So he's done his best to look bright at the situation, and thus watched the sights inside the city, as well as the beautiful view of the endless desert that stretches on forever outside of Cairo. And then it's the vision he has, the dream...An omen.
Character Quote: "Everything happens for a reason. It is best for us to take the hand we're dealt and do our best."
Theme Song: The Cave - Mumford & SonsAnything Else: - Mahendra has a thick Indian accent, which some might find difficult to understand at times.
- Sheshat
- His wife, Myra, still lives in India. She's awaiting Mahendra's return after he's earned enough money to settle down.
- Click me if you dare, you commie
*By submitting this CS in its completion I am stating I have read all the rules for this Rp and am agreeing to follow them to the fullest with respect and courtesy. I acknowledge that I can and will be removed from the RP without warning if I break a rule or cause problems with my fellow Rpers or the GM.