We have read a lot about Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s stature, achievements, and contributions, but many of us probably do not know much about him as a person. Despite bearing the pain of losing his beloved ones, the elegant, sophisticated, and stylish Jinnah we see in pictures sacrificed his own comforts and even put his own life at risk.
    On his 147^th birth anniversary this month, let us know about some aspects of his life, which you the young ones may not be knowing:
-    Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s family is known as Khoja. They were traders. 
-    He was the first child and the only son of his parents. He grew up into a soft spoken and handsome boy. 
-   Jinnah Poonja, his father, used to collaborate with a British firm for business. One of his colleagues there offered Mohammad Ali Jinnah apprenticeship in his firm. Poonja consented to send his son abroad for training as well as studies.
-    Mohammad Ali Jinnah spent time in England by learning British politics to have a grip on the current affairs. His love for English literature directed him to theatres; he found great pleasure while watching Shakespeare’s plays. It was then he discovered an actor in him. With his mesmerizing spoken style combined with sheer elegance he was readily accepted by people. 
-    His mother and first wife both died during his absence, being in England, which devastated him gravely. 
-   On his return from England in 1900, he shifted to Bombay (now Mumbai) from Karachi and applied for a magistrate’s job. He got the job. First thing he did was to call his youngest sister Fatima to Bombay and get her admission in Mission School. 
-    He bought a horse and a carriage to pay weekly visits to his sister. He left the job and started practicing law. Soon he became a famous lawyer. 
-    He had good taste for food, clothes and had acquired exquisite hobbies. 
-    His elegant style, neat dress, and complete confidence in speech, and his convincing power with strong resilience gave birth to a man of towering personality.
-  On 19 April 1918, Mohammad Ali Jinnah married to Rattanbai, a young lady of stature. She embraced Islam in a nearby mosque in Bombay. Her new name was Maryam.

-    Soon the happy couple was blessed with a baby girl whom they named “Dina Jinnah”.
-    Ratti died at the tender age of 29. Her demise  caused profound shock and trauma for Jinnah. 
-   Jinnah shifted to London, and from 1930 to 1935 he lived there and practised law. This was the time when Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal wrote him numerous letters asking him to come back and finish the plight of Muslims of India.
-   He came back and struggled restlessly. On 14 August 1947, Pakistan came into being. Two years before, in 1945, Dr Col Elahi Bakhsh diagnosed that the Quaid was suffering from Tuberculosis. The Quaid asked him not to disclose it to anyone. “I know it since last 12 years, the reason I kept it hidden so that the Hindus might not catch the light of it.” Actually, he didn’t care much for himself. He dedicated every second of life for the freedom struggle.