SS Tilawa

The SS Tilawa was a passenger cargo ship that was sunk by the Imperial Japanese Navy in late November 1942, with the loss of 280 lives.

A 10,000-ton steamer, the Tilawa started its journey from Mumbai's Ballard Pier, with the goal of reaching Durban. From there, it would stop at Mombasa and Maputo. The ship carried nearly 1,000 people - 700+ passengers, 200+ crew, and 600 tons of cargo (including 60 tons of silver bullion).

On November 23, the Tilawa was torpedoed by the submarine I-29 of the Imperial Japanese Navy, near the Seychelles Islands. An hour after the first torpedo struck, the submarine fired again. The second torpedo sank the ship. 280 people went down with it.

Survivors spent two days adrift in the Indian Ocean without sufficient food and water. They were rescued by HMS Birmingham in the early hours of November 25. The Birmingham had been alerted about the sinking of the Tilawa and had changed course to rescue any survivors. The ship managed to save 674 lives. On November 27, Birmingham reached Ballard Pier in Bombay with the survivors.

The Tilawa came to be known as the "Indian Titanic", a reference to the 1912 sinking of the Titanic in the Atlantic Ocean with a large loss of life. In 2022, a memorial event took place in Bombay to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Tilawa's loss.