He is considered the founding father of the Persian diaspora in the city whose legacy still lives on through the various colonial buildings he constructed at the behest of the Commissioner of Mysore Sir Mark Cubbon.
[2] Agha Aly Asker was 16 when his brothers (Haji Mohammad Hashim & Mashadi Qasim) and he set sail to India from Iran along with 200 horses intending to trade them in Bangalore.
[citation needed] Haji Mohammad Hashim and Mashadi Qasim returned to Iran in 1825 leaving behind Aly Asker to expand the business.
[4] He was also responsible for creating the Ali Asker Waqf Estate which owns the land upon which the Windsor Manor Hotel is built in Bangalore.
Before his demise, Aly Asker willed Rs.800 for a mosque to be built in Richmond Town to meet the needs of the growing Shia community.