About a hundred years have passed since a young couple in Odessa packed their belongings and together with their baby son secretly set out on a long road in the hope of a better life. Padani - A family story is a three-generation saga based on the true story of the Padani jeweler family. The family's story begins with hunger and distress in Odessa after the October Revolution, moves through the upheavals on the way to freedom, the Holocaust and World War II, and up to immigration to Israel after the establishment of the state.
The future of the small family changes when Henry, the father of the family, who was a goldsmith in Belgium and was forced to work in Israel as a bartender in a bar, meets a wealthy businessman who asked him to design a bracelet for his wife. The perfect inlays and finishes on the bracelet paved Henry's way and quickly became the business card of the Padani Company, which opened its first store at the Sheraton Hotel in 1962. It is also the captivating story of Henry Padani, a talented and hardworking jewelry artist, who survived the Holocaust and became the leading jeweler in Tel Aviv at the time of the establishment of the State of Israel. Today, the Padani chain is considered the leading jewelry chain in Israel.
"As a child, I heard many stories from my late parents about the past – about the war and dealing with diamonds and jewelry in Antwerp and Israel. The book is based on the stories I heard as well as the testimony of my late uncle, Paul, who confirmed and added additional angles to past events. The family story interested Shifra Horn and led her to write her first biographical novel: Padani, A Family Story."
Benny Padani