Ali Akbar Shapurzaman, known throughout the Baba world by the name 'Aloba' that Meher Baba Himself bestowed upon him, was a figure of singular intensity among the mandali. Small in physical stature but towering in his love for the Master, he possessed what those who knew him described as a fiery nature fed by an unshakable conviction in Meher Baba's Godhood. He was the only student from the Meher Ashram period who later became one of Baba's permanent resident mandali, and he held the distinction of being the last surviving man among those who accompanied Baba on the transformative New Life journey.

Aloba's connection to Meher Baba had roots deeper than his own lifetime. He was born in Yazd, Iran—the same ancestral homeland from which Baba's family originated on both His father's and mother's sides. At the age of seven in 1923, young Ali Akbar came to India with an uncle, leaving behind the ancient Persian land that would always remain part of his identity. For four years he worked in Iranian restaurants in Bombay, until at age eleven, circumstances brought him to Meherabad and enrollment in the Hazrat Babajan School, part of what became known as the Meher Ashram for boys.

The young Iranian student first encountered Meher Baba in 1927, and from that moment his life was irrevocably changed. However, his path to permanent discipleship would take a circuitous route. In 1928, his uncle arrived and insisted on taking him back to Bombay to work. Aloba was heartbroken at the separation from the Master he had come to love so deeply. Several years passed with the boy working as a cashier in an Irani teashop in Bombay, his heart yearning for Baba.

In 1935, providence intervened. Aloba, then a cashier in a Bombay restaurant, saw Baidul, one of Baba's disciples, walk in. This chance encounter rekindled his longing for Baba; one night he left his job and went to Ahmednagar for Baba's darshan, where Raosaheb told him that Baba was staying in Nasik, and he followed Him there. When he found Baba at the Sarosh Motor Works office, he fell at His feet. Baba sent him back to Bombay, telling him to return whenever called, and from then on he usually met Baba on the first of every month.

According to Trust Meher, he later ran his own teashop, which prospered after Baba blessed it. But material success held no appeal compared to the call of the Master. In June 1949 he came from Bombay to live permanently with the mandali at Meherazad. On October 16, 1949, Aloba joined Baba and a select group of companions as they embarked on the New Life—a period of deliberate homelessness and renunciation that Baba called 'a life of complete helplessness and hopelessness.' For nearly eight months, Aloba walked with the Master through this unique spiritual experiment. In mid-1950 he left for an independent life in Bombay and was later placed in the Old Life; he lived in Bombay. During the New Life at Moradabad (1949), where Muslims were barred from the companions' lodging, someone heard him called 'Ali Akbar' and accused him of being a Muslim; Baba therefore renamed him Aloba, and the name stuck.

In September 1952 Baba called him back from Bombay to join the mass darshan tours, and from then on he remained one of Baba's resident mandali. For the next fifty years, until his death, Aloba lived primarily at Meherazad, serving the Master and later welcoming the thousands of pilgrims who came seeking connection with Meher Baba's legacy. His passionate proclamations of Baba's divinity became legendary among visitors to Meherazad.

Aloba's final moments perfectly encapsulated the intensity of his devotion. In early August 2002, at age eighty-six, he fell and fractured his hip. During the subsequent surgery under spinal anesthesia, he remained conscious throughout. Repeatedly, loudly, he proclaimed what had been the truth of his existence: 'Baba is God!' When asked to be quiet by the medical staff, he agreed. But the moment surgery was complete, his last words rang out: 'Jai Baba!' Immediately his blood pressure dropped and his heart stopped beating. He passed away on August 13, 2002, at 1:30 PM at Inlaks Hospital in Pune from a pulmonary embolism.

Aloba was buried in the Men's Cemetery at Lower Meherabad, placed beside Eruch Jessawala. He was buried, not cremated. Small in stature, he had proven himself a giant in Baba's love, winning a unique place in the hearts of all who knew him.