Many of us have had careers that meandered down winding paths. Rita Kapadia, of East Street, has followed a path filled with ones and zeros as well as halves and quarters. She began her career in the corporate world at IBM in the field of computer programming. After many years she moved on to support the Carlisle Mosquito, involved with initial development of their web page.

Article by Anne Lehmann | Carlisle Mosquito

Rita Kapadia at a recent author’s talk and taste at the Gleason Public Library.

(Courtesy photo)

Kapadia now works as a substitute teacher in Carlisle and Westford but her true passion involves the kitchen. She has a blog and has just written a book entitled Parsi Cuisine, Manna of the 21st Century. The focus of the book is the history and heritage of food, specifically food found in her native region of the Zoroastrian communities in India, otherwise known as Parsi. The Parsis, whose name means “Persians,” are descended from Persian Zoroastrians who emigrated to India to avoid religious persecution by the Muslims.

Born in Ahmedabad in the state of Gujarat India, Kapadia grew up with Parsi cooking abundant in her home. The Parsi culture is focused on education. Kapadia began school at age four, in a convent where she was educated in English by nuns. Her high school was Mount Carmel and she later attended Gujarat University. She came to the United States to attend Northeastern and the University of Massachusetts, Lowell for computer science degrees. The formal nature of the education had a grand impact on her and she continues to enjoy learning new techniques both in and outside of the kitchen.

Living in Carlisle for the past 27 years with her husband and family she has often introduced the Parsi cuisine to friends and neighbors. One of her favorite dishes to prepare is the Dhan Dar with Shrimp Patio. “I love this dish because it combines the healthy lentils into a mild soup and pairs it with a spicy side. The combination of the two is delicious.” The Dhan features a mild rice lentil soup and the side dish, Dar, provides the spice.

Kapadia’s most recent Parsi cookbook.

The tomato-based side dish begins with shrimp marinated in turmeric powder. Then she sautés onion, garlic and jeera (cumin) seeds in a bit of oil until everything is mixed. The next step is to add jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) and green chilies with tomatoes. This mixture “melts” the tomatoes. Finally, you continue to sauté the red chili powder, haldi (turmeric), dhania (coriander) and salt. When everything is mixed in, the final ingredient is the marinated shrimp. This zesty side dish compliments the mild lentil soup making it a perfect meal for a cold blustery winter night. The full recipe is listed in her online blog or you can find it in her cookbook.

When asked about finding the spices for dishes in the cookbook Kapadia said, “Most spices can be found in the grocery, but the ones that are hard to find are in Indian stores. The one I go to is in Waltham on Moody Street.”

The cookbook not only shares timeless recipes, but also tidbits about Parsi history, culture and lifestyles in this region of India. Kapadia also includes some poetry and folktales in the book. She is quite proud of the finished product and of her blog as well. Marrying her love of technology and food was her destiny and her destination.

You can purchase the cookbook and read Kapadia’s blog at http://www.ParsiCuisine.com.

‘Impossible’ is a word that does not feature in his dictionary.

Perseverance, dedication and focused approach are among the best attributes of Jazeel Mistry, a young man from Howick in East Auckland (now based in Australia), who is on a mission to realise his dreams in Hollywood as an actor, producer and director.

Jazeel is getting ready for his visit to Los Angeles in November to meet the movers and shakers in Hollywood to seek funds for his latest home production.

Article by Venkat Raman | Indian Newslink

Three-in-One Film

Titled, ‘The Golden Try,’ the film, in English, is a romantic comedy and sports adventure rolled into one.

The story of an immigrant- an orphan (adopted by a New Zealand journalist) with an endless passion for Rugby – the film will portray Jazeel in a new light. His role as a struggler in life with the lofty ambition of becoming an international Rugby star and boost the image of his adopted country’s national game will hopefully make the movie a blockbuster and lift the profile of Jazeel on the international scene.

“’The Golden Try’ is an honest piece of work and story-telling in its purest form. My objective of making this film is not to seek fame, awards or even money but to create a film that will remain as a memorable masterpiece. I wish to share this emotional journey, the story of a young man who has crossed seven seas to make something of himself. I hope it works. It is ‘The Golden Try’,” he said.

The film will be shown at the Annual American Film Convention in Los Angeles in November in the presence of some of the largest financiers and owners of studios.

His counterparts in Hollywood believe that if the film matches the exacting standards of quality of production and cast, it would create box-office records and make Jazeel’s dreams come true.

The Showbusiness Man

Jazeel moved to Sydney about five years ago but has maintained contacts with his peers, people in the Parsi community to which he proudly belongs and the entertainment scene.

Every major entertainment programme that features Hindi film stars, be it Shah Rukh Khan or Salman Khan, will see his presence in Australia and New Zealand.

Showbusiness has always held his major interest.

He began his career on stage as a Master of Ceremony. His humour, presence of mind and unique style of presentation have all endeared him to organisers of local and international shows on both sides of the Tasman.

His ability to work with organisers of corporate events, beauty pageants such as Miss Universe and Miss World and Concerts featuring international artistes has endeared him to people, earning him popularity as ‘Mistry MC of stage.’

The Movie World

His interest in acting involved him in three films produced in New Zealand. His role as Harry Singh in the 2008 film ‘Love has No Language’ was impressive. The film featured Celina Jaitley (a popular film actor of that decade), Ben Mitchell (of Shortland Street fame) and Colin Mathura-Jeffree, New Zealand’s well-known icon of fashion, brand ambassador and actor.

Directed by Ken Khan, it received rave reviews and was a box-office success.

He appeared in a cameo role in ‘Curry Munchers,’ now known as ‘Vindaloo Empire.’ This film won the ‘Best Global Film Award’ at the ‘Festival of Globe Movie 2017’ held in California last month.

He was also featured in ‘Sione’s Wedding,’ a 2006 film directed by Chris Graham.

Jazeel was trained and mentored by British actress Sally Spencer Harris and is ready for bigger things in life and career. His latest work as producer, coupled by his acting talent, will hopefully make the rich and famous in Hollywood to take notice of him.

Pristine New Zealand

“Although I live and work in Australia now, my heart is still in New Zealand. This will always be my home. ‘The Golden Try’ is my humble contribution to this beautiful country and the film enables me to express myself,” he told Indian Newslink.

A Flashback

During his years as a University student, he was a regular visitor to the offices of Indian Newslink to share his experiences. The following report, under the title, ‘Auckland readies for debonair show’ appeared in our May 1, 2004 issue:

The sophisticated charm of the community youth would be put to test at a show scheduled to be held in Auckland next month.

‘Mr India New Zealand 2004,’ claimed to be the first of its type on both sides of the Tasman, will get under way at the Logan Campbell Theatre on May 22, with about 18 contestants putting on their irrepressible smile and agility to win the top honour.

And 20-year old Jazeel Mistry is one of them.

The India-born lad, raised with formative education in Dubai, is hoping to go places.

His modelling assignments have thus far remained within the community, including the ‘Bridal Show’ held as a part of the Diwali festivities in 2002 and 2003 and a few others and the young man is brimming with enthusiasm.

As well as pursuing a degree in Applied Communication at the Manukau Institute of Technology, Jazeel wears dancing shoes and has appeared in shows to give vent to his prowess.

“The forthcoming contest will be exciting and will follow the Bollywood style,” he says.

*

Pictures of Jazeel Mistry were supplied.

Some 200 Parsis of all ages in festive clothes gather at Delhi Anjuman, a Parsi community centre, to celebrate Navroz, the New Year.

It is the first day of the Persian year and Parsis across the world have celebrated it for centuries.

Article by Murali Krishnan | ABC News Australia

It’s a time to come together to celebrate, to eat and drink, to connect with the Parsi community and faith. And for some of the young couples to pray for a child.

Parsis at a glance:

• Estimated 61,000 Parsis in India
• Ancestry traced back to Zoroastrian refugees from Persia
• Parsis settled in India somewhere between the 8th and 10th centuries
• They were escaping religious persecution
• Zoroastrian is one of the world’s oldest religions
• Zoroastrians believe in one God, called Ahura Mazda

The Parsi community is one of the most successful minority and migrant groups in the world.

Today, Parsis such as the Tata, Godrej and Wadia families are among India’s top corporate dynasties.

Several prominent Parsis played an important role in the country’s freedom struggle, and there are a number of well-known Parsi scientists and artists that have become world-famous.

Freddie Mercury, the late lead singer of Queen, came from an Indian Parsi family and Zubin Mehta, the world famous conductor of Western classical music, was also born a Parsi.

The Indian Parsis trace their ancestry to Zoroastrian refugees from Persia.

They’re known for their many unique customs, including the famous funeral tradition of laying out the dead in a purpose built tower to be eaten by vultures.

But despite their illustrious past and the continuing success of many Parsis, it’s a very small community today — just 61,000 across India.

Indian authorities see Parsis as a role model for other communities.

While most other ethnic groups in India are growing at a fast pace, the number of Parsis has been dwindling so fast, at 10 to 15 per cent a decade, that the Indian Government and community leaders have agreed on a plan to increase birth-rates.

Four years ago, the Parsi community in Mumbai was facing extinction.

In response, a fertility program, Jiyo Parsi (Live Parsi), was launched by the Indian Ministry of Minority Affairs and the Parzor Foundation, an NGO.

The Parzor Foundation says a tendency for late marriages in the Parsi community often leads to infertility problems for women.

Fertility program celebrates birth of 101st baby

The program recently celebrated the birth of its 101st baby, and there is optimism that the Parsis won’t fade away into history.

It has offered infertility treatment for nearly 100 Parsi couples.

“That was almost a 17-18 per cent decline and that was pretty drastic.”

The Parsi tradition of marrying only within the community resulted in large numbers of people remaining unmarried in the 1970s and 80s.

That was when the decline began.

At that time, it was taboo to even think of marrying outside the community.

“As I was growing I always thought I would marry within the community, due to which I had to wait for a very long time.

“The hunt was long but the result was sweet because I found my wife after 35 years.”

The difficulty in finding a Parsi partner

The late marriages, health complications and a reluctance to have children have all contributed to the falling birth rates within the Parsi community.

For every four people dying, only one child is born, leading to a fast decline in numbers.

But it’s not so easy to find a suitable marriage partner in a tiny community and more than 30 per cent of Parsis remain single now.

Unlike other religions, including Christianity and Islam, the Parsi community doesn’t practice the conversion of people from other faiths into Zoroastrianism.

And under traditional Parsi laws, lineage passes through fathers but not mothers.

That means kids of Parsi women who marry non-Parsis are not considered Parsis.

Purists now fear that the pure Parsi bloodlines will be eliminated in a few generations.

The campaign to stop the decline has certainly helped some Parsi families.

But the question remains whether it will be enough to sustain the shrinking community of 61,000 who live among more than 1.2 billion Indians adhering to much larger religions like Hinduism, Islam and Sikhism.

“Yes, the thought has crossed my mind but it doesn’t worry me that as a species as such that the Parsis are in decline as long as its culture is preserved, the food is preserved and the traditions are kept on,” says Tvisha Shroff, a young professional who works in the corporate world.

“I am not so sure that I am bothered about a particular racial entity in decline.”

In the undivided India of 1930, Karachi was the ‘aerial gateway of India’, boasting the first flying club in the country. One early morning in March two young men started up a small plane and, shrouded in secrecy, started on the journey of their lives. Seventeen-year-old Aspy Engineer and his friend R.N. Chawla, older by a few years, were attempting to fly to London in Aspy’s little single-engine aircraft. From there Aspy would return solo to compete in the race for the Agha Khan Cup. This pioneering event ushered in the era of civil aviation in India.

Article by Farida Singh, bharat-rakshak.com

A young Aspy Engineer, in May 1930 with his DeHavilland Gypsy Moth. Aspy had embarked on the UK-India flight to win the Agha Khan Cup.

It was a heady period for young fliers. Lindbergh had flown solo trans-Atlantic and the likes of Amelia Earhart, Jim Morrison and Amy Johnson were making exciting headlines. To encourage aviation in India, the Agha Khan announced a trophy and a prize for the first Indian to fly solo between England and India within a period of 30 days. Aspy’s father had encouraged his children to ‘dare to dream’ and now he somehow put together enough resources to buy his son a DeHavilland Gypsy Moth.

Aspy won the race, and in so doing inspired his younger brothers to take flight on amazing Life journeys of their own. On hearing the news of Aspy’s winning the Agha Khan cup, half the population of Karachi turned out to greet him on his return. Asked by a reporter what he saw in his future, the youngster said “I would love the chance to serve my country in the Air Force”. A wish that came true for not one, but four of the brothers, with three of them receiving the coveted Distinguished Flying Cross. Aspy reached the highest position, Jangoo served in the Air force during the critical war years and then went on to make his mark in civil aviation, Minoo became the highest decorated officer in the armed forces, and the youngest, brilliant, enigmatic Ronnie charted a distinguished path of his own.

Minoo, Aspy and Ronnie Engineer, all awarded the D F C. Jangoo Engineer, who is not in this photograph made his mark in civil aviation as well

Four years apart in age, the boys were four out of eight siblings who grew up in Karachi where their father was the Divisional Engineer for the Northwestern Railway. Their mother was gentle, talented, very spiritual and a great moral force in their lives. Both parents groomed the children to be good Zoroastrians, with a great emphasis on honesty, high thinking and hard-work. One day around the year 1919, Alcock and Brown landed a small aircraft on the racecourse just below their spacious Railway bungalow, which was on a rise. Seven-year-old Aspy watched in fascination and an obsession was born. Ten years later, Aspy joined the newly formed Karachi Aero club and got his flying license within a year.

Promoters of the ‘nature vs. nurture’ theory would have a field day with the growing Engineer brothers as subjects. Being the eldest, Aspy developed strong leadership qualities. At times he had to be quite harsh on the boisterous younger ones. A free-spirited, euphoric spirit of adventure was never curbed by the adoring parents, but rather given free reign. However, perfection was made a goal, and the boys did not disappoint. A streak of extreme academic brilliance also ran in the family and the two brothers who didn’t take to flying excelled in other spheres, one topping the Civil Service exam and the other finishing school at the age of fourteen. Believing in ‘a healthy mind in a healthy body’, a Japanese gym instructor named Yamaki was put in charge of the brood’s fitness regimen. In later years, Aspy was to record with humour: “ My problem was that Yamaki wanted me also to become a ‘champion swimmer’ like my brother Jangoo, although swimming was anything but my strong point or budding love. As it happened, I could barely keep myself afloat and avoided entering deep waters in the same way as some so-called hunting dogs do, who prefer other pastimes to entering the cold waters of a duck ‘jheel’ early on a February morning!”

Aspy in the IAF

Aspy trained at RAF Cranwell, U.K. where he was adjudged the best all round cadet. On commissioning from Cranwell, he joined ‘A’ Flight of the IAF, flying Wapitis in the North Western Frontier Province. He helped nurse the newly formed Indian Air force into a self-sufficient, high-morale fighting force and led several missions which resulted in the training of pilots and technicians for other developing countries.

A constructive period followed as M.D. of Hindustan Aircraft Ltd. (HAL), when the Marut flew its first sortie during his tenure. In 1960, on the sudden demise of the first Indian Chief of Air Force, his close friend Subrato Mukherjee, Aspy was appointed his successor. The Goa Operations and action in the Congo kept his forces busy.

Throughout his tenure there were ominous signs that Pakistan was preparing for war and that China was encroaching from Tibet. He ably guided his force through the 1962 aggression by the Chinese. After retirement from the Indian Air Force in 1964, he served as India’s ambassador to Iran. He passed away in 2002.

Jangoo Engineer

Jangoo, the third Engineer brother, was the next to take up flying. In core areas like love of flying, patriotism, honesty and courage he was a lot like Aspy. However, while leadership came naturally to him too, he was kind and generous to a fault, with heart ruling head. He exulted in competition, and with fair-play as his standard, won in everything he set his sights on. Bridge and chess found him competing on a national level just as did swimming and squash. A brilliant science graduate, he had started his Medical studies while at the same time getting his flying license, when financial straits in the family led him to join Tata Air Lines as a pilot. He had flown for two years when the call went out for volunteers for an Emergency Commission in the R.I.A.F. in 1939. His response was unhesitating. On being recruited he immediately set about topping the armament exercises and building a formidable reputation. His first posting was with No. 1 Squadron at Miranshah.

In 1941 he was with the Madras Coast Defence Flight. He shadowed a Japanese fleet off the Madras coast and was in turn shadowed by a couple of Japanese planes 30 miles inland. Ironically, though his life was spared then, Jangoo was to meet his end tragically at the hands of two other fighter pilots in Pakistani Sabre jets during a cowardly attack on his unarmed civilian ‘plane in the 1965 War. Strangely, against all odds, he had also survived a fall from the sky when, during an aerobatics display in 1941 in Bangalore, his plane hit a vulture and plummeted to earth. Though his body was thoroughly shattered, his spirit was indomitable.

After a near-miraculous recovery, nothing could prevent him from taking to the skies once more. At the end of 1942 he was in Calcutta as personal pilot to the Air Officer commanding, 221 group. He also spent 11 months as Group Training Officer at the G.H.Q. board for Permanent Selection. At the end of the war he made the difficult decision to return to Civil Aviation, where the uncharted skies called for his kind of dedication and expertise. He rose to be Director of Operations, Planning and Training of Indian Airlines (a combined post created especially for him, and split in three after he left the Airline).

In 1964, after a distinguished career with the Airline, he resigned on principle over differences with the Pilots’ Union, and made the fateful move to fly for the Maharashtra Government. When his life came to an abrupt end at the age of 49, time stood still for his brothers, so loved was he. “Too beautiful for this world”, grieved Aspy.

Minoo Engineer

Minoo Engineer remains to date the most decorated officer in the IAF. The sixth of the siblings and the third brother to join the Air Force, Minoo seemed to be born with the proverbial twinkle in his eye. Low down in the sibling ‘food-chain’ so to speak, he had a tough time keeping up with his brothers who grew rapidly stronger and taller than he. Even younger brother, Ronnie, was to become the college boxing champion, when both were in Elphinstone College, Bombay.

However, Minoo was to prove the ‘eternal warrior’ of the group. Below a jovial, genial exterior, he hid a steely resolve. He joined the Air force in 1940 and retired after 33 years of distinguished service. A grateful nation was to bestow on him the highest awards ever given to anyone in the history of the armed forces.

He was awarded the DFC when, in frontline combat duty in World War II, he commanded the first Spitfire Squadron in Burma and later the only Indian Squadron in Japan in 1946. In 1947 he formed the first operational air base in Jammu and Kashmir. Controlling all air operations there, he was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra for conspicuous gallantry. In 1962 he was specially selected as S.A.S.O. of new Operational Command in Eastern Sector, where the Chinese threat was developing. Coping remarkably with all the air support requirements projected by the Army within the meager resources of men and material then available, he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal. In 1965 he was appointed the Deputy Chief of Air Staff at Air Head Quarters, and in 1969 was selected as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Air Command. His retalliatory air strikes on 3rd and 4th December 1971 took the air war deep into enemy territory and his leadership contributed greatly to an Indian victory, winning him the Padma Bhushan.

In 1990 the Maharashtra government honoured him with the prestigious ‘Gaurav Puraskar.’ On retirement, he plunged into a vastly different challenge. As CEO of an advertising agency, he found himself in unfamiliar waters, but despite rapidly failing health did a remarkable job. If one were to run one’s finger down a portrait of the Engineer clan looking for ‘Mr. Dependable’ it would come to rest on Minoo Engineer, to whom any friend, family member or even stranger could always turn for help and genuine advice.

Ronnie Engineer

Ronnie Engineer was the youngest child. Bearing a striking physical resemblance to Jangoo, the youngster soon grew to hero-worshiping this gentle giant of an elder brother. Both brothers got used to winning at various sports and while Jangoo excelled at swimming, Ronnie was a boxing supremo. His charismatic personality and winning ways won him a legion of friends and admirers. But it was his superb skill at flying and his fearlessness in battle that put him in a category of his own. The RIAF quickly spotted the handsome flyer and featured him in films and posters for their recruitment campaign, He readily admitted to idolising Jangoo, and on the latter’s death was so grief-stricken that he could never speak of him again. But it was Ronnie who led his Canberra squadron to wipe out the Pakistani radar that had picked up Jangoo’s plane in 1965. And a year later when a son was born to Ronnie he proudly named him Jehangir after his adored sibling, and started him on flying training as soon as he came of age. In a cruel twist of fate, this young Jehangir was killed in a mid-air collision in Canada when just 25 years old.

Being the youngest in a string of illustrious siblings had both advantages and disadvantages. Struggling not to be over-shadowed, Ronnie had superb role models right within the family. With unique charisma and exceptional flying talent, Ronnie always looked skywards. He was deeply loved by all levels of the men he worked with. Always leading from the front, he would often gallantly take the rap to protect his juniors. His zest for life was infectious, and whether as leader of squadron 2 or as Commanding Officer, he suffused his crew with an amazing spirit of ‘bon homie ‘.

In the fledgling Air force of WW II, it seemed that whichever way one turned one came across one of the Engineer brothers. So it was inevitable that they came across each other. Ronnie was to record that seeing his eldest brother, he rushed up to him with an ebullient “Hello Aspy”, only to be dressed down with “ It’s ‘Sir’ and a salute from you, young man. You are in uniform”. A few days later, Ronnie spotted Jangoo and clicked to a smart salute, when Jangoo with an arm around his shoulders says, “Hey, when did I stop being your brother?” Coming across Minoo still later, a wary Ronnie queried “ which way should I go”?

Ronnie’s spectacular career in the Air force came to an abrupt end in 1966, when events drove him to leave and make a new life in Canada, shocking many and leaving a lasting void. In spirit he remained a son of Indian soil, and of its skies, carrying his Air Force within him till his heart failed in his 60th year.

So, in 1930, as the young aviator, Aspy winged his way in his little Gypsy Moth across unknown skies to a world record, little could he foresee what was to come. The country and the Air Force were ready for the brothers. They, in turn , exulted in the Times and embraced the challenges; triumph and tragedy equal stowaways on their powerful, unforgettable formation in the sky.

Copyright © MRS FARIDA SINGH. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of the copyright holders is prohibited.

The Engineers, who stay in an ancestral bungalow on Warden Road, say their tenants assaulted their security guard on September 3, but police yet to file an FIR

An elderly Parsi couple, who lives in a bungalow on Warden Road, has accused their tenants of assaulting and abusing their security guard, but the police are yet to register an FIR despite them lodging a complaint.

The Engineer family, who resides on the ground floor of Gulshan Villa, an ancestral two-storey building in Gamdevi, claimed that the tenants had been occupying the property for around 25 years and had been causing them distress for quite some time now.

Noshir Engineer (87), the house owner who is suffering from cancer, said, “We live on the ground floor while the first and second floors have been let out.“

On September 3, he said, CCTV footage showed their first-floor tenants, the Subramanians, ringing their doorbell innumerable times at around 4.30 am. “We have had several run-ins with them in the past and thus we have a female security guard.Since the doorbell woke all of us, we asked the guard to go up and enquire what was wrong,“ said Engineer’s younger son Sharoukh, 54.

What followed after was caught in a CCTV camera and was enough to scar the Engineers’ relationship with their tenants.

When the female guard went up to enquire what was wrong, the ten that CCTV camera had captured the entire episode.

His wife Mahrukh (45) said, “She was lucky that she didn’t fall and come rolling down the stairs. However, when she went back to enquire why they rangs our doorbell, she was slapped, abused and manhandled again by Subramanian’s elder son, Abhinav.“

By this time, the Engineers had called up the police control room, their complaint said.

“The police came and took all of us to Gamdevi police station. But to our dismay, they lodged a non-cognisable complaint against our tenants even though what they did was a very serious offence,” Sharoukh said.

The Engineers claimed that they got their guard to undergo a medical check-up. “The doctors said that her left ear, where she was hit, suffered some damages. The way she was assaulted, her modesty was outraged too. Police need to take stronger action against the Subramanians,” Sharoukh said.

The Engineers have written letters to the Commissioner of Police, along with the other authorities concerned. Their lawyer, Satish Maneshinde, said, “If this can happen in a city like Mumbai, I can’t imagine what must be the situation elsewhere. An old Parsi couple is being harassed at this age. Authorities need to take cognizance.“

The Subramaniams weren’t available to comment. This newspaper called up and sent a number of messages to Kumar Subramaniam, the head of the family, but he didn’t respond. DCP Zone II, Dnyaneshwar Chavan, said, “I am not aware of the incident. However, I will look into it and ask Gamdevi senior inspector to investigate the case.“

They are a tiny community, whose ancestors came to India due to religious persecutions in Persia (Iran). Their numbers are down to a critical 61,000 and diminishing by the day. India’s population increases by 21% and the Parsi population declines by 12% every census decade.

Article by Homiar Nariman Vakil | TNN

Prior to 1837, the English common law applied to Parsis and their proper ties, subject to certain exceptions as to marriage and bigamy. There are special rules for Parsi intestate provided under Sections 50 to 56 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925. They are also governed by the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936. Parsi Chief Matrimonial Courts are established as special courts in each of the presidential towns of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay. In contested matrimonial matters, special delegates are appointed, who are usually respected members of the small community.

Parsi Zoroastrians have been given preferential treatment in foreign countries especially India. If Uniform Civil Code is enforced all the protection given to a tiny community like Parsis will be abolished, the age old Privy Council judgements will hold no good.

There is no legal adoption amongst Parsis and therefore if a Parsi couple decides to adopt a child, she or he would not enjoy automatic rights of inheritance.

Who can be a member of a particular religious denomination, or who can have a right to insist on being a member and be entitled to the use of religious institutions, is determined by the personal law of that denomination, which in turn is based on the precepts, beliefs and tenets of the religion.

Article 25 (1) of the Constitution of India provides that all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion, this is subject to public order, morality and health. It is also subject to Article 26 (b), which provides that every religious denomination shall have the right “to manage its own affairs in matters of religion”. Article 44 states the Directive Principle that the State shall endeavour to secure for citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. However, it has not been implemented till date.

The children of a Parsi Zoroastrian man who married outside the community can become a Parsi, but not the children of a Parsi woman married to a non-Parsi. Some women in the community have questioned this and taken the matter to courts. RD Tata had married a French woman who had embraced the Zoroastrian religion and had a Novjote ceremony. He pleaded that this meant she could enter an Agyari and be consigned to the Tower of Silence after her death. However, there was an uproar from orthodox Parsis, and the high court then ruled in their favour. Parsis, being one of India’s most progressive communities, are used to this conflict between liberal and orthodox viewpoints. The enforcement of a Uniform Civil Code will not be easy with most communities, especially in a secular country like India.

The transition from personal laws to Uniform Civil Code should be an evolutionary process, which preserves India’s rich heritage. Sensitisation efforts are needed to reform the current personal laws, which should be first initiated by communities themselves. The energy should be focused not on fighting the old, but on building a new code that preserves the rich cultural heritage of small communities like Parsis, Christians and countless others in India.

(The writer is partner of the law firm Mulla & Mulla & Craigie Blunt & Caroe)

Anahita Cowasji’s Quiltessence is a house of individually designed and crafted home textiles, woven and block printed, hand embroidered and textured into pieces of intrinsic value and beauty.

Born into a Parsi family in a sleepy cantonment town, she started her workshop under a tamarind tree in the back cottage of her parent’s compound, where it has remained ever since. Mhow is fortuitously located not far from the handloom weaving town of Maheshwar, the block print village of Bagh and the textile city of Indore. The convent here was, till recently, run by French nuns who meticulously imparted their craft of needlework to the local girls. The old almirahs in their hauntingly beautiful colonial home were repositories for gara saris and borders. From these traditions come the incandescent weaves, prints and embroideries that form a leitmotif through her collection and body of work.

An education in the liberal arts and Fashion, and her experience in garment factories of the day, positioned her to design and manufacture for several well known and well loved labels and stores. Egged on by her children and her husband, she has finally decided on an online presence in the form of a retail store under her own name, Anahita Cowasji.

Members accuse federation of selling valuable properties

The plan to sell a piece of land in Dharwad, Karnataka, has become a matter of contention in the Parsi community.

Article by Jyoti Shelar | The Hindu

While the Federation of Parsi Zoroastrian Anjumans of India (FPZAI), an umbrella body of all Parsi anjumans in the country, is selling the land, some community members have called it yet another attempt to sell off valuable Parsi properties. On Monday, FPZAI secretary Noshir Dadrawala resigned from the post to protest the sale.

The community has used part of the Dharwad land as a cemetery due to the absence of a dakhma or Tower of Silence, where Parsis traditionally lay the dead to rest.

“Instead of preserving and protecting these properties, the FPZAI is attempting to wipe out all of them. Who is giving them the permission to do so?” said Rayomand Zaiwalla from Mumbai. Another Parsi, Homi Dalal, said there is no transparency in these decisions.

Funds for legal case?

Mr. Dadrawala told The Hindu that the proceeds from the sale may be used to fight a legal case. A woman has moved the Calcutta High Court seeking entry for her grandchildren, born to a Hindu father, into the fire temple in Kolkata. The FPZAI is intervening in the case.

“I cannot see myself as part of this policy, process or procedure,” said Mr. Dadrawala, who is also a trustee of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet. “A community with our kind of demography cannot afford infighting. The need of the hour is to arbitrate internally, not waste time and money in courts.”

Community members say it is surprising that FPZAI needs funds for the case, as the lawyers are working pro bono.

FPZAI president Yazdi Desai, however, has rubbished the allegation. The decision to sell the Dharwad property was discussed at the FPZAI meeting in March 2011. “Therefore, its sale has no link to the Calcutta HC case,” he said.

“Dharwad is a small town with not a single Parsi. The property is in danger of being encroached upon. FPZAI has years ago decided to sell all such properties and use the money for the welfare of the community.”

Vintage Rusi is a short film made for the 2005 kala Ghoda arts and street festival in Mumbai. With Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal , Bapu Malcolm and Beezan Charna in leading roles. It was directed by Ashok Salian, noted photographer and film maker.

Author Murzban Shroff informs us

For those who missed my Mumbai launch, my tete-a-tete with my dear friend and neighbor Harsha Bhogle, on what it takes to create a powerful character-driven novel.

Harsha, being the modest person that he is, confesses that his life was not peopled with as many outrageous characters as mine is. Well, thank God for that, I say. We wouldn’t want cricket’s most dignified face to be corrupted, would we?

Debates over the Uniform Civil Code usually zero in on one kind of personal law: Muslim matrimonial law. What gets less airtime is Parsi matrimonial law. We assume that it lacks the gender asymmetries of Muslim personal law. There is a long history of Parsis being held up as a model minority, by implied contrast with Muslims. This narrative was at its heyday under British rule. It is enjoying a revival in Modi’s India.

Article by Mitra Sharafi | Times of India

Contrary to the “model minority” stereotype, though, the history of Parsi matrimonial law does not reveal a smooth march to ward women’s equality. Reforms in Parsi personal law that were good for women were celebrated loudly, providing maximum po litical mileage with the British pre-1947. But changes that were bad for wives were not advertised.

Take the prohibition of Parsi polygamy in 1865. In the 1850s and 60s, elite male Parsis in Bombay drafted the text of what would become Parsi personal law, including the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act of 1865. The centrepiece of this statute was the invalidation of polygamous Parsi marriages.

Parsi elites made a lot of the fact that their own community had initiated this reform. The honorary secretary of the Parsi Law Association that drafted the statute, SS Bengalee, declared that the Parsis were Asia’s most civilised people for voluntarily giving up polygamy . Sixty years later, a Parsi lawyer named C. F . G. Chinoy called the statute “the Magna Carta of the rights and privileges of woman.”

These celebratory accounts failed to mention that another male privilege – the right to have sex with prostitutes -was stealthily protected in the 1865 Act. Under English law, adultery by a husband was defined as the act of sexual intercourse with any woman not his wife, including a prostitute. In the Parsi Act, the definition of adultery excluded sex with prostitutes. For the next seven decades, Parsi wives could not prove that their husbands had been adulterous if the men had sex with prostitutes.

The prostitution exception was eliminated in the 1930s, when the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act of 1936 became law. This reform was celebrated for its gender equality, as was the statute’s creation of uniform grounds for divorce between husbands and wives.

As in 1865, though, the new statute smuggled in another change that was bad for women. While Parsi men gave up their right to have sex with pros titutes in the 1936 statute, they fortified their right to beat their wives.

Under the 1936 Act, one Parsi spouse could file for divorce if she suffered from “grievous hurt” inflicted by the other. The 1865 Act had been vague on domestic violence, and Parsi draftsmen in the 1930s took the opportunity to clarify. What ensued was the most precise and public discussion of Parsi matrimonial violence of the colonial period, and possibly ever. Early versions of the 1936 bill had imported the Indian Penal Code’s definition of grievous hurt. Had this text been adopted, a criminal conviction for grievous hurt could have served as the basis for a divorce suit. But organisations like the Dadar-Matunga Zoroastrian Association, the Zoroastrian Brotherhood, and the Grant Road Parsi Association objected.

As the Parsi newspaper, Jam-e-Jamshed, put it: “Having experience as worldly men, that husbands are rather too free with their hands…would it be safe to dissolve marriage at every violent quarrel between a husband and wife?” These voices prevailed. The fracture or dislocation of a bone or tooth would not constitute grievous harm in Parsi matrimonial law, although it would continue to be a crime. Any injury that caused the wife to be in “severe bodily pain” for twenty days or unable to follow her ordinary pursuits would also not constitute a ground for divorce. The message was clear: forms of violence that constituted criminal offences were not serious enough to be part of Parsi wives’ divorce suits.

The characterization of Parsi matrimonial law as a model personal law overlooks the troubling tradeoffs made in Parsi legal history. Some products of this history , like the matrimonial definition of grievous hurt, remain with us today. Conversations about the UCC should look beyond Muslim matrimonial law to consider the fraught history of other bodies of personal law, too. (The writer is associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and author of Law and Identity in Colonial South Asia: Parsi Legal Culture, 1772-1947)

Only a mad and passionate lover of sport will take to writing on the game. The majority of budding sports writers want to write on cricket, unless they are from Bengal or, these days, the northeast.

Like all journalists, football reporters and fans can be vehement when it comes to arguments, but they are humble.

Those were the days when some of the finest football and hockey writers used to be in the Press Box at the good old Delhi Gate Stadium, now known as the Ambedkar Football Stadium, or the Hardinge Ground, now the Shivaji Hockey Stadium.

Perhaps, it was in the late 1970s or early 1980s, an enthusiastic young man used to flit in and flit out of the Ambedkar Stadium Press Box. Not many knew much about him, except that he was helping the Durand Cup organisers in bringing out the official souvenir. A lecturer of English literature at one of the Delhi University North Campus colleges, he soon became a stringer of, not surprisingly, a Calcutta-based daily, started around the time.

It was unthinkable for a Parsi to play football, but Novy Kapadia insists he was a serious club-level player. It did not take long for him to learn the ropes and he became a football “informer” in the Press Box. He was, perhaps, the only guy who had access to the change rooms of the teams. He would go at the half-time and get back assessing the players’ mood and their impressions about the game thus far and some useful quotes after the match. In fact, he became a spokesman of sorts for the teams!

For someone who is so deeply involved with the sport, writing a book on the game should not have been a big deal. What is surprising is that it took such a long time coming. Once you read the book “Barefoot to Boots” (Penguin/Rs 399) you will know why it took so long for him to write his first book. He had to manage his football, teaching and on top of this, he is a sought after commentator. He is in great demand, too, for both live commentary and on television channels. He moved on to Olympic disciplines, though his first love remained football.

Novy’s passion for the game is infectious. He regimented himself to a tough lifestyle. In his own words: “I was no partygoer and my life revolved around football — playing, reading about it and watching matches at the stadium, as there was no TV in those days.”

He went on to say: “I too had raging hormones and was attracted to some girls in my school bus (the students of St. Columba’s and and the neighbouring Convent of Jesus and Mary used to travel by the same bus, which led to many blossoming romances). But when football was on in the Capital — DCM Trophy invariably in October and Durand Cup in November-December — my interest in the opposite sex faded, I never attended Christmas and New Year parties as all the thrills of my life were at the Delhi Gate Stadium.” He even skipped his grandmother’s funeral to watch a key Durand match at the Delhi Gate Stadium. That explains Novy’s love foot football.

And he remained wedded to football. No wonder Bhaichung Bhutia and players of his era call Novy the Grand Old Man of Indian football. Novy was ever willing to travel to watch football wherever it is played.

The book has to be anecdotal and his worldview of soccer is amazing. Not many can remember members of the teams, be it local, national and international. He can reel off incidents and the personae dramatis as it happened recently. Ask him about any match and he will tell you how a goal is scored, too.

If he gives a graphic description of the happenings leading India winning the gold medal at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, he also gives an insight into the players wanting to win it for their coach, Syed Abdul Rahim, who guided the team despite his poor health. It turned out to be Rahim’s last hurrah as he died a year later.

Novy takes a holistic view of the sport. He takes us around the historic football centres like Bengal, Hyderabad, Goa, Punjab and the northeast, talking and trying to find out from the few Olympians still alive how a city like Hyderabad, which had the maximum number of Olympians from any place in the country not long ago, has gone to seed.

He nostalgically talks of the good old Durand Cup and DCM Trophy and also the IFA Shield and Rovers Cup. He also has happy memories of Santosh Trophy, Federation Cup and then the National Football League to I-League and the money-spinner Indian Super League and its impact on the game in the country.

He is scathing at the failure of the All India Football Federation in widening the game’s canvas and sees it as a societal problem as no one seems to be interested in the sport.

The book should inspire a new eneration of football players as Novy has beautifully described the exploits of the stalwarts over the years, right from the days India played in the Olympics and a force to reckon with in the Asian region to a host of present day players who can easily be identified.

The narration is absorbing and the book is unputdownable. A must have before the FIFA U-17 World Cup in India October 6-28.

(Veturi Srivatsa is a senior journalist. The views expressed are personal. He can be reached at sveturi@gmail.com)

Strict inbreeding is often blamed for the dwindling population of the Parsi community in India. New research by Indian and other scientists now suggests that this might not always have been the case. DNA samples from centuries-old skeletal remains of Parsis from Sanjan in Valsad, Gujarat, show close genetic links of Parsi women with local Indian populations, suggesting that Parsi men did intermingle with women from outside their community in the past.

by ANJALI MARAR, indianexpress.com

Researchers Gyaneshwar Chaubey and Veena Mushrif-Tripathy, who were part of an international group of scientists that carried out the study over 14 years, say Parsi men were likely to have intermingled with and married Indian women after they first arrived on the Gujarat coast in the subcontinent from Iran following the emergence of Islam in that area in the 7th century AD.

The study has been published in Genome Biology. “Since this community was mostly involved in trading and business, what we assume is that there was a higher number of males who travelled to parts of present-day Pakistan and India. They were probably accompanied by fewer female companions,” said Mushrif-Tripathy, of the department of Ancient Indian History Culture and Archaeology (AIHC) at Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute, Pune.

According to Qissa-e-Sanjaan, a widely believed account of early Parsi settlement in India, a local ruler in Sanjan, Jadi Rana, had offered shelter to the Parsis on the condition that the community accept all local practices. The king is also said to have assigned some females to the aid of the newly arrived Parsi men who, with time, settled and extended their stay in the country.

“In this process, some assimilation with local South Asian women could have taken place, particularly during the initial period of their settlement in Sanjan,” lead author Chaubey, senior scientist with the department of evolutionary biology at the genomics research institute Estonian Biocentre, told The Indian Express by email.

To understand one of the world’s smallest and now shrinking communities, Chaubey, Mushrif-Tripathy and their team studied 174 Parsi DNA samples from India and Pakistan.

Twenty-one of these samples were taken from Sanjan, the earliest known Parsi settlement in India. Sanjan’s Tower of Silence or the dokhama, where the Parsi community lay their dead to rest, still has some remains from the 14th and 15th centuries. Most of the remains from which samples were taken were found buried intact and relatively well preserved, despite hot and humid conditions. The DNA samples from Pakistan were not older than a century, the researchers said.

“We managed to excavate a number of teeth and long bones from the Gujarat site. Out of these, we analysed 857 teeth samples, 367 bone samples and a total of 180 skulls from this well [the dokhama],” Mushrif-Tripathy said. “Carbon dating of these samples have confirmed this dokhama to date back somewhere around 14th-15th centuries AD,” she said.

The DNA analysis showed that while the males had an “almost exclusively Iranian” lineage, the female genetic composition showed linkages with local Indian population groups. “It clearly indicates that the there were interactions and some kind of mixing with local Gujarati and Sindhi women living in Sanjan during the initial period of their settlement,” Mushrif-Tripathy said.

Chaubey said the Indian population too practiced endogamy at the time, so interactions with the Parsis would not have been very common when the Parsis first arrived. But as the Parsis continued their stay in India, it became possible for the two cultures to interact.

“This is an ideal example of role of culture. After migrating to the Indian subcontinent, Parsis did not admix genetically with the local Indian population right away. This is because the Indian community also practiced endogamy and did not marry outside their community,” Chaubey said. “But these interactions did happen over a period of time and that is what we see in the DNA samples of 14th and 15th centuries. We believe that it is only much later that the Parsis formed their own smaller groups and started practicing strict marriage rules.”

Breakout roles are a dream for most actors and actresses.  Frankly, they are hard to come by.  Every performer wants that role that will bring them instant recognition and take their career to the next level.  Oftentimes, it could even take an entire career to even find that character at all.  But for Syracuse native Behzad Dabu, his big break came early on during his transition from stage to film.  For fans of the hit show How to Get Away with Murder, Dabu is immediately known as the student that everyone loves to hate; Simon Drake.  Making his first appearance in the beginning of Season 3, he has quickly become a recognizable and recurring role within the show.  But despite the audience’s consensus on the character’s likeability, Dabu likes to look at Simon from a different point of view.

Photography: Ian McLaren

He explained, “I just thought he was always sassy and kind of a jerk and obnoxious…yeah, the audience is with the Keating 5, but maybe the rest of the kids don’t like the five or the special ones.  Maybe Simon Drake is sort of a representative of the other 45 kids in the class…we think Simon is a jerk, but really Simon represents how everybody else feels about these five because they are kind of the teacher’s pets.  So that is how I approached it.” 

After a thrilling season finale last year, many fans are wondering if Simon will be involved in the upcoming season being released later this month. But at this point, audiences can only speculate until the premiere.  “I really can’t say much…Simon Drake will be seen again in the fourth season,” he admitted.

Photography: Irvin Rivera

But just as Simon is an outsider trying to join a group, Dabu compared this quality of his character to that of his own experiences as an actor in Hollywood.  It is a difficult journey for an up-and-coming young actor of color to find his footing in the industry.  For this reason, he has stuck to his Chicago roots and continues to work on stage where he gained his formal training as a graduate of Columbia College Chicago.  Because of his feelings towards the lack of diversity in the entertainment business, Dabu decided to co-found an opportunity for all performers of various color, gender, sexual orientation or with disabilities known as the Chicago Inclusion Project.

“In Chicago, it’s possible to be a professional actor and make a living and do good work and experience is strong and we really care about improving society through theatre… I thank Chicago for my entire career.  Chicago, like New York, like LA, like Hollywood still has disproportionate representation for people of color or LGBTQ and people of disabilities.  In order to level the playing field, there has to be a resource for theatres that really want to get better.  So we wanted to help…” he said.

Tastes of Behzad

Photography: Ian McLaren

What’s the most important thing in your closet?
“A nice fresh pair of kicks.  It’s all about the shoes for me…I love rockin’ a nice pair of shoes but with a nice splash of color.  If I am going out for a summer day and I got shorts on, my sneaker game has to be on point.  It’s always about the sneakers.”

Is there a hometown hotspot you love to visit?
“The Dinosaur BBQ; the original one in Syracuse, New York.  When I go home within five minutes of hugging my mom and dad, I’m like ‘Alright, I’m going to Dinosaur.’  The Dinosaur BBQ in Syracuse, New York is the real deal.  They got a chain that goes to Chicago, but that is not the real deal…you gotta get the pulled pork sandwich with the baked beans and the corn on the cob on the side.  That’s your meal.”  

Follow Behzad Dabu:

Instagram: @behzaddabu

Twitter: @BehzadDabu

Currently, non-Zoroastrian guests, who want to eat the club’s fabled Parsi food, have to be accompanied by Parsi members

Parsi-only Ripon Club’s plans to give full membership to women is being opposed by community groups, which feel that this will pave the way for non-Parsi husbands to acquire a say in the club’s affairs.

Article by Manoj Nair |

The 137-year-old club, which occupies two floors of a Kala Ghoda building, was set up more than a century ago, with encouragement from viceroy Lord Ripon. Image: Parsiana

Currently, the club gives women only associate membership. Groups also worry that non-Parsi husbands will get associate membership as spouses of members are also allowed this privilege.

The 137-year-old club, which occupies two floors of a Kala Ghoda building, was set up more than a century ago, with encouragement from viceroy Lord Ripon. Non-Zoroastrian guests, who want to eat the club’s fabled Parsi food, have to be accompanied by Parsi members.

Xersis Dastoor, trustee and chairman of the club, said there were plans to give women full membership. “That is a proposal,” he said.

“We have advocated this in our magazine. We wrote on the annual general body meeting, where members committed to drafting a resolution and holding a vote before December,” said Jehangir Patel, editor of Parsiana magazine, who has supported the changes.

But, some Parsis oppose the plans. There are allegations that ‘reformist’ trustees of the club are campaigning to allow full membership to women members. The term ‘reformist’ is used to describe Parsis who favour equal religious rights for women who have married non-Parsis. The children of these women are not allowed entry into religious shrines. The reformists also support changes in traditional funeral methods.

“Once full membership is given, non-Parsi spouses of women members can independently come to Ripon Club, and entertain other non-Zoroastrian guests, thus successfully allowing the non-Parsi husbands of intermarried women to take over the club through back door entry,” said a message passed around in the community on Sunday. Those opposing the changes have been asked to write to the club.

Parsi lawyers from the Bombay high court, located next door, come to the club for their lunch and siesta. There are allegations that a leading non-zoroastrian lawyer married to a Parsi is promoting the resolution so he can independently use the club’s facilities. “We are not against any other community and respect all faiths, but Parsi institutions cannot be allowed to be taken over by non-Parsis,” said a member.

The club has around 700 members, who meet to play snooker and billiards. Membership fees are low, compared to charges at other clubs.

October 1st is Senior Citizen’s Day.

100 school children from the Sett RJJ High School in Navsari visited the WZO Trust Funds Senior Citizen’s Centre to meet our Senior Citizens. The students had interactive and meaningful conversations with many of our residents and then escorted them to their school in a procession.

At the school the seniors were felicitated, they sang devotional songs together and the got an opportunity to share some of life’s most meaningful lessons with the students.

Watching the different generations come together and interact in such meaningful ways was a heartening experience for us all.

The initiative by the Hon. Collector of Navsari to have such a get together was deeply appreciated.

Dinshaw K. Tamboly;

The WZO Trust Funds.

The nation remembered its Mahatma – Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi – on his 148th birth anniversary on Monday.

Gandhi had great respect for people of all communities and religions, including the Zarthushtis – Parsis. Interestingly, Gandhi took a lot of inspiration from various Parsi leaders and also learnt his initial lessons of nonviolence and humanity from some of them.

Article by Niyati Parikh | Times of India

In an article addressing the Parsis in a 1921 edition of Young India, Gandhi attributed learning some of his lessons of Ahmisa i.e. non-violence from Dadabhai Naoroji.

“It was he (Dadabhai) who, when I wanted to give battle to a political agent as far back as 1892, restrained my youthful ardour and taught me the first practical lesson of Ahimsa in public life,” wrote MK Gandhi.

Gandhi also acknowledged the influence and contributions of Rustomjee Ghorkhodoo, a Parsi merchant whom he met in Durban. He also made an indirect reference to Jeji Petit whose virtues of humility and humanity inspired him.

A number of prominent Parsi figures including Dadabhai Naoroji, Madam Bhikhaji Cama, Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy and Jeji Petit, had direct or indirect contributions to Indian freedom movement, said noted historian, Makarand Mehta.

In his publication, `Navjivan’, Gandhi addressed the Parsis as `Dear Friends, and acknowledged the inspiration he took from Dadabhai Naoro ji. “Apart from your being fellow-countrymen, I am bound to you by many sacred ties. Dadabhai was the first patriot to inspire me. He was my guide and helper when I did not know any other leader.”

Members of Parsi community in fact, draw several similarities between the ideologies of Gandhi and Da dabhai Naoroji and in fact, the Parsi culture in itself.

“The virtues of charity and selflessness by putting the other man first is part of the core Parsi ideology. In fact, one of the Parsi prayers, also speaks about the virtue of righteousness being true happiness. These qualities are core to Gandhi’s ideologies as well,” said Jahangir Anklesaria, president, Ahmedabad Parsi Panchayat.

As I have received several queries regarding a few key issues pertaining to Udvada, I would like to clarify the same here. I would highly appreciate if you could spread this word to all Parsis in North America through your various associations by email.

Donations towards ‘Iranshah’ Udvada:  Any person desirous of giving donations towards ‘Iranshah’ can do so by cheque drawn on “UDWADA NINE FAMILY SHAHENSHAHI ATHORNAN ANJUMAN FUND” and delivered to my address as:-

Dasturji Khurshed Dastoor

P-7, Cusrow Baug, 3rd Floor

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Road

Colaba

Mumbai – 400 001

As for online donations through HDFC Bank which is an option for sending donations, we have discontinued the same temporarily due to taxation. The covering letter alongwith the cheque should clearly mention the name of the donor and his correspondence address to which the receipt for the same can be sent by us.

Donations toward ‘Iranshah’ Udvada Utsav – 2017 : Cheques are to be drawn in favour of“FOUNDATION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF UDVADA” to the same above mentioned address alongwith a covering letter as mentioned earlier.

*Miscellaneous Queries*:- All queries related to the below mentioned purposes can be addressed to me by email at dasturjikhurshed@gmail.com or by calls to +91-9820341247

1. a)  Maachis/sukhad/kathis to be offered at ‘Iranshah’
2. b) Navjotes to be arranged and performed at ‘Iranshah’ Atash Behram
3. c) Jashans and Fareshtas to be performed at ‘Iranshah’ Atash Behram

*Issuance of Indian Visas to Parsis who are Pakistani Nationals*: This is a very serious issue among our community Members who are Pakistani Nationals, I would request the concerned individuals who are planning to come to India in the near future and are not able to procure Indian visa, they can forward their documents viz. copies of Passport, Visa application and any other relevant data for granting Indian Visas.

It can be sent on my official email id’s: khurshedk.dastoor@gov.in with a copy to kkdncm17@gmail.com.

I assure to put in my utmost efforts through my offices to get this issue resolved to the best of my abilities with the concerned authorities of Government of India and let us hope to get a favourable response from them.

With warm regards and blessings of Iranshah to you and your dear ones.

*Khurshed K Dastoor*

Head Priest – ‘Iranshah’ Udvada

Member – Zoroastrian (Parsi)

National Commission for Minorities

Government of India

Shirin Vajifdar, who died on September 29, 2017, exhibited an unusual love for classical dancing from childhood and defied taboos to train in multiple classical dance forms.

Article by Sunil Kothari | The Wire

Shirin Vajifdar. Credit: Mulk Raj Anand: Shaping the Indian Modern (MARG)

In the early 1930s, it was inconceivable that a young girl from the Parsi community would take up classical dancing. But that is what exactly Shirin Vajifdar did. The doyen of Jaipur Gharana Sunderprasadji had moved to Mumbai (then Bombay) and started teaching Kathak to the Poovaiah sisters from Coorg. Shirin studied under the great maestro and went for further dance training to Madame Menaka’s Nrityalayam dance institution in Khandala, near Bombay.

Her contemporaries at Nrityalayam were Damayanti Joshi, Shevanti Bhonsale and Vimla. Shevanti later joined Ram Gopal’s troupe. During those years, a young guru of Manipuri from Calcutta, Bipinsingh had joined Nrityalayam to teach Manipuri. There was another Kathakali teacher and dancer, Krishnan Kutty, who taught Kathakali. Shirin studied all the three forms and with excellent memory, mastered the complicated bols and mnemonics of Manipuri.

Madame Menaka had started choreographing dance-dramas with the help of Kathak gurus Gauri Shankar, Ramnarayan and Pandit Ramdutta Mishra. She included young dancers in those dance-dramas such as Menaka Lasyam and Kalidasa’s Malavikagnimitram. Madame Menaka used Manipuri and Kathakali dance forms for a court dance sequence in celebration of King Agnimitra ‘s victory over enemies. Shirin was thus exposed to early attempts of creating group works.

Shirin then taught dance to her two sisters Khurshid and Roshan and they started performing together as the Vajifdar sisters. They were often threatened by conservative Parsis who would disrupt their shows by throwing eggs and stones, but Shirin was not afraid and carried on receiving support from elite sections of the Parsi community.

Shirin and her sisters were contemporaries of Poovaiah sisters, Sitara Devi, Tara Choudhary, Mrinalini Sarabhai, Shanta Rao, Vyjayntimala, Ritha Devi and became quite well known. They were often invited to give performances for charitable causes. They gave private tuitions to young girls from their community when dance became acceptable as an art form. As a teacher, Shirin was a strict disciplinarian, recall her students. One of her students was a bright dancer, Sunita Golwala, who later moved to London. Another student was Jeroo Mulla.

Shirin was married to Mulk Raj Anand, the celebrated author, founder and editor of the quarterly magazine Marg. Khurshid married the renowned painter Shiavax Chavda and Roshan married Hiranmay Ghosh, a chiropractor, and later settled in Kodaikanal. She won a government of India scholarship and went on to study Bharatnatyam under Chokkalingam Pillai in Chennai. She won fame as a briliant Bharatnatyam dancer.

In 1954, Shirin was invited by the film director Kishore Sahu to choreograph a dance sequence for his film Mayurpankha, for which Khurshid and Roshan danced for a duet sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhonsle. The music was composed by Shankar Jaikishan. The film won a Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

The three Vajifdar sisters – Khurshid (left), Shirin (middle) and Roshan (right) in a Marwadi Rajasthani folk dance. Courtesy: Jyoti Chavda

In 1955, a big delegation of dancers and musicians was sent to China, which included Shirin and Guru Krishnan Kutty, along with Indrani Rahman. Shirin performed the mythological story of Mohini and Bhasmasura with Kutty.

In those years, there was no video shooting of performances. Therefore, there are no recordings of Shirin and her sisters dancing. Films Division had made one small documentary of her performing a Bharatnatyam dance, which is now lost.

I came to know Shirin around the year 1957. By that time, she had retired from performing. I had met Mulk Raj Anand the same year. Mulk often invited artists and writers at his 25, Cuffe Parade residence. I used to attend the soirees – meeting painters and writers. Mulk encouraged me to write on dance and suggested that I should attend the All India Dance Seminar at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi in April 1958. There, he introduced me to Roshan Vaijfdar, who was to present a paper on Nayikas and Gita Govinda. Shirin had joined us and we met Devika Rani and the Russian painter Nicholas Roerich, whose muse was Roshan. He had done a few portraits of Roshan. Shirin and Mulk were very close to Devika Rani and Roerich.

I often visited Mulk’s residence in Mumbai when I was assigned to write the book on Bharatnatyam for Marg. Shirin was a gentle person and always kept a low profile. She was writing her autobiography and would sometimes read out few paragraphs which were quite moving in terms of how the sisters suffered humiliation when they took to dancing. She would sometimes tell interesting stories about Ram Gopal who used to stay at Oceana building on Marine Drive. She recalled that he was a charismatic and handsome dancer with a gift of the gab. He would invite the sisters to learn Bharatnatyam from him.

Shirin was invited by Shamlal to write reviews of dance for the Times of India. By then, I was writing reviews for the Evening News of India. Shirin and I used to attend many dance performances together. She had a vast range of references, having seen many dancers and dance forms. She kept all her reviews carefully in a scrap book and advised me to keep a copy of my reviews. She was very meticulous. Her approach was to encourage young dancers and she wrote encouragingly about Yamini Krishnamurty, Sonal Mansingh (nee Pakvasa), Kanak Rele, (nee Divecha), Protima Bedi, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Kum Kum Mohanty, Shobha Naidu and other dancers from the south. Her approach was one of constructive criticism. Dancers still remember her kindness and have collected reviews written by her.

We used to visit Lonavala on weekends, where Mulk had a bungalow. I spent many weekends with them. Shirin would often speak of dancers like Indrani Rahman, who was her favourite and a close friend. She was fond of the Jhaveri sisters and traditional gurus Mahalimgam Pillai, Govind Raj Pillai and Kalyasndaram Pillai. By temperament, she was a happy dancer having performed and seen best of the times. As a partner of Mulk, she was a gracious hostess and never asserted her status as his wife or as a dancer.

After I left Mumbai for Kolkata to teach dance at Rabindra Bharati University and later at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, I used to call upon her. After Mulk’s passing away, she had moved to a small apartment where her niece Jyoti looked after her. She had been keeping well. I used to prod her to complete her autobiography as I knew it would be a valuable document of dance history and of her pioneering work. Shirin will be missed by her large group of admirers and dancers.

Sunil Kothari is a dance historian, author and critic, and fellow, Sangeet Natak Akademi.

Belonging to one community doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy rituals of another for your big day, believes Verve’s Senior Writer, Huzan Tata whose nuptials, she hopes, will defy the norms of what a traditional wedding should be like…

“If you have that stupid Kuch Kuch Hota Hai tune playing when you walk down the aisle instead of Here Comes The Bride, everyone will think you’re crazy!”

Article by Huzan Tata. Illustration by Swati Sinha | Verve Magazine

Such lines are commonplace in arguments with my very traditional mother whenever the subject of my marriage and my big day comes up. Yes, I’ve been scouting for a boy for the past three-and-a-half years (Oh dear Parsi groom, where are you?), but my wedding has been planned over 20 years ago. I’ve always believed that I’m the perfect mix of the traditional and the unconventional, and have wanted my wedding to be that way too.

So what if I’m a Parsi, and so what if my family frequents the NCPA for Western classical music concerts more than the conductors themselves? I too have the right to a crazy cocktails and sangeet night, where I can let my hair down dancing to Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye and fulfilling my childhood dream of behaving ‘Bollywoody’ before I have to spend my life fulfilling my wedding vows. Who’s made the rules of how marriages and weddings have to be? Sorry mom, but if anyone has to have a say, I think it’s primarily the bride and groom. Of course, I love our little traditions – I’ve always imagined myself in a gorgeous white sari on my big day (Sabyasachi, that gives you two years and a bit to come out with an all-white bridal collection), holding hands through the ceremony, exchanging rings, and then locking lips with my new husband at the end of the function, as is the norm. I will be doing it all.

Parsi weddings are beautiful, and I haven’t heard of a soul who hasn’t enjoyed being at one (yes, maybe the Dukes Raspberry and patra-ni-macchi have something to do with it, but that’s a story for another day!). But I’d also like to sneak in a few traditions from other communities’ weddings I’ve grown up witnessing, and I know my orthodox parents’ blood pressure levels will shoot through the roof when I tell them this. I’m not wearing a red lehnga for my wedding, so it’s going to be a bright bridal red for my engagement instead. I’m not going to adorn my hands with mehndi for the big day, but what harm will it be to have a sangeet party to get all the Radhas – and their gara-wearing aunties – on the dance floor?

I’m sure I can find a guy who’ll agree that a little mixing and updating of traditions does no one any harm. And until then, my mom can pick whether she’d like to see me walk down the aisle to the tunes of KKHH or to the sounds of the mandolin from DDLJ….