Dear readers, we’re approaching Navroze. And mitthu monu is a must, diabetes and sugar free diets can wait, jara...
Mehernaaz Shovir Irani Articles
Arzan Sam Wadia In Conversation with With Hrishi K Radio One 94.3 FM
FEZANA President & Parsi Khabar founder Arzan Sam Wadia on India’s largest English radio station Radio One 94.3 FM...
Parsi Punchayet winners decide to kiss and make up
On Wednesday night, the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) acquired seven new trustees: Arnavaz Jal Mistry, Dinshaw Mehta, Jimmy Mistry, Khojeste Mistree, Yazdi Hosi Desai, Rustom Tirandaz and Noshir...
The Parsis of South Bombay
By Aakar Patel No Indian community internalised the civilising mission of the British as did the Parsis. Only 50,000 remain, mainly in South Bombay, the most disciplined and cultured part of India....
Parsi elections begin today
By Mahafreed Irani Saturday, October 04, 2008 04:00 IST For the past one month, 83-year-old Peshotan Unwala has been bombarded with pamphlets. But unlike the usual leaflets announcing the opening of...
Parsi punchayat gears up for polls
Otherwise known to be a genteel people, the Parsi community is likely to witness mud-slinging, name-calling and character assassination over the next two months as the 350-year-old Bombay Parsi...
Roshan Peiris: Challenge-loving scribe who quizzed world leaders
She was in the twilight of her professional life as a journalist when she joined The Sunday Times, in the early ’90s, but even at that stage of her career she was a formidable force, and soon earned...
Parsi Swimmer Rehan Poncha At the Beijing Olympics
Swimmer Rehan Poncha of Bangalore was among the last Indian athletes to qualify for this edition of the Olympics, so naturally it’s a reason to celebrate for the 22-year-old. However, Poncha who was...
Southern California Mourns Manecksahaw’s passing
A condolence meeting was held at the Woodland banquet hall to celebrate the life of Field Marshall Sam Manekshaw. Organized by Zarir Bhandara the meeting brought together a large cross section of...
Marguerite Del Guidice: In conversation
Last week we pointed you to the National Geographic Story on Iran. Below is an interview with the author Marguerite Del Guidice in the Persian Mirror. If you are concerned with all things Iran, you...
Bapsy Sidhwa in Lahore
“Every time I come to Lahore, I find it more beautiful than my previous visit,” said novelist Bapsi Sidhwa during an interview with Daily Times. Sidhwa, who spent her early years in Lahore, said...
The Parsis October Revolution
Those Russians call it double - 10 from 10th October, when the Tsars were overthrown. We, Parsis, will call it the October Revolution. When a frustrated, fed up, angry, exasperated, irate, end of...
Soon, heritage status for fire temples
Mumbai, July 3 47 Parsi structures, including 4 Atash Behrams, in city’s heritage list Parsis across the city were cheering on Thursday when, after a long battle that has lasted over six years,...
What is the secret behind the Parsi-Zoroastrians’ longevity?
Bangalore-based biotech company trying to solve riddle opens Pune chapter, seeks blood samples Bangalore-based biotech company Avesthagen Ltd, which is carrying out a large-scale study to decipher...
Sam Manekshaw: Obituary in The Economist
His most famous remark was not, strictly speaking, true. On the eve of the war with Pakistan in December 1971 that led to the creation of Bangladesh, India’s prime minister, Indira Gandhi, asked her...
Kaoos Rustom Sethna: To Be with Nature
K R Sethna who gave up a thriving career as a horse-race jockey in Poona and came to the Western Ghats just to be with Nature. Everyone is talking about the disappearance of sparrows from our...
The last of the Punjabi Parsis
By Ajay Bharadwaj With the passing away of Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw on Friday, none of the Parsis who had made Amritsar their home are alive today CHANDIGARH: Amritsar has been in deep mourning...
Shenaz Treasurywala on love and her banjaran life
Shenaz Treasurywala on love and her banjaran life, in conversation with Riya V Anandwala. There’s been talk that you’re being replaced by Perizaad Kolah on The Great Indian Laughter Challenge.....
Ronnie Screwvala: Bollywood to Hollywood
Screwvala lives with his second wife, Zarina, and his lookalike labrador, Sprite, in an upscale apartment block in Mumbai. They are currently having another apartment renovated that will look out...
Shehnaz Treasurywala: Big Secret Revealed
Shehnaz Treasurywala the new host of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge has her task cutout as she will be seen anchoring a Hindi show for the very first time!! But what exactly motivated her to...
A Tribute to Pandit Firoz Dastur
As a tribute to Pandit Firoz Dastur, artistes Shrikant Deshpande, Girish Sanzgiri and Srinivas Joshi are organising a concert Having passed away on May 9, Pandit Firoz Dastur, the doyen of the...
An interview with Jimmy Engineer
JIMMY ENGINEER’S quiet, unassuming manner belies the mammoth social work he has undertaken and the wealth of thought-provoking artwork he has painstakingly created. The Pakistani artist and...
The Parsi Wedding
By Firoze Hirjikaka The main theme and the true raison d’etre for a Zoroastrian wedding is food. Zoroastrian wedding banquets are definitely for the weight watchers. Demurring protestations to the...
Zoroastrian Information Center at Udvada: Speech by Dasturji Mirza
This is a brief report on the speech given by Dasturji Dr. Peshotan Dastur Hormazdyar Mirza at the launch of the Zoroastrian Information Center at Udvada, Adar roj, Adar mah, YZ 1377, April 24,...
Shahnameh: The Great Poem That Came Out of Persia
By ROYA HAKAKIAN My earliest memories of the Shahnameh, the greatest work ever written in the Persian language, belong to my childhood in Iran. I and other girls in my elementary school recited...
Fertility clinic gives hope, aid to dwindling Parsi community
Mumbai: After the Hakims married, they looked forward to a quiet life, interrupted often by the laughter of children. Five years later, none had arrived. Troubled by the void, they began visiting...
Voting rights? But whom do we choose?
Ask Parsi youth, who want to know whether issues like housing will be resolved MUMBAI: Last week, the High Court passed a judgment, one that would in many ways shake the age-old hierarchy of the...
Brabourne Restaurant: Death of an Eatery
Cities are complex entities. They provide shelter for different communities who, over the years, generate their own sub-cultures, shops, markets and restaurants. This collection of sub-cultures can...
Tata, the headiest brew in the world
An Indian Giant Tea, cars, steel, IT... Tata, the headiest brew in the world India's extraordinary conglomerate has found unique solutions to many of its problems. But it's still unclear what will...
All Parsis Can Now Vote in Parsi Panchayat Elections
Every Parsi, over the age of 18 years, will now have a vote in deciding the future of the Parsi community. In a significant judgment, Bombay High Court on Wednesday entrusted the process of electing...
Jennifer Kotwal: Actress
Looking trendy-as-ever, Jennifer Kotwal of Just Mohabbat fame gets chatty while on a visit to the city From several Hindi television serials like Just Mohabbat, acting in a brief role in Subhash...
Sam Eruch Irani Educational Trust.
SAM ERUCH IRANI MEMORIAL EDUCATIONAL TRUST is founded on June 13, 2006 with a view to advance some charitable objects like encouragement and spread of education, research and other charitable...
2200-year-old gemstones found in Iran
Ancient priceless gemstones and jewels belonging to postdated Achaemenid era have been unearthed in Iran's southern province of Fars. Archeologists succeeded in discovering over 20 pieces of...
Possible Existence of a Sasanian Fire Temple in Sarab-e Mort
Archaeologists working at Sarab-Mort site in Kermanshah Province announced the news of the possible discovery of a Sasanian Fire Temple adjacent to the Parthian Manor house, reported Persian service...
Jinnah and Ruttie — a wedding to remember
Exactly 90 years ago today, the Quaid-i-Azam, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, married Ruttenbai Dinshaw Petit, a charming Parsi girl; Mr Jinnah was 42, while Ruttie, as she was known more commonly, was 18....
Around the World in 53 months
Recently we reported about the launching of the book that chronicles the bicycle trip around the world by Parsi cyclists. Below is an article by Ervad Marzban Hathiram, a good friend of the Parsi...
India’s Parsees: Slow breeders
From The Economist print edition Apr 17th 2008 | DELHI Adherents of an ancient faith worry about its disappearance TWO of India's biggest business clans—Tata and Godrej—are Parsees, descendants of...
US Takes 3D Shots of Iran Inscriptions
TEHRAN: The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago has started taking three-dimensional pictures of Iran's Achaemenid inscriptions. The pictures will enable people to read the various...
Iran to depict Shahnameh in miniatures
Renowned Iranian miniaturists are to portray parts of the stories told by the prominent poet Ferdowsi in his magnum opus, Shahnameh. Some 25 artists will take part in the project including prominent...
Exhibition: Zoroastrians Through the Ages
We received this from the organisers. Farohar Foundation Exhibition “ ZOROASTRIANS THROUGH THE AGES” at Allbless Baug, Charni Road, Mumbai. From 13th April 2008 to 16th April, 2008 Exhibition...
Making statues smile
Statues make it to the news in Mumbai mostly when miscreants use them to stoke trouble in the city. At other times, they stand on busy road junctions or watch dusty playgrounds, derelict and often...
Marry, live in joint families: Minority panel to Parsis
The clock is ticking away fast and furious for India’s Parsi community. Alarmed by their dwindling numbers - as per the last census the Parsi population was less than 70,000 - the National...
Kolkata: Parsis delighted with the vultures’ return
The return of vultures to the Kolkata sky after a three-year gap has delighted the Parsi community in Kolkata despairing of the loss of their traditional way of disposing the deceased. The vultures'...
An Accidental Millionaire: Tata
The words used most often to describe Ratan Tata are shy and loner. The 71-year-old chairperson of the Tata Group shuns the media spotlight. Quiet and unassuming, the Indian business baron drives...
NYC Screening of “Crisis in Faith”
This update was sent out by ZAGNY: The Zoroastrian Association of Greater New York Please join us for a screening of Tenaz Dubash's documentary film, "Crisis in Faith: Zoroastrians Today" followed...
Khada Parsi may stand elsewhere
Away from the noise and pollution in Byculla, BMC plans to shift the century-old statue to Five Gardens The landmark Khada Parsi statue may find a new home at Five Gardens near Dadar. The statue now...
One Last Creak
The vestibule of a middle-aged building at Princess Street creaks with the sounds of broken bones. It also sings with the prattle of restless patients. Who knew a Parsi bone-setter saw so much...
Shernaz Patel returns to TV
Tell Shernaz Patel that everybody thought that she had given up acting and she laughs. “That’s a huge misconception. It’s just that I haven’t been offered too much work. I try to take up whatever...
Cyrus Todiwala: Master Chef in conversation
To understand the implications of these changes, I sit down to discuss the situation over a very hot lamb vindaloo with Cyrus Todiwala, late one afternoon at Cafe Spice Namaste, his Indian...
A conversation with Kekoo Gandhi
We explore the avant-garde Progressive Art Group as veteran art collector Kekoo Gandhy unearths its history Many art veterans believe that the formation of the ‘Progressive Art Group’ is one of the...
Of heroes and cities
This country seems to honour its heroes only after they have kicked the bucket. We name our battleships, our airports, our boulevards and bridges after them. What’s wrong with naming a few things...
Hello Zeus!
Tanaaz and Bakhtiyar Irani were recently blessed with a baby boy. Bakhtiyar was so excited that he has recorded the entire sequence of the operation. The actors had planned the birth of the baby on...