Parsi Khabar

India’s Independence month has another little-known first. It was in August 1907 that Madam Cama defiantly unfurled the first Indian flag to the world and inspired a generation of Parsi firebrand women patriots It became an irony the British took time to digest. A community, which was small, yet known for its loyalty to the [...]

"This flag is of Indian Independence! Behold, it is born! It has been made sacred by the blood of young Indians who sacrificed their lives. I call upon you, gentlemen to rise and salute this flag of Indian Independence. In the name of this flag, I appeal to lovers of freedom all over the world [...]

In Indian family businesses, there is no dearth of successors. The Tatas, however, are an exception. As there’s no heir apparent to Ratan Tata after he retires in December 2012, a search committee has been formed to find one. The hunt has fuelled speculation with the names of several global CEOs doing the rounds. By [...]

The United Nations cultural body (UNESCO) has named the year 2010 as 1000th anniversary of the composition of The Shahnameh, the renowned national epic of the Persian-speaking world which has been traditionally a source of honour and a manifestation of ancestral identity to the Iranian people and nations such as Tajikistan and Afghanistan who have [...]

If you aren’t looking for it, you’d probably miss it. Tucked somewhere in the by-lanes of the crowded Bhuleshwar bazaar is the Bombay Panjrapole, a 176-year-old infirmary that primarily looks after 350 cows and other stray animals like donkeys, hens, birds, dogs, goats, parrots and ducks. By Humaira Ansari / DNA The shelter, painted bright [...]

Roadaben Sorabji Botwala spent her whole life in Bhuj Bhuj, the district headquarters of Kutch, which once boasted of a large population of Parsis is sad at the death last weekend of the last surviving member of the Zoroastrian community. Seventy-eight year old Roadaben Sorabji Botwala, who spent her whole life here, and who also [...]

Below is a request by Dinyar Patel, a PhD candidate at Harvard University. Dinyar Patel writes… I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of History at Harvard University and the grand-nephew of Dasturji Hormazdyar Mirza. I have been studying the history of the Parsis and Zoroastrianism for the past three years and I am [...]

Though City Museum Has Permanent Exhibit, Not All 5,000-odd Artefacts Are On Display Bella Jaisinghani | TNN The story seems to be the stuff of legend. Over a hundred years ago, the two sons of India’s pioneering industrialist Jamsetji Tata were as different as chalk and cheese. Dorab, the first-born, was a responsible businessman who [...]

Below is the text of presentation by Pervin J. Mistry at the Parliament of Worlds Religions, Melbourne, December 5th, 2009. This was circulated by the author via email to a newsgroup. All copyrights are with the author.   We are the oldest monotheistic religion. Asho Zarathushtra is our Holy Prophet. Our Revealed Book is the [...]

Dinshaw Cawasji, President of The Bangalore Parsee Zoroastrian Anjuman narrates the history of Parsees; how they took refuge in a small coastal town in Gujarat after agreeing to several conditions laid down by the then Maharaja of Sanjan. By Sudha Narasimhachar , 18 Mar 2010 In the mid-eighties when I used to travel on Bellary [...]

Masterstrokes, an exhibition of models of the iconic works of Richard Meier, was held at the Sir J J College of Architecture. The college is a fine example of Parsi philanthropy by Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhai whose generosity extended to Gujarat as well. Published in TNN In Surat, the Sir J J School is one of [...]

Fleeing from tormentors in the Middle-East, this community first found refuge in Gujarat. They speak the Gujarati language and every chronicle of Mumbai’s history has them at the centrestage. By Ashish Vashi & Harit Mehta, TNN An important Gujarati export to Mumbai, Parsis fought wars, contributed to business development and built dockyards. This community, which [...]

By Nauzer K Bharucha / TNN Perhaps for the first time in the more than 1,300-year history of the Parsis in India, the community’s oldest high priest at age 83, was anointed at Navsari in Gujarat on Tuesday. Kaikhusro Navroz Dastoor Meherjirana, a respected scholar priest, is interestingly also an advocate, author of two books [...]

A very interesting account from way back in the 19th century. It was a hot and sultry afternoon, that 21st day of April, 1844 as Mr. Mancherji Hormuzdiar Chanddaru left the offices of the popular Parsi periodical ‘Chabuk’ (lit. Whip) near Gunbow Street in the busy Fort area of Bombay. As he walked down passing [...]

The remains of a legendary 50,000-strong army which was swallowed up in a cataclysmic sandstorm in the Sahara Desert 2,500 years ago are believed to have been found. Italian archaeologists Angelo and Alfredo Castiglioni, twin brothers, have discovered bronze weapons and hundreds of human bones which they reckon are the remains of the lost army [...]