"Imagine never hearing `Saalo Ghelsappo" again! Lawyer and author Armin Wandrewala's recently released novel,...
arZan Articles
Mumbai’s iconic Taraporevala Aquarium to be reopened
Mumbai: The iconic Taraporevala Aquarium at the picturesque Marine Drive in Mumbai - which has been shut since the...
Polly Umrigar Passes Away
The legendary cricketer, sterling statesman to the game, and an amazing personality, Pahlan (Polly) Umrigar passed away today. This was reported in the 10 pm. CNN-IBN news channel. Polly kaka was...
Restoring the old world
At the 'Community Museum', there are plenty of things to catch your attention - rare photographs, antique porcelain vases, Gandhara sculptures and much more... The quaint Parsi colony at Hughes...
NRI Karan Billimoria felicitated
Describing him as a "role model" for the Indian community, London-based India International Foundation has felicitated Karan Billimoria, founder of Cobra Beer, for becoming the first Parsi and...
Zubin, Freddie, Ratan: The Parsi conquests
When Ratan Tata made that big Diwali-eve announcement to pitch for India's biggest overseas acquisition yet, he sent a unique cultural message with a trait so typical of his Parsi community. He...
Flavours of fusion
Parsis too, ever since they adopted India as their own land, have, as a community, constantly and quite consciously enriched their food through a process of deliberate fusion. Their recipes are...
Hall of Fame: Farokh Engineer
Name the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman who was explosive with the bat, superbly efficient and athletic behind the stumps, started off as a goalkeeper, and was famous for his hair, sex-appeal, and...
Discovering some curiosities in Mumbai
Nearby is the Parsi Tower of Silence. Parsis follow the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism. They believe in the purity of the four elements and are not allowed to bury or cremate their dead. Instead...
Parsi Cooking in New Zealand
At Half Moon Bay Restaurant and Function Centre, new owners Faranak and Sohrab Irani have brought their own special touch to this lovely venue overlooking the water. Retaining a predominantly modern...
It’s also about trust, say Tata Steel shareholders
With Tatas acquiring Corus Group, long time shareholders of the Tata group companies see it as a vindication of their trust. Najoo E Adajania invested in Tata Steel over two decades ago as she...
The Fun of Being a Parsee
[received via email. Author Unknown] It lies in many things .... It's like belonging to an exclusive Club worldwide. Birth, the only credential and consideration; nothing, but nothing else works, no...
TATA: An Indian Company Wants to Be Everywhere
The NYT writes about the recent bid by Tata Steel to acquire Corus of UK. This would propel Tata's to #6 in list of the largest steel manufacturers in the world, from their current position below...
Second steely punch from the subcontinent
MONTHS after Lakshmi Mittal took over European steel giant Arcelor in the face of stiff competition and a hostile campaign that bordered on racism, another Indian is bracing to deliver a steely...
Have a laugh with Irani
FUNNYMAN Boman Irani had to learn a new language of comedy - literally - when shooting his latest film 'Khosla Ka Ghosla.' The former talented photographer is a Parsi and his character was a crooked...
Parsi Authors
Then there was a clutch of Parsi novelists--all settled abroad. Gifted story-tellers with good command of the language and the ability to laugh at themselves. They were at their best writing about...
Boman Irani’s mission in Don
I'm here to investigate actor Boman Irani's latest role -- as supercop and Deputy Commissioner of Police -- in director Farhan Akhtar's remake of the 1978 Bollywood thriller and superhit, Don. DCP...
Nilufer Bharucha focuses on women in Indian fiction, cinema
Fans of Indian cinema and literature will want to catch upcoming presentations by visiting professor Dr. Nilufer Bharucha at the University College of the Fraser Valley. Bharucha, the head of the...
Parsi Surnames
What do you call a PARSEE....Bootlegger? Daruwalla Who thinks he is aristocratic? Noble Who loves to cook? Masalawalla Who is mysterious? Mistry Who is a Wheeler Dealer? Dalal Who has aspirations of...
Strife over death at Parsi meet
Punchayet will form panel to decide alternative ways to dispose dead The body disposal issue reared its head last month when Dhun Baria clandestinely shot a video and took photographs of Tower of...
Perizaad Zorabian all set to marry Boman Irani
How did you know?"was Perizaad Zorabian's reaction when we congratulated her on the news of her wedding. December 7 will see the actress tying the knot with beau Boman Irani - not the funnyman from...
Breeding revives fortunes of India’s rare vultures
Indian conservationists have successfully bred a rare species of vulture, brought near to extinction by a drug used to treat cattle but which is highly toxic to the scavenging birds. Eighteen...
Kennedy Center to Honour Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta is among the five stalwarts from the arts and entertainment field who will be honoured by the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts this year. Apart from Mehta, the others are...
Dr. Homi Dastur, Eminent Neurosurgeon Turns 80
Dina Mehta, the power-house Indian blogger writes to inform that My dad, Dr. Homi Dastur, is 80 today ... and you'd never know it if you met him. He's a neurosurgeon and still operates at Jaslok...
Dinyar Vania At the NY City Opera
Dinyar Vania, a Parsi tenor performs at the NY City Opera on October 14, 2006 and again the following Tuesday. As per the announcement "Dinyar Vania is making his lead tenor role debut with N.Y....
Ancient religions clash in modern Iran
It's one of the world's oldest religions, but Zoroastrianism is treated with suspicion by Iran's Islamic state, writes Robert Tait The village of Chak Chak consists of a shrine perched beneath a...
Iran’s last Zoroastrians worried by youth exodus
TEHRAN: Flicking through photographs of immigrant Zoroastrian friends in sunny California, 40-year-old Farzad Dehnavizadeh sighs and wishes the young people of his faith stopped leaving Iran for the...
The family business that helped build Indian industry
Starting over a century ago and against considerable odds, the Tatas virtually single-handedly built Indian industry. Theirs was the country's first Indian-owned textile mill, India's national...
Mumbai’s Irani hotspots
With distinctive ambience and mouth-watering fare, Irani cafes enthrall Mumbaikars. Largely frequented by the working class, these cafes are a big draw because they are reasonably priced and...
Tata: the Indian industrial giant with a core of steel
Tata Steel was set up in the teeth of racist scorn and the incredulity of many servants of the Raj Both groups are headed by Indians and both are hungry to take over non-Indian steel companies. But...
Dasturji Jamasp Asa achieves fifty years of service
Tuesday was an important day for Mumbai's Parsi community. The high priest of the community, Vada Dastur Saheb Khaikhusroo Dastur Minocher Pamasp Asa, of the 109-year-old Anjumana Atash Behram at...
Zorastrians Today
Lily Don’t be Silly
For Parsis, the New Year play is an annual family tradition...and there's one enthusiast who's giving out 500 free tickets! August 18: Philandering husband Savak finds it tough to manage with wife...
Pray, atone and feast
That's what Parsis will do on Pateti today, a day before celebrating Navruz. If you plan to wish your Parsi neighbours "Happy Pateti" on Saturday, don't. That is, unless, you believe that penitence...
Capturing golden moments
Meet Armaity Bamanbehram, the first Parsi lady to have completed 25 years as a videographer Armaity Bamanbehram is no stranger in the world of videography. And is quite a renowned name among the...
Tata Tea, Godrej to sip in local…
Two of India`s top business houses owned by Parsis, the Tatas and the Godrej group are eyeing some of the strongest regional tea brands to gain a decisive edge over each other in the Rs 45 billion...
No Fire Temple, but Lakhnawi warmth
The Parsi community is one of the smallest 'communities from outside' in Lucknow. There are just 71 Parsis in town! "We started trickling into the city and found Lucknow welcoming us with open arms....
Biologists to help breed vultures
The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology aims to rescue the ancient Zoroastrian practice of corpse disposal (writes Ashling O'Connor). Biologists are to inseminate artificially the Oriental...
A Parsee passionate about sidecar bikes!
Standing in one corner of Jer Baug, Byculla, the BSA B31 350cc motorbike with sidecar waits for the rains to end. It is only then, that its owner Neville Choksi will lift the covers from this...
Madame Cama’s call for Bande Mataram in…
By V SUNDARAM She was a fiery patriot who first unfurled India's flag at an international assembly. She turned away from a life of luxury and lived in exile abroad in Europe for 29 years to serve...
Scientists to help breed Vultures
Parsis worried about the growing pile of bodies in their 'Towers of Silence' can take heart. The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has decided to take up, on an express basis, the job...
Surat Residences get a new face
SURAT: The babbling and wails of infants from apartments in Bai Bamasipore Memorial Zarthosthi building in Saiyedpura in Surat have begun to raise the hopes of the local Parsi community, dogged by a...
Amritsar’s Tehmi Bhandari: 100 years and going strong
100 cheers to Amritsar's pride Tehmi Bogga Bhandari -- the only pure Parsi left in Amritsar -- turned 100 on August 15. Born into a rich conservative Parsi family in Amritsar in 1906, she was the...
Periodicals of protest
Over the decades, Parsi journalism has managed to fiercely guard its democratic character By Manoj R Nair for Mumbai Mirror The terms, 'cosmopolitan newspapers' or 'community press' may not figure...
NYT: Zoroastrianism Slide Show
Turn on the sound and listen to this very interesting slide show on Zoroastrianism. This appeared on the NYTimes website, as an interactive accompaniment to the article Zoroastrians Keep the Faith,...
Parsi Dead: A Video of the Towers of Silence Controversey
The video below is the segment that appeared on the Indian cable news channel CNN-IBN. The video has some disturbing imagery and therefore caution is needed when viewing the video. The controversey...
Religion and Materiality
Isn't it strange how Rs.200/= seems like such a large amount when you donate it to a fire-temple, but such a small amount when you go shopping? Isn't it strange how 2 hours seem so long when you're...
Parsi Anthem
We received this via an email tip. It makes interesting reading. Author Unknown When my time has come, when my race is run I want to go that very way of my Fathers and their Sons. When my breath has...
Udvada on Behram Roj
This write up was forwarded to us by email. I don't know the author or the source. However it makes fascinating reading, and something that a lot of people will relate to. The 20th day of the...
Parsis remember their dear departed 10 days prior…
Parsis remember their dear departed 10 days prior to New Year, community observes Muktad ceremony at city agiaries The Parsi New Year is nine days away. But much before the celebrations begin, it is...
Remembering Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta
Mr. Mehta was popularly known as the uncrowned king of Karachi and the prophet of the poor... Celebrating the 54th death anniversary of Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta (who served as the mayor of Karachi...
Muktaad
Ruby Lilaowala remembers Muktaad, in the Afternoon D.C. Muktaad are the ten days preceding the Parsi new year which are devoted to intense prayers and elaborate rituals for the departed souls...