MUMBAI: Two reputed institutes TISS and Parzor have devised an online certificate course on Zoroastrianism that has been thoughtfully developed to explain Parsi culture. Apart from burnishing the CV of young students and researchers and advancing career opportunities, it will impart an understanding of the small but vibrant community that has remained faithful to its immigrant forefathers’ promise of dissolving into the local culture and sweetening it like sugar in milk.

Article by Bella Jaisinghani / TNN

Admissions are under way till Aug 31 to the TISS-Parzor Online Certificate Programme on Culture and Heritage Studies to be conducted online from the TISS Mumbai campus.

The total fee is Rs 60,000 but rises variously for international applicants. At the end of the ten-month course beginning Sept 16 and ending June-July 2025, students will be conferred a certificate. Candidates who do not wish to take the entire course can opt for specific modules for a reduced fee.

The teachers include resident faculty members and guest lecturers from institutes across the globe who are experts in Zoroastrian Studies, apart from researchers.

Shernaz Cama, director of Parzor Foundation said, “UNESCO had entrusted Parzor with the task of recording and reviving Parsi Zoroastrian culture 25 years ago. This collaboration with TISS is a culmination of that task. We have gathered and created enough information and resources to share with the world through the programme.”

She said, “The world considers the Parsi contribution to the building of modern India a great example of a small group of refugees giving back to their new home. We need to recall that the Cyrus Cylinder was the First Bill of Human Rights — around 500 BC. Zoroastrian culture regards this Earth as Spenta — Holy and teaches care for every aspect of creation — important perhaps for our fragile earth and its future.”

Freny Daruwalla, oral historian and coordinator at Parzor, was looking forward to the start of the programme. “It is a one-of-a-kind well structured course where passion meets learning, and that learning will take you a long way. The dedication of everyone involved is extraordinary,” she said.

Drawing from Persian, Chinese, European and Indian influences, the Zoroastrian tradition of arts, crafts, music, even foods, is truly multicultural. Cama said, “That creates their value in our multicultural society. We realise that we can have an amalgamation of diverse traditions that create beauty and value, which all humanity can look at with respect and joy. We invite people to discuss the issues of demographics, which we call the problems of progress, and see how Japan, Europe, even China, face similar challenges.”

Courses will be conducted through the TISS online platform called TISSOL with all teaching notes and other course material being uploaded there. Candidates may apply at https://nirantar.tiss.edu/.