In the cramped heart of the suburb called Andheri, the MF Cama Athornan Institute was strangely quiet. The institute, founded in 1923 to train Zoroastrian priests, is a large, M-shaped edifice with excellent infrastructure and teachers dedicated to the welfare of their students. By Samanth Subramanian At present, those students number precisely four. Classroom after… Continue reading India’s Zoroastrians dying out for lack of Parsi clergy
Category: Heritage
Udvada: The Land Controversey
It’s a change of different sort, a not-so-nice one, where one of the world’s most ancient religions finds its nook of worship threatened. Parsi-Irani Zoroastrians in India and around the world have been a worried lot after 200 acres of lush agricultural land in the backyard of Udvada’s sacred fire temple were handed over to… Continue reading Udvada: The Land Controversey
Dorabji Damania and Life in the Indian Railways
Below is an article by A. B. Damania who talks about his uncle Dorabji Damania. Parsis were once a very large presence in the Indian Railway system, both pre and post Independence. MY FATHER’S OLDER BROTHER, Dorabji M. Damania, after having passed his SSC from the Parsi Orphanage at Lalbaug, Mumbai, found work as a… Continue reading Dorabji Damania and Life in the Indian Railways
Dishoom: An Irani Cafe in London
Bombay’s old Irani cafes are dying a slow death, and the only people doing anything about it are in London Irani cafes — of which Mumbai has less than 20 original examples left — have recently been the subject of various books, websites and documentaries such as "Inheritance of Loss," all attempting to paint the… Continue reading Dishoom: An Irani Cafe in London
Wadias: Built Oldest Surviving UK Warship
India has been shamed in front of the world, thanks to crumbling bridges and cracking ceilings at the Common Wealth village. But, about 200 years ago the same Indian hands built for the British empire a warship which still stands tall. By Ashish Vashi / Times News Network The oldest surviving British warship — HMS… Continue reading Wadias: Built Oldest Surviving UK Warship
Desperate measures for a fading Indian faith
What do musician Freddie Mercury, the Tata family who own Corus and Jaguar, and the conductor Zubin Mehta have in common? They all descended from migrants who fled Iran more than a 1,000 years ago. They are called Parsis and settled in India where they have prospered while maintaining their religion and traditions. But… Continue reading Desperate measures for a fading Indian faith
The Story of the Taj Mahal Hotel
The Taj Mahal Hotel was founded, according to legend, after Jamsetji Tata was refused entrance into a European-owned hotel which displayed a sign forbidding entry to dogs and Indians. He vowed to build a luxury hotel that would be open to Indians and where Indians could entertain and be entertained without being insulted. There is,… Continue reading The Story of the Taj Mahal Hotel
