200-Strong Mob Protests Outside Hindu Temple in England’s Smethwick

NEW DELHI, INDIA, September 21, 2022 (India Today): Around 200 people belonging to the Muslim community gathered outside a Hindu temple in Smethwick town in West Midlands, England to stage a planned protest on Tuesday, September 20 (GMT). Videos shared on social media showed a large crowd of people marching towards the Durga Bhawan Hindu Center on Spon Lane. Many…

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Hindus of Greater Houston Honors 75 Youth

HOUSTON, TEXAS, September 22, 2022 (Press Release, by Partha Krishnaswamy): On 10 September, seventy five Hindu youth were recognized and honored for their strong sense of community, fostering conversations about Indian culture, and inspiring the next generation of leaders with their contributions. HGH (Hindus of Greater Houston) past president Partha Krishnaswamy’s brainchild of awarding 75 Hindu youth this year to…

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All You Need to Know About Sindur Khela

NEW DELHI, INDIA, September 18, 2022 (News Deal): Sindur Khela is a Bengali Hindu ritual in which women smear sindur (a vermillion colored powder) on each other on Vijayadashami, the last day of the Durga Puja. On the day of Vijaya Dashami, following the traditional ceremony, married Bengali Hindu women apply sindur to the Goddess’s forehead and feet and present…

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Durga Puja 2022: Statue Making in Full Swing

INDIA, September 14, 2022 (Financial Express): Preparations are in full swing for the upcoming Durga Puja festival. In different parts of India, sculptors are busy making beautiful statues of Goddess Durga and other Gods. An annual Hindu festival, Durga Puja is celebrated because of Durga’s victory over Mahishasur (demon). The festival is observed in the Indian calendar month of Ashwin…

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India’s Ancient Jewish Community Holds on as It Shrinks

KERALA, INDIA, September 14, 2022 (The Jewish Star): The Jewish community of Kerala, India, better known as Cochin Jews, has been shrinking — only 15 remain — ever since most of its members emigrated to Israel. Those who remain claim to be “the oldest diaspora community outside the Middle East.” An estimated 6,000 to 8,000 moved to Israel or elsewhere.…

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Stolen Deities Abound in American Museums and Auction Houses

CHENNAI, INDIA, September 7, 2022 (IFP): The French Institute of Pondicherry in collaboration with the Idol Wing CID of the Tamil Nadu Police managed to trace back several murthis stolen from Tamil Nadu temples and smuggled to the US thanks to IFP’s rich and decades-old photo collection. Here’s just a sample of reports from the month of August: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/trichy/3-idols-stolen-from-mannargudi-temple-traced-to-la-museum/articleshow/93565649.cms?fbclid=IwAR2CULSgDy3RqmWYyxrlRU7oDQQDiB1JCRp5OFORsghLxsXVCRe_AAXadR8 https://kizhakkutoday.in/india75-14/https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2022/aug/16/kallakurichi-12th-centurystatues-of-chola-kings-go-missing-2487932.html?fbclid=IwAR2_4gY0LW2S1le9Pb5-MwtuP_ZuHLG2gOaRrBq2HN756fo4niAKXpxzp0ohttps://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/stolen-from-tamil-nadu-idol-traced-to-christies-auction-house/articleshow/93684573.cms?fbclid=IwAR0OY0vJrnTj6O_FWbNKBzWSkq5OzhtSXaxPQTsXpUvlsB0277QtvNfVsZEhttps://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/efforts-are-on-to-retrieve-six-antique-idols-stolen-from-tn-temple-tn-idol-wing-cid/articleshow/93756404.cms?from=mdrhttps://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/two-out-of-12-idols-stolen-from-nagapattinam-temple-50-years-ago-traced-to-us/article65825521.ece?homepage=true&fbclid=IwAR2534-Mtwj9yViaG9Qc-NIEMzeB-Vygkphn2mudxBMHjbFrhJzPygcQpvk

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Theater Company Tackles Hindu Epic

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, September 3, 2022 (San Francisco Chronicle): Musicians, performers, props and a table of food are all crammed into Indian theater company Naatak’s modest rehearsal space in Santa Clara. It’s small enough that performers sometimes trip on water bottles, and actors frequently run out of space on the makeshift stage. On a recent Sunday, the 27-year-old company made…

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