Ganesh idol immersed with great fanfare near Sydney

0 Comments read Diaspora

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 17.09.2007 (IANS): An idol of Hindu god Ganesh, decorated in all finery, sat firm as thousands of devotees followed in a procession chanting “Ganpati Bappa Morya” to Stanwell Park beach here, as part of colourful celebrations for the Ganesh festival.

The elephant-headed god was immersed in the Pacific Ocean to the sounds of beating drums and chants Sunday as waves on low tide lashed the sandy beach, about 50 km south of Sydney’s central business district.

The three-feet-tall idol was made of biodegradable material. “We were very conscious to use only environmental friendly material like clay and papier mache,” said Murali Dharan, president of the Sri Venkateswara Temple committee that organises the annual Ganesh festival.

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When it comes to poaching, no one should be above the law

0 Comments read Environment & Development

By Neena Bhandari

As humans and animals vie for space, a lot can be learnt from the Bishnois and other rural communities in India, which have for generations co-existed with the wildlife forming an integral part of the ecosystem. When in 1998 five Bollywood film stars from Mumbai went hunting in the forests on the outskirts of the historic city of Jodhpur in the western Indian state of Rajasthan and killed two black bucks and a chinkara (Indian Gazelle), they had expected to bag trophies not trouble.

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Australia’s filmi connection with India

0 Comments read Arts, Entertainment & Lifestyle

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 15.09.2007 (IANS) Book clubs are popular in Australia, but Bollywood Clubs? Yes, they too exist, with more and more Australians cued on to Hindi films.

Curator Rebecca Bower, whose bedside table doesn’t have books but a laptop and Hindi film DVDs, has formed a Bollywood Club where a group of women watch and discuss Indian films.

“I watch a Bollywood film for half hour or so every night to unwind before sleeping,” said the curator of the Bollywood and Australia section of “Cinema India: The Art of Bollywood” exhibition, running at the Powerhouse Museum here. She is learning Hindi so she can turn off the subtitles.
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