I am a Mumbai-born painter who now resides in the United States. My work depicts my upbringing as a Jew in India, which is largely Hindu and Muslim. In my art, I create a mosaic inspired by both Indian/Persian miniature paintings and illuminated manuscripts, combining imagery from my history with the position I perform in…
From ancient times, the history of Judaism has been intertwined with the experiences of the Jewish Diaspora. The concept that God will deliver the Jews back to the Promised Land if they obey his laws and uphold the covenant has been strengthened by the first exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt to the land…
For India’s Bene Israel “kirtankars,” COVID-19 competes with Haman as the villain of the Jewish holiday of Purim this year. For the holiday, the kirtankars, a group of elderly ladies from Mumbai’s Jewish community who sing kirtan, or traditional devotional songs, planned to perform a kirtan about Queen Esther in the synagogue. However, because of…
I spent a day in Montclair, New Jersey with Siona Benjamin last month while researching a piece for The Forward about Indian Jewish cuisine. Benjamin, a home cook who grew up in Mumbai’s Jewish community, explained how to create a traditional Shabbat coconut stew and maida, a sweet rice and coconut dish made in honor…
Imphal: On December 15, 250 Indian Jews from Manipur and Mizoram arrived in Israel as part of the Bnei Menashe group. After a two-and-a-half-year wait, they became the first to arrive in the Jewish state. The Bnei Menashe are thought to be descendants of the Manasseh tribe, one of Israel’s ten lost tribes who were…
Danny Ben-Moshe, a documentary filmmaker, focuses on India’s Jewish community and their contributions to Indian cinema. Shalom Bollywood: The Untold Story of Indian Cinema is his most recent project. The documentary is light and airy, with music, dance, and melodrama, which were popular at the time. It was difficult for him to find archival footage…
On Sunday, June 23, Mahatma Moses’ Comedy Caravan will perform two hilarious, yet very different acts at the Firehouse Arts Center. Samson Koletkar, an Indian-Jewish stand-up comedian, and his special guests deliver a barrage of clean and intelligent comedy, complete with bizarre stories about growing up Jewish in India, becoming an American citizen, and adopting…
(JTA) — KOCHI, India — Today, a stroll along this seaside city’s “Jew street” will reveal lively Kasmiri businesses offering Persian antiques, pashmina shawls, and traditional Islamic handicrafts – a sharp contrast to the neighborhood’s heyday, when every household was Jewish. “In Jew Town, there are only two people left. Shalva Weil, a senior researcher…
It’s the month of March 1984. When Sarah Cohen and Ellen S Goldberg were at the Cochin Paradesi Synagogue, Cohen overheard temple prayers next door. “We can hear their prayers, and they can hear us,” adds Cohen, who is now known as Kochi’s “grand dame of the Jews.” In his book Who Are The Jews…
KOCHI: On Wednesday, Jews from all over the world met in the city for a Jewish conference themed “Jews of India, Jews in India.” The conference, which included Jews from Australia, the United States, England, China, and Israel, as well as Indian communities, focused on the contributions of Jews to India’s growth. The conference on…