Ganpati bawa moria

At the entrance to entrepreneur Jimmy Mistry’s office building sits a Ganpati idol. Similarly many Parsi homes, offices and factories display the ubiquitous image of the elephant-headed god.

The Mumbai Mirror daily of August 29 cites the instances of several Parsi families who have brought Ganpatis home or have worshipped the idol at the numerous Ganesh mandals in the city.

Correspondent Manoj Nair writes of the Dadar Parsi Colony residents Hutoxi Fitter and her daughter Khusnuma assisting at the Wadala cha Raja (king of Wadala) Ganesh pandal adjacent to the Colony.

Versova resident Shenazz Nadirshah, head of the films department of Balaji Telefilms is reported as having kept "an idol for Ganes­hotsav for the last five years,” writes Nair. "I have been visi­ting Siddhi­vinayak temple since my child­hood. Ganesh is more like a friend,” the report quotes Nadirshah.

Sanobar Daru­­wala, dau­ghter of noted astrologer Be­jan and Gool, visits "several Ganpatis in a day… I believe it brings me luck,” said told Nair.

Bejan Daruwala mentions in the report that he was called by a south Indian temple trust to install a Ganesh idol in the Shirdi temple on June 13, 2006, states the report.

"The reason Ganesh is loved is because he is a personal god whom you can bring home,” says Daru- wala.

And unlike the Parsis, the Hindus have no restriction on who can worship their gods either at home or in the temple. These gods are apparently not weakened by juddins worshipping at their feet.