ZYNG calendar: bare facts

I recently laid my hands on the ZYNG (Zoroastrian Youth for the Next Generation) hottest Parsi girls calendar for the year 2011. Apart from the fact that it is very well made, I was happy to see it for more reasons than one.

In recent times the trustees of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) have been very busy trying to impose their brand of "orthodox” Zoroastrianism on the community. It was even more confusing for the community when these trustees condoned the shameful behavior of another "orthodox” Parsi at the Sanjan Day function. The message we got from the entire episode was that if you are worth Rs 500 crores and crass enough to boast about it on a public platform, you have a legitimate right not only to criticize a vada dastur but even to insult him in public. Anyway, that issue was in the previous year and I am writing because I have seen something positive this year.

Back to the calendar! The Parsi women are indeed very good looking and the calendar itself quite tastefully done. Full credit to ZYNG for being able to pull it off with so much style and without much fuss. What was heartening to see for the liberal members of the community was that though all the women are Parsis, they were not made to wear a gara with the sudreh and kusti showing. They wore outfits they could identify with. As confident, modern Parsi women, they did not need to exhibit their sudreh and kusti to prove their religion or race.

Another aspect of the calendar which shows that the winds of change are blowing is the fact that there is a picture of a flaming cocktail. For years, "orthodox” Parsis have ridiculed smoking because the element of fire should not find its way into a person’s mouth in any form. Seldom have I come across such Parsis talking about not smoking for health reasons. In this context I don’t see how a flaming cocktail would be any different. But make no mistake, it’s definitely a positive sign; at least the balanced members of our community see it that way.

Many active members of ZYNG are children of the present trustees. Skeptics questioned ZYNG in the beginning lest it be the voice of the seven wise men and not of the youth. But ZYNG has its own distinct identity and voice which is very different from that of the trustees. Forming ZYNG is one of the best decisions the present trustees have taken.

If one of the purposes of forming ZYNG is to groom the next generation into becoming trustees, as is often heard in Parsi circles, I sincerely wish that it happens sooner rather than later.

FIROZ BHARUCHA

firozbharucha@gmail.com

The publication of a Parsi calendar by the youth wing of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) depicting comely Parsi girls is a step in the right direction and should be accepted by the community as an expression of the legitimate aspirations of this generation.

A calendar, because it gives the Zoroastrian version, does not become an object of worship and therefore it does not fall within the ambit of discussion about it being "religious” or "irreligious.” The Christian churches have never objected to the sexiest calendars based on the Christian era. This Parsi calendar should, in fact, be wholeheartedly welcomed by the community as it will serve to lure Parsi boys to admire and marry Parsi girls instead of looking elsewhere.

May Parsis begin to appreciate beauty of the human body and not raise a "moral brigade” as done by obscurantists elsewhere.

PHIROZE B. JAVERI

phiroze.javeri@gmail.com

The pièce de résistance of the pseudo-orthodox is a "Parsi” calendar they have launched. Twelve Parsi girls in mini-skirts, high-slit European dresses, showing a lot of flesh, grace the Zoroastrian Shahenshahi, Kadmi and Fasli religious calendar which is being hawked for the equivalent of US $ 6.60.

"Preserving our past. Protecting our future,” is the WAPIZ (World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis) claim. Did we miss a chapter in the Gathas which said Zarathushtra’s wife Huvovi, and their three daughters Freni, Pourucista and Triti wore mini-skirts and posed for calendars to raise funds for Zarathushtra’s religion?

A message by Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) trustee and WAPIZ member Yazdi Desai states, "I am sure some of my dear orthodox friends will disapprove. My request to them is to please allow our youth a little indulgence. Then they will surely stay with us.” How making Parsi girls strip for a calendar and show a lot of flesh is going to make youth stay with him is debatable.

What next from the WAPIZ, the pseudo-orthodox and the self-appointed high priests? A version of the Avesta interspersed with Playboy bunnies?

Will the high priests raise a hue and cry about the "sanctity and solemnity” of the Zoroastrian religion being affected by the act of placing the photographs of 12 scantily clad girls in European (not Parsi) styled clothing, and showing a lot of flesh on the Zoroastrian religious calendar?

Accepting Europeans within the fold is anathema to the WAPIZ, the pseudo-orthodox and the self-appointed high priests. But dressing up like Europeans, having a calendar sponsored by a lounge with a European name, Valhalla (which in Scandinavian mythology is the hall of Odin into which the souls of heroes slain in battle and others who have died bravely are received), is acceptable to them.

We hold them to their puritanical espousal of the faith. Let the self-appointed high priests and the WAPIZ hold themselves to the same standards that they have set for others. Or let them be condemned as hypocrites.

BARAK AGA

barak.aga@hotmail.com

There is an advertisement on the WAPIZ (World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis) Page about the ZYNG/BPP (Zoroastrian Youth for the Next Generation/Bombay Parsi Punchayet) calendar 2011. Yes, it is a very good venture to start with. I think in 2012 they will come out with a Kingfisher type calendar with models in bikinis and possibly in 2013 we may be lucky enough to see a Playboy type one. One thing that puzzles me is that the BPP claims that all the models are Zoroastrians, but not a single model is seen to be wearing the sudreh. I am sure had BPP trustee and WAPIZ founder Khojeste Mistree been present at the photo session, he would not have allowed such exposure.

I only hope Areez Khambatta does not see this calendar or he will sever ties with and stop funding WAPIZ as well as extending support to the present BPP trustees. I fear he may insult all the trustees except Noshir Dadrawala and probably stop talking to them as he did in Sanjan with Dadi Mistry of Delhi.

Possibly all the high priests barring one may start praying Puppet (Patet) Pasemani after hanging up the calendar. Sorry, I forgot they are already puppets of the WAPIZ scholar, so no need to pray Patet.

I request all readers to buy one ZYNG/BPP 2011 calendar and donate it to a nearby agiary or atash behram so that Zoroastrians can make use of it. There should be no objection from the fire temples about displaying it since the calendar has been produced and printed by the orthodox WAPIZ-BPP group. If any panthaky refuses to display the said calendar which contains Parsi roz and mah, with all the models certified as Zoroastrians even though they pose without wearing the sudreh and kusti, please send a written complaint to the WAPIZ-BPP combine. There is a possibility that panthakies refusing to display such a masterpiece may be banned or declared renegades.

Perhaps many Parsis may opt to pray before the calendar rather than the kebla. Some Parsis may also choose to kiss the calendar instead of the photo of the Prophet Zoroaster.

HOMI DALAL

It is shameful! On the one hand, WAPIZ (World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis) preaches religion, the importance of the white vest and the holy string. Then, to garner support of the younger generation which is supposed to have zing, a special association ZYNG (Zoroastrian Youth for the Next Generation) is launched. These youngsters immediately get into action and produce a modern westernized calendar using our local girls in western outfits created from rationed cloth.

Priests on the WAPIZ payroll object as also some other Zoroastrians. The matter is exposed in the Press and the community loses face.

The cook with the Goan waistcoat gets his daughter to make some half-baked comments and he provides a finishing touch by adding recipes in the calendar which are concoctions from City Kitchen where he should be employed after being ousted from the third floor of the august building on Dadabhai Naoroji Road.

JAMSHED IRANI

iranjams@yahoo.in

The ultimate in indiscreet behavior has been exemplified in the shocking display of a Zoroastrian "glamor” calendar by none other than the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) chairman Dinshaw Mehta in the Jam-e-Jamshed Weekly of January 16, 2011. Is this photograph of the gleefully grinning chairman to be treated as an endorsement of how Zoroastrian women should seek progress, advancement, fame, wealth and an honorable career in life?

The calendar is sufficient evidence of the inherent contradictions which expose the dishonest nature of the existing BPP-WAPIZ (World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis) combine, now out in the open for all to see. Their claims to orthodoxy are effectively belittled, their pretensions glaringly mala fide in nature.

Granted, in a world where shameless nudity and exposure have become commonplace, such a colorful calendar may be deemed a case of minor "clothesless­ness” by the promoters. But where have their bombastic broadcasts at election time on being "true Zoroastrians” and "defenders of our religion and utterly orthodox in beliefs and practice” suddenly gone?

The calendar displays a drastic inconsistency with the requirements of orthodoxy whose paramount concern should be modesty in dress and decorum such as not to offend the sensibilities of staunch Zoroastrians regarding propriety, purity and piety. Condoning the calendar’s appearance amounts to an oblique recommendation to young Zoroastrian girls that decency is in no way compromised and that they should indulge in more of the same.

Our pseudo, pompous preachers of bogus orthodoxy are unable to foresee what could happen if household after household succumbed to such a trend. They agitate using violent methods when they hear of conversions or navjotes of children from mixed marriages. They make splendidly insincere attempts to perpetuate their propaganda of orthodoxy when sex as an item of commerce is of little concern to them. What sort of rationale is that? Isn’t it an incitement to the next generation (read ZYNG: Zoroastrian Youth for the Next Generation) to strike gold, and even get glory and fame, by baring skin?

For once it is hoped that the ultra strict lobby like Adi Doctor and his conservative, concerned coterie will become crusaders for a relevant cause. Will these hard core, diehard defenders of Zoroastrian values raise their voices on this sensitive issue, thereby demolishing the farce at the nascent stage?

Dr VIRAF J. KAPADIA

In the controversy over the calendar with Parsi poris (girls), we should be clear about what is modern and what is progressive. A modern person projecting herself/himself semi-nude or in some fancy dress can still be termed regressive. There is nothing progressive about shunning our sudreh and kusti. Semi-nude models can be found all over the world, so what Parsipanu are we trying to project?

If we take into account typically Parsi clothing, we could dress our lovely young ladies in original garas, draped imaginatively, with a long, stylish lace sudreh, sapats or closed shoes and suitable Parsi-style jewelry, thus presenting a true-blue Parsi image! On a lovely young lady this dress not only looks sensual, but also lends dignity to the community she represents.

Of course, to carry off such a design one has to be sincere and put in an effort to present a truly creative image, which would be far more appealing than a frivolous, semi-clad picture without any aesthetic appeal. We must be careful not to underestimate our Parsi youth. Sincerity, coupled with common sense and responsibility will appeal much more to our youngsters than the adults’ attempts at playing to the gallery!

ABAN BANA

abanbana123@rediffmail.com