Showcasing Parsi heritage

Three iconic exhibitions to showcase the civilization and culture of Parsis will be mounted in Delhi by the Ministry of Minority Affairs in collaboration with UNESCO Parzor Foundation from March to May 2016. They will be funded by the Indian Government at a cost of Rs 14 crore, according to an official press release issued by the Ministry, a copy of which was forwarded to Parsiana by Dr Shernaz Cama, director, Parzor. Dr Najma Heptulla, union minister of minority affairs noted in the press release, "The exhibition will bring alive Parsi heritage so that all Indians can understand and be proud of India as the world’s finest exemplar of unity in diversity,” adding that this will be the first ambitious project of the government under the new scheme for minorities "Hamari Dharohar” (our legacy, heritage), and will help preserve the rich heritage of the Parsi community.

(Top): Dr Shernaz Cama; (Above) Artefacts on display in "Across Oceans..."

To be inaugurated at Vigyan Bhavan on March 19, 2016, the three exhibitions — "Everlasting Flame — Zoroastrianism in History and Imagination,” "Across Oceans and Flowing Silks from Canton to Bombay 18th-20th centuries” and "Threads of Continuity” — will be held at the National Museum, National Gallery of Modern Arts and the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts in Delhi respectively. During this period there will also be academic and cultural programs of international magnitude, the press release mentions. Outreach programs, including an International Academic Conference are also on the cards.
Prof Paul Webley, director of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London who signed a memorandum of understanding with Sanjiv Mittal, director general, National Museum on July 14, 2015, said, "SOAS is tremendously proud to be working with the Ministry of Minority Affairs, National Museum, and Parzor to mount its first exhibition outside of the United Kingdom. (That) this is taking place in SOAS’s centenary year…and in India… is the icing on the cake.”
"The Everlasting Flame,” first exhibited in the UK, was curated by Dr Sarah Stewart, Firoza Punthakey Mistree, Ursula Sims-Williams, Dr Almut Hintze, Pheroza Godrej and Cama. It displayed objects loaned from the British Library, the British Museum and world renowned collections from Russia, Uzbekistan, Iran as well as the Prince of Wales Museum and Alpaiwalla Museum in Bombay and the Tata Archives in Poona. "Across Oceans…” is mounted by Godrej and Mistree, showcasing Parsi trading encounters in China, and their consequent alliance with the British East India Company, while "Threads of Continuity” is handled by Cama, Dadi Pudumjee and Ashdeen Lilaowala. It portrays the philosophy and ideals of Zoroastrianism in practice today affirming both tangible and intangible heritage and the need to preserve it. The last two were exhibited in Bombay in 2013-14. In a collaboration of UNESCO Parzor and Google Culture Institute, the last exhibition will highlight the natural element of Central Asia which shaped Zoroastrian philosophy and its ecological way of life, the press release states.