Madras monsoon

"We are all physically safe but no electricity, water and WiFi,” erstwhile Madras Parsi Association (MPA) secretary Zarin Mistry told Parsiana on December 5, 2023 after Madras was hit by heavy rains and flooding due to Cyclone Michaung. On December 8, Mistry stated that "things are getting back to normal but the city is in a right regular mess with fallen trees and inundated roads and subways. Hope the rain holds and the worst is over.” Their Anjuman Baug compound that houses their dharamshala, burial ground, the manager’s quarters and a well was totally flooded and waters are receding very slowly, she stated. The agiary, a few blocks away is safe, she noted. "The surrounding roads are quite water logged and the public is getting quite restive,” she stated.

November 2023 was a "particularly busy month” for the Parsis of Madras. The MPA that organizes at least eight get-togethers annually to help the community stay connected, held three in the penultimate month of the year alone, noted their secretary Shahnaz Rao. "In keeping with tradition, we celebrated Nogi Day on November 4 at the Parsi Club… Our committee organized three very innovative and interesting group games.” The Day commemorates Nogi Phiroj Clubwala who was the founding member of the MPA in 1930 and a sports enthusiast. The evening was rounded off with a meal of dhansak, cutlets and mava na khaja, she noted.

Community members enjoyed a preview of Sam Bahadur on November 25, the biopic of the much-decorated Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, organized by his daughter Sherry Batliwala and producer Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP Movies. The next day they celebrated Gahanbar Maidyoshehem with a lunch sponsored by Batliwala, Zenobia and Srinath Raghavan and a quiz based on Manekshaw’s life.

"(There are) around 200-250 of us,” in Madras, stated the secretary.