TO REACH GACHUBHAI Thanda, one has to follow the line of sight of a renowned Hindu saint’s statue. The 216ft-tall statue of saint Ramanujacharya, also called the Statue of Equality, will be unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2022.
The tribal hamlet and its neighbour, a spiritual mascot, lie in Shamshabad, a short drive from Hyderabad. A narrow, dusty lane offthe Hyderabad-Bengaluru highway leads to the entrance of the settlement. But for the villagers, Gachubhai Thanda now exists only on paper, as they insist that they live in Guru Gobind Singh Nagar.
It is Sunday morning, and a middle-aged man donning a Patiala shahi pagg—a traditional way for tying the Sikh turban—with a kirpan slung across his chest, guides a heavy vehicle. A little farther away, a youngster in a gol parna (another Sikh turban style) stands outside a small concrete house. And, on reaching the open field, one can see six boys in patka—a smaller under-turban worn by children—playing cricket. One does not need to refer to official records to know that 90 percent of residents here are Sikhs.
The village has around 500 residents, almost all of whom are Lambadas, listed under the Scheduled Tribes. The conversion to Sikhism happened in the last 20 years or so. The villagers mostly speak Lambadi and a bit of Hindi and Telugu, but no Punjabi. The village has its own gurdwara—Gurdwara Saheb Dashmesh Darbar. The two-storied structure lies on one end of the village, surrounded by farmland.
Esta historia es de la edición January 02, 2022 de THE WEEK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición January 02, 2022 de THE WEEK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
A golden girl
One of India's most formidable beauties passed away earlier this month. The odd thing is she would absolutely hate this obituary; she hated being written about and avoided publicity for all of her nine decades. Indira Aswani was 93 when she died. But anyone who encountered her, even briefly, was in such awe of her grace and poise, and one could not but remember her forever.
The interest in wine is growing delightfully in India
The renowned British wine writer and television presenter Jancis Robinson, 74, recently came to Delhi and Mumbai to reacquaint herself with India's wine industry. This was the Robinson's fourth visit to India; the last one was seven years ago. On this trip, Robinson and her husband, restaurateur Nicholas Lander, were hosted by the Taj Hotels and Sonal Holland, India's only Master of Wine.
United in the states
Indian-Americans coming together under the Democratic umbrella could get Harris over the line in key battlegrounds
COVER DRIVE
Usage-driven motor insurance policies offer several benefits
GDP as the only measure of progress is illogical
Dasho Karma Ura, one of the world's leading happiness experts, has guided Bhutan's unique gross national happiness (GNH) project. He uses empirical data to show that money cannot buy happiness in all circumstances, rather it is family and health that have the strongest positive effect on happiness. Excerpts from an interview:
India is not a controlling big brother
Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay considers India a benevolent elder sibling as the \"big brotherly attitude\" is happily missing from bilateral ties. He thinks the relationship shared by the two countries has become a model of friendship not just for the region, but for the entire world. \"India's attitude is definitely not of a big brother who is controlling and does not allow the little brother to blossom and grow,\" says Tobgay in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK.
Comrade with no foes
Lal Salaam, Comrade Yechury-you were quite a guy!
Pinning down saffron
In her first political bout, Vinesh Phogat rides on the anti-BJP sentiment across Haryana
MAKE IN MANIPUR
Home-made rockets and weapons from across the border are escalating the conflict
SAHEB LOSES STEAM
Coalition dynamics and poor electoral prospects continue to diminish Ajit Pawar's political stock
