Supporters of U.S. presidential candidate Kamala Harris from the U.S. take part in a special puja at the Dharma Sastha temple in Tamil Nadu’s Thulasendrapuram, the ancestral village of Ms. Harris on November 5, 2024.
| Photo Credit: S.R. Raghunathan
“Vetri pera vaazhthugirom thirumathi Kamala Harris” — read a caption in Tamil on a colourful vinyl sheet put up at Thulasendrapuram — the ancestral village of the U.S. Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris — wishing her an emphatic victory on the day of polling.
The nondescript village in Tiruvarur district in central Tamil Nadu and situated thousands of miles away from the USA came alive on Tuesday (November 5) even as Americans were all set to elect a new president.
Kamala Harris is a household name in Thulasendrapuram which erupted in joy exactly four years ago after she was elected the first woman Vice President of the U.S. and the first South Asian American to be elected to the position. This time around expectations and hope are even higher among the village residents who wish to see Ms. Harris occupy the top position in the United States of America.
To help their wish come true the villagers offered fervent prayers at the Sri Dharma Sastha temple at Thulasendrapuram where special poojas were performed to Sri Dharma Sastha – said to be the family deity of the ancestors of Ms. Harris. ‘Abhishekams’ were performed and sweet pongal was offered to the deity as ‘neivedhyam.’
P.V.Gopalan, the maternal grandfather of Ms. Harris resided in the ‘agraharam’ in the village before migrating more than 65 years ago, said M. Natarajan (61), the chief priest of the temple.
“Kamala Harris roots are in Thulasendrapuram and a win in this election will be a victory for all of us”, remarked G. Manikandan who runs a grocery store at the village. A daily sheet calendar containing a photograph of Ms. Harris hung in front of his shop welcomes the buyers.
A calendar with images of U.S. President Joe Biden and Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is hung inside a shop in Thulasendrapuram, the village where Harris’ maternal grandfather was born, in the Southern state of Tamil Nadu
| Photo Credit:
Reuters
On Tuesday (November 5, 2024) it is not just the locals praying for Ms. Harris in the village. Sharon Sivalenka, a U.S. national from Las Vegas and a strong supporter of Ms. Harris along with two of her friends, who were on a tour of India, had come to attend the special poojas on hearing about it. “We really want her to win, and she has a really good chance,” said Ms. Sharon.
“We feel really proud of Kamala Harris as her ancestors hail from the Tamil land. Her hard work will bring her victory,” was the response of J. Suthagar of neighbouring Painganadu, who took the initiative in arranging the special poojas this time as well.
“Kamala Harris is a role model for all women and her victory will be a great moment for us,” said Ms. Arulmozhi Suthagar, a local body representative of Thulasendrapuram. Ms. Arulmozhi drew a colourful kolam in front of her house at Painganadu with a caption “Vanakkam America” and wishing Harris a victory.
A song in praise of Ms. Harris was sung by one of the locals outside the temple as part of the nearly hour-long event. .
Published – November 05, 2024 12:48 pm IST
