Christmas has come to represent a season of hope, joy and giving, irrespective of the religion of those celebrating the world over. Indian Americans of different faiths are no exception. Here are snapshots of some of them who shared their joyful moments with American Kahani.
Raj Mukherji celebrates Christmas with his family at their home in Jersey City. Top photo, Mukherji with his wife, Natasha Alagarasan, son Leo and daughter Liana, on Christmas Eve.
Saloni and Anunay Family in Fremont, California
“Merry Christmas and a very happy holidays to all! Wish everyone good health, happiness and peace this holiday! May the new year bring all the positive changes that we have been waiting to see for the last few years. May the new year see the pandemic end for good and we all get back to living life with assurance.
The Arora Family of Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Radhika and Harsh Arora, our son Shaan, and our two daughters Sofia and Sonia. We wish the South Asian community a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Despite the changing state of the pandemic and its variants, there are reasons for merriment as all of us are looking forward to spending more time with each other in person in 2022 and beyond.
Joshi/Passales of Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, D.C.
Hansa Joshi, center, has been celebrating Christmas for over 60 years when she first celebrated in Neenah, WI, with her husband Devendra Joshi and their American adopted family in 1959. Christmas was one of the holidays the family celebrated to assimilate to their lives in the U.S. Here we are, from left, Anjali Passales, Hansa Joshi, Richard Passales and Shalini Joshi Passales.
Prachi Nadkarni Dipankar of Dublin, California
Keerthi Swamy of Washington, D.C.
Dr. Tushar Patel of Princeton, New Jersey
Dr. Tushar Patel, former chief of Quality Management at Federal Bureau of Prisons, celebrates Christmas at his home with his wife, Sangeeta Patel and their sons.
Shay Banerjee of San Diego, California
Shay Banerjee of San Diego, California, right, with his wife, Theresa, and kids Samaya and Sai. The Banerjee celebrate Christmas with a tree, letters to Santa, gifts, as well as milk and cookies for Santa.
Raghu Devaguptagu, Media Consultant and Political Strategist
Raghu Devaguptagu trims the Christmas tree with his daughters at their home in Washington, D.C. The holiday season at the Deveguptagu home includes “a tree with Hindu ornaments, a Yoda tree topper, Christmas cookies, holiday music, and good cheer by the fire from our family to yours.”
Pooja Sethi, Chief of Staff at Texas House of Representatives
Pooja Sethi with her husband Vivek Kulkarni and son Jai at their home in Austin.
Arulraj Ja and Gowrie Jayaraj of San Jose, California
Photo top left, Gowrie Jayaraj of San Jose, California, celebrates Christmas at her home with her children, Akash and Nivedita. Photo right, IT professional Arulraj Ja at his home in San Jose.
Indira Mahajan, Opera Singer
Kapil Sharma of Washington, D.C.
Kapil Sharma plays Santa with Persis Khambatta.
Sonny Chatrath, Producer at Proof the Shortfilm
We celebrated Christmas with my cousin Roopinder and his family, who drove from Ohio, and my In-Laws, at our home in Freehold, N.J. Seen above are Sonny, Ritu, Rhea, and Sanishka Chatrath. Photo below, Ritu, Roopinder, Dashmeet, Harminder, Rhea, Samara, Sanishka, Arhan and Meena Chatrath, Anupreet Singh, Abjeet Dhiraj, Gurmeet Kaur, and Jasbir Singh.
Sheetal Gandhi, Performer/Choreographer/Educator
Wishing us all a little more joy, a little more compassion and a lot more peace. Sheetal Gandhi with husband Sattva Lobo.
Sharmila Acharya, Mind Body Flow Coach, Pleasanton, California
Remember the holidays are not about: the amount of money spent on gifts, the most amazing presents, how perfect everything looks, societal expectations. Instead, the holidays are about: love, giving, connection, laughter, gratitude, peace, and quality time. Sometimes we all get so caught up in everything that we forget. Happy holidays!
Reva Subra, Co founder and COO at Mission2Help
We live in San Diego, California. We are parents of a young adult Suneet who has special needs. He is differently abled and taught us how to be compassionate and also on how to love unconditionally. We are blessed to be his parents. We would like to spread that message on addressing these special individuals as individuals fist and their challenges only after. They are SPECIAL souls who need little extra love, acceptance and patience from all of us. Happy Holidays! Make this coming new year to be filled with compassion and care for those special souls who need that extra time and care from us Happy 2022!
