The coming together of over 100 members of the community to celebrate the 14th anniversary of the Zoroastrian House in Singapore on the last weekend of April 2025 was "a testament to the strength and unity of our Zoroastrian community in Singapore,” noted a report on the event sent by Hormuz Avari, president of The Parsi Zoroastrian Association of South East Asia, Singapore (PZAS). It was "a weekend filled with warmth, tradition and camaraderie.”
Top: Hoshaang Gotla, Hormuz Avari, Viraf Mehta (standing 6th to 8th from l) with committee members;
above: gathering in Singapore
Jashan at the Zoroastrian House in Singapore
On the first day, April 26, 13 children aged between two and 12 years were engaged in interactive leadership games by Hoshaang Gotla, founder trustee of Xtremely Young Zoroastrians, alongside some committee members. The next morning started with a jashan followed by an interesting presentation by Gotla who was felicitated by the Association. Since the chairman of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet Viraf Mehta was on a personal visit to Singapore, he too was able to join in the celebrations.
The event concluded with "a hearty, finger licking, in-house meal lovingly prepared by our dedicated volunteers.” As PZAS will be playing host next year to the World Zoroastrian Congress (WZC), Avari was reassured to see the "enthusiasm and fervor” of the members.
In response to queries from Parsiana, the president mentioned that "many of our members have stepped forward to volunteer for various roles, and we’ve also received a few pledges of donations. The excitement is building, and everyone wants to be a part of this momentous event. We have 13 teams working on various aspects like government liaison, logistics, marketing, programs, fundraising, registration, information technology, etc. Meetings are regularly being held within the teams and also to coordinate efforts across the teams. Given that we are a small community of about 300 adult members a lot of coordination and planning is required.”
He further remarked, "It’s wonderful to see that whenever we have a large event like the anniversary lunch, there’s a lot of buzz and talk about the WZC. The planning of this event has brought the community together a lot more” which was one of the main reasons to host the Congress.