Ganesh Chaturthi unites Indian diaspora across Australia, Dubai and US

Hyderabad: From Melbourne to Dubai and New Jersey, the Indian diaspora is celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi with devotion and splendour.In Melbourne, Dilse Australia has emerged as a key organiser of Ganesh Utsav since 2023. The city, which has the largest Indian-origin diaspora in the country at over 3.7 lakh in Victoria alone, has seen the festival grow into a major community event. "We wanted to recreate the same spirit that we left behind in India. For us, this is not just about worship but also about keeping our culture alive in a new land," said Harsha Reddy Mangammola, founder of Dilse Australia. The idols here are specially hand-crafted in Melbourne by an artisan of Karnataka origin, reflecting the community's effort to blend tradition with their adopted home.In Dubai, too, Ganesh Chaturthi has moved from being a small community affair to a large-scale celebration. The sizeable Indian diaspora has begun sourcing idols from India and hosting cultural programmes around the puja. "For years we only saw pictures from back home. Now, with the community growing stronger, we can bring those memories here. It feels like Mumbai in the Gulf," said a long-time Telugu resident of Bur Dubai who has been organising the festivities for over a decade.Across the Atlantic, in the United States, the celebrations remain equally spirited. Temples and community associations in cities like New Jersey, California and Texas witness thousands of devotees gathering for aarti and visarjan. "We grew up celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi. To now see the next generation of Indian-Americans singing the same bhajans here in the US makes us feel connected across oceans," said Geeta Reddy from New Jersey who has been living in America for more than 20 years.