‘We miss Ahmedabad’s Diwali, Holi’

Vadodara: It is almost 45 years that she moved to the US along with her parents. And the last time, she visited her home state, was also 23 years ago. But Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant still is nostalgic about the childhood days that she spent in Ahmedabad and the festivals that she celebrated in Gujarat.
“My dad’s house was in Maninagar near the railway crossing. I used to spent lot of time with my grandmother, listening to the stories that she would share with me,” Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant, who is married to Kevin Durant and is mother of 22-year-old Casey Durant, told TOI.

“Also, I remember outdoor sleeping in Khadia, where my mother’s family used to stay,” she said, recollecting how every Diwali, fire crackers would get divided amongst siblings and as kids, they used to have fun and excitement of throwing water on each other during Holi.

“Diwali and Holi are the festivities that we miss it here,” she said, recollecting how her mother Paulomi Pandit used to bring spices from India when they had moved to the US.

“Initially, it was difficult as you didn’t know the language. Decembers were very cold, almost everybody stayed indoors and we had no Indian restaurants around. We were just cooking at home,” she said.

“But lot has changed in the last 30 years. There is lot of Indian population here and people don’t see differently if someone is wearing a saree,” she said.

Honoured by the N.Y.P.D Desi Society and the Brahmin Society of New York, she is part of various Indian groups. “Through my own ways, I want to support and give back to the Indian community, especially the senior citizens, who have really helped me a lot in my career,” she told TOI.