ISSUE VIII : Note from the Managing Editor
home away from home
By Niyati Pendekanti
This past weekend marked one of India’s largest events: Diwali, or the Festival of Lights. I’m not particularly religious nor did I celebrate it extravagantly while I was still in India, but festivals always make me miss home (more so than usual): the food, the music, the comfort, the feeling of community, the warmth of family. Ironically, these are also the times I appreciate New York City the most.
Image by Nihal Prabhudesi, via Unsplash.
A friend of mine hosted a Diwali party on Friday, her apartment lit up by fairy lights in place of diyas (oil lamps), flowing ghagras and salwars (Indian traditional attire), Bollywood hits blasting on a speaker (of course), and all the “Indian” references and ways of speaking I otherwise have to tuck away.
The next day, another friend and I visited Jackson Heights, a neighbourhood in Queens that is home to numerous communities from South Asia and Latin America. The hodgepodge of cultures is reflected in the variety of restaurants and food stalls lining its streets, mouth watering fragrances wafting out from each one of them. From papdi chaat (popular Indian street food) and kulfi (dairy ice cream) at Raja Sweets, momos (dumplings) and laphing (cold noodle dish) at Lhasa Restaurant, to masala dosa (savoury crepe) at Dosa Delight, we successfully completed our food crawl. Finally, a Diwali fest organised by Smorgasburg took over Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Sunday with guest vendors, interactive activities, dance performances, and shopping stalls. My stomach was full, and my heart even fuller.
These spaces offer a brief but fulfilling respite from my homesickness, as I step away from the chaos of New York City and into the (more familiar) chaos of the desi world.
I must note that a sense of not belonging does not accompany this sense of homesickness. I don’t feel out of place here in New York City, rather I feel like I belong precisely because I am not from here. The city is often described as a melting pot of cultures for a reason: it’s rough and tough and throws you one curveball after the next, but it embraces you in its own weird way the moment you step foot in it. There is a niche for almost anyone and everyone.
As I write this, Zohran Mamdani, a South Asian Muslim born to immigrants from India and Uganda is the front runner in NYC’s mayoral race. Only a month ago, delegations from all over the world, including the Global South where I come from, gathered in the city for the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) week. All this to say, many of us may be “outsiders” here who are far from home and navigating various barriers, but there is connection, solidarity, and opportunity to be found in the internationalism of New York City.
That very sense of community is what we are trying to represent within this magazine. A place for people like you and me to come together and share our ideas, opinions, and rants. To, more importantly, create space for the words and feelings of those who are otherwise underrepresented, marginalised, glossed over, or dismissed, and who want a say in how they are talked about and governed.
We hope you enjoy reading the pieces in this issue, and look forward to those in the future.
Niyati Pendekanti is an MA candidate in international affairs at The New School.