SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, September 27, 2023 (India Currents): Pragati Grover came to the U.S., newly married with just two suitcases and a Ganesh statue from her mother. She not only learned how to cook, drive and fall in love with Oprah Winfrey and soap operas in the U.S. but also developed a deeper love for Ganesh, the Hindu God and the remover of all obstacles. Pragati was born in Durgapur in West Bengal. Most of her childhood was spent in Delhi and Haryana. “I left India in 1988, from New Delhi and I came to San Francisco. And I’ve been in the Bay Area since then. I landed on May 13, 1988. And on the 14th, my husband took me to listen to Jesse Jackson at Stanford University. That’s one of my fondest memories. And the next day was Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco. So can you imagine the introduction I had to America?” says Pragati.

“In India, I used to have a small mandir, like a temple, in my bedroom. I always found Ganesh very cute as a child. In every Indian household, they set up either a temple or they have whatever God they believe in because that’s supposed to be auspicious. A friend of mine gave me a very cute Ganesh, a small one, as a housewarming gift. And I was like oh my gosh, it’s so cute, I love this! Then I started buying Ganesh. My friends, if they’re traveling and they find Ganesh in different mediums, they will bring me some form of Ganesh. So the collection grew .I like all kinds of Ganesh. I don’t mind a dancing Ganesh. I don’t mind a Ganesh who’s playing the drums or whatever. What form Ganesh takes doesn’t matter. I think of Ganesh as my friend. When I go to the temple the moment I see the Ganesh murti automatically in my head, I say, please remove any obstacles in our lives. Naturally, it comes to me to say thank you, Ganesh, for helping us with whatever we are going through,” she adds.

More on Pragati Grover’s first years in the US as a newlywed and finding her deep love for Lord Ganesh at source.
https://indiacurrents.com/saratogas-pragati-grover-discovers-life-in-america-love-for-lord-ganesh/

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