XYZ (Xtremely Young Zoroastrians), the community’s premiere non-profit association which caters to the all-round social and cultural development of the community’s tots and teens, had some of its groups setting the pace this summer with various fun and growth-oriented activities.

Believing that the best way to learn about our religion and customs is through its practice, the dynamic members of Rustom’s Rockstars (RR) celebrated the auspicious ‘Chula-nu-Varas’ – the birthday of the hearth fire (Adar Mahino, Daepadar Roj – 20^th April, 2023), by sharing how each did so in their own homes through pictures, videos and reels. The kids enthusiastically did up the decorations around the stove with rangoli, sagan-ni-tili, kharaptu, garlands, afarganyu and ses with a divo, flowers and fruits.

Two days later, RR also celebrated Earth Day, by doing things differently – they set out to explore everyday commute, taking the Mumbai local and Mumbai Metro via Mahim-Bandra-Andheri-Versova. They learnt to read maps, purchase tickets and jostle through crowded trains, honing their street-smarts and advocating the use of public transport on Earth Day to help reduce carbon emissions.

On 23^rd April, Behram’s Battalion (BB) hosted a ‘Family Dhamaka Night’ in Dadar, in honour of their families – establishing their own maxim: ‘A family that plays together, stays together!’ Fitness and dance guru – Burzin Engineer kicked off the event with an invigorating dance session, getting all the kids and parents on the dance-floor. This was followed by fun games and cake-cutting and concluded with delicious snacks prepared by the families.

The BB group also made an Udvada visit to strengthen their connect with our roots and religion, on 29^th April, 2023. Kicking off the bus journey to Udvada at 6:00 am with an auspicious Humbandagi, the kids visited the Zoroastrian Museum, increasing their understanding via artefacts, articles and documentaries about the history and customs of our culture. Religious activities, drawing and quiz competitions, beach-games in the evening, and a fun dance session and walk post dinner concluded the day. Next day, they paid homage to the holy Iranshah Atashbehram post which Vada Dasturji Khurshed Dastoor invited them home to enlighten them about various aspects of the sacred Iranshah. Next stop was the recently launched ‘Udwada Bakers’ where they witnessed the baking process and returned with gift hampers of goodies, courtesy XYZ.