COLUMNISTS
DIARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ELECTIONS
ARCHIVES

Search Rediff

The Close-Knit Indian Community Of San Antonio

The small Indian community of San Antonio in Texas is close-knit and have few biases on the basis of the region in India they originate. The community has grown from about 250 families in 1981 to 600 families. The India Asia Association, founded in 1979 is the umbrella organization that hosts the Festival of India each year.

The smaller organizations, like the Tamil Sangam, the Gujarat Samacharam, the Malayali Association, the Punjabi association, and the Telugu Association celebrate various festivals of their native regions.

The Hindu Temple of San Antonio is a miniature version of the Venkateswara temple at Tirupathi. Perched on a hill in the scenic area of Helotes, the temple is accessible from any part of the town within 20 minutes.

An enthusiastic team of volunteers has worked on raising funds for the structure and an auditorium hall. The traditional Sunday puja, which begins at 10.30 am, attracts many devotees. Sunday school, held twice a month, is popular amongst the youth in the community.

The priests Sri D V Lakshminarasimhacharyulu (phone: 210-695-2840) and Sri Nagaraja Sharma (phone: 210-695-9557) are available at the temple to conduct these temple services: Archana, Abhisheka, Anna Prasana, Hiranya Sradha, Vahana puja, Satyanarayan puja, Namakarana, Kesa khandana, Kalyana utsava, Homa/Havan, Upanayana, Vivaha and Vidyaarambha.

Address: 18518 Bandera Road, Helotes, TX 78023. Tel:(210) 695-9400.

Mailing Address: P O Box 199, Helotes, TX 78023.

Directions To Temple: Take Highway 16 North (Bandera) from Loop 410 or Loop 1604 (Anderson loop). Go about 6 miles from 1604. Please look for the HTSA sign on the right.

Though San Antonio does not have a Little India the Indian community gets its Indian spices and favorite Indian items from two Indian-owned stores

San Antonio boasts of three Indian restaurants frequented by Indians and non-Indians: India Oven Restaurant!, 1031 Patricia Drive, San Antonio, Texas 78213. Telephone: (210) 366-1030

After successfully establishing the India Oven Restaurant in San Francisco over 20 years ago, Chef Baldev Singh expanded to New York, Dallas, Los Angeles and San Antonio. The cuisine ranges from savory eggplant, shrimp with tomatoes and onions to Kashmiri naan baked in India Oven's tandoori oven.

India Palace
8440 Fredericksburg Road, San Antonio TX, 78229.
Tel:(210) 692-5262 Fax: (210) 692-7189.
www.indiapalacesa.com

Taj Mahal Restaurant
Arathi School of Indian Dance; Dr Rajam Ramamurthy, (210) 698-0023.

Previous story: The Golden Girls of San Antonio
Next story: New AAPI Chief Wants Second Generation Involved

Tell us what you think of this feature