US Election 2024: As Americans gear up to vote in the US presidential elections 2024 on November 5, villagers in Thulasendrapuram, a small South village in Tamil Nadu, held a special prayer ceremony praying for Kamala Harris' victory against Donald Trump.
Thulasendrapuram is not just any village; it's where Kamala Harris' mother's family has ancestral ties.
From thousands of miles away, in a village surrounded by rice paddies and coconut trees, local people are rooting for Kamala. On Tuesday morning, the temple reverberated with rhythmic Sanskrit and Tamil hymns as a Hindu priest performed aarti before the deity.
“Our deity is a very powerful God. If we pray well to him, he will make her victorious,” said M Natarajan, the temple priest who led the prayers in front of Lord Ayyanar, a form of Lord Shiva.
Kamala's maternal grandfather was born in this village, about 350 kilometres (215 miles) from Chennai, more than 100 years ago. Later, he moved to Chennai, where he worked as a high-ranking government official until his retirement.
Even though Kamala has never visited Thulasendrapuram and has no living relatives in the village, people here still venerate the family that made it big in the US.
Kamala has often talked about how her Indian-born grandfather and mother guided her values. She has also spoken of her love of South Indian food, especially idli.
Supporters of Kamala Harris from the US also travelled to Thulasendrapuram to attend the special puja.
Sherin Shivlinga from Las Vegas, Nevada, said, “I have come to see the village where Kamala Harris's grandparents were born and raised. We are waiting for the results of the election, we are nervous, we want her to win so badly.”
Her supporters from the US donned matching shirts with the slogan “Kamala Freakin Harris” to cheer their favourite candidate.
Earlier, a separate 11-day Maha Yagnam was conducted in Telangana, praying for Kamala Harris' victory in the US Presidential Elections.
Kamala Harris made history as the first female, first Black, and first Asian American Vice President. She is only the second woman to be nominated for presidency by a major political party.
If elected President, 60-year-old Kamala Harris would be the first female ever to hold the office in US history.
(With agency inputs)
