Topline
Presidential election leads to the U.S. triggered contrasting reactions in two small villages in southern India, because the residents of Vadluru—the ancestral house of Vice President-elect JD Vance’s spouse Usha—celebrated President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, whereas these dwelling in Kamala Harris’ ancestral village of Thulasendrapuram have been dismayed by her defeat.
Key Information
Vadluru, positioned within the Telegu-speaking south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, celebrated the information of Usha Vance changing into the subsequent U.S. second woman with firecrackers.
The village’s Hindu priest had organized particular prayers for a Trump win, and he advised the Hindustan Instances that they hoped she would “acknowledge her roots and do one thing good for this village.”
Vance’s grandfather was a resident of Vadluru, however finally moved out and her father Chilukuri Radhakrishnan largely grew up within the metropolis of Chennai earlier than shifting to the U.S.
The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh additionally celebrated Vance’s achievement and mentioned “Usha Vance, who has roots in Andhra Pradesh, will change into the primary lady of Telugu heritage to function the Second Woman of the US,” and referred to as it a “second of delight for the Telugu group.”
Contrasting scenes performed out in Thulasendrapuram within the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu, as many residents who had prayed for a Harris win mentioned they have been disenchanted with the end result, however have been nonetheless pleased with her achievements.
A day earlier than the U.S. went to the polls, the principle temple in Thulasendrapuram held a particular puja (Hindu worship ritual), which was attended by just a few American vacationers visiting the world.
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Key Background
Usha Chilukuri Vance was born in San Diego, California, to Telugu-speaking dad and mom who migrated from India within the late Nineteen Seventies and had roots in Andhra Pradesh. Vance hails from a household of lecturers; her grandfather Ramasastry Chilukuri taught physics on the prestigious IIT Madras, and the institute nonetheless has a pupil award named in his reminiscence. Her father Chilukuri Radhakrishnan is a mechanical engineering graduate from IIT Madras, who later labored as a professor at San Diego State College, whereas her mom Laksmi Chilukuri is a marine molecular biologist and provost on the College of California, San Diego. Vance’s great-aunt, Shanthamma Chilukuri, is certainly one of her few shut relations nonetheless residing in Andhra Pradesh. Native media claims the 96-year-old Shanthamma is the oldest energetic professor within the nation. Vance herself is a graduate of Yale Regulation College.
Tangent
Harris’ maternal grandfather PV Gopalan was born in Thulasendrapuram in 1911. He would go on to change into a civil servant in British-ruled India, which finally grew to become the Indian civil service after the nation gained independence. Later in his life, Gopalan served on an Indian diplomatic mission to Zambia to assist the nation handle an inflow of refugees from Zimbabwe (then often called Rhodesia) because the nation fought for its independence. Harris’s mom Shyamala was certainly one of Gopalan’s 4 youngsters and she or he emigrated to the U.S. on the age of 19 to review at U.C. Berkeley. Harris’ title, alongside together with her maternal grandfather’s, is inscribed on a stone pill contained in the village temple because the vp donated to the temple in 2014 for its consecration after a renovation.
Additional Studying
Kamala Harris’ Ancestral Village In India Celebrates Her Presidential Run With Prayers, Sweets And Cautious Pleasure (Forbes)