Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Hindu gods amid English greenery

Hindu gods amid English greenery

By Amit Roy

IF LAKSHMI or Ganesh wanted to come to Christian England at this time, they would probably be subject­ed to a lengthy quarantine, assuming the British High Commission in India were willing to give them tourist visas in the first place.


Who knows, but right-wing groups might also ob­ject to immigrants bringing in an infectious Hindu vari­ant of religion.

On a sunny day last week, we paid a family visit to Petersham Nurseries in Richmond. The setting couldn’t be more English, plugged in the Daily Telegraph as “the world’s poshest garden centre”. My satnav took me through Richmond Park, past dozens of cyclists and deer relaxing under the trees. The tiny single-lane entrance between two build­ings is easy to miss.

The smell of joss sticks in one nursery shop seemed curious, but the sight of framed images of the pantheon of Hindu gods caught me unawares. Rereading the three-page Telegraph article afterwards, I learnt that Peter­sham Nurseries is owned by “the Boglione family”, which includes papa Francesco; the “warm-hearted matriarch” Gael; and their children Lara, Harry, Anna and Ruby.

The place is worth a visit to see how Hindu gods have made themselves at home amid English greenery.

The family “bought the nursery in 2000, which is when the transformation be­gan,” the article says, adding, “That summer, Lara set off for a gap year around India – something Francesco had done 30 years before. He and the-then 15-year-old Anna joined her. ‘We spent a few weeks together, and as we were travelling, I would see things for sale and think, that terracotta pot would look great in the nursery,’ Franc­esco says. Before long, he had filled a container and shipped it back to London.”

His treasures set the aes­thetic. “The pieces he found have been fabulous to build on, although I didn’t want it to be just Indian-inspired,” Gael says.

All I can say is that the his­tory of stuff ordered in India – inlaid marble tables bought in Agra, for example – and arriving safely in Britain is not great. In this case, divine in­tervention must have helped.

I once gifted a little clay statue of Kali to my college tutor. He promptly put it on his window sill and announced the goddess would “su­pervise executions in Third Court for students who didn’t submit their work on time”.

I am encouraged by the example of Petersham Nurs­eries. Somewhere I, too, have posters of Hindu gods I col­lected in the bazaars of India for a few rupees. Hinduism – or rather Hindutva – has be­come a risky concept, but perhaps it is time for me to display my posters.

I have always liked having little statues of Ganesh dot­ted around the place. And Bengalis have a thing about Saraswati, the goddess of learning, to whom we prayed just before an exam. A two-inch statue of Saraswati sits just under my PC, making sure copy is filed on time.

More For You

Comment: Talking about race isn’t racist – ignoring it helped grooming gangs thrive

A woman poses with a sign as members of the public queue to enter a council meeting during a protest calling for justice for victims of sexual abuse and grooming gangs, outside the council offices at City Centre on January 20, 2025 in Oldham, England

Getty Images

Comment: Talking about race isn’t racist – ignoring it helped grooming gangs thrive

WAS a national inquiry needed into so-called grooming gangs? Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer did not think so in January, but now accepts Dame Louise Casey’s recommendation to commission one.

The previous Conservative government – having held a seven-year national inquiry into child sexual abuse – started loudly championing a new national inquiry once it lost the power to call one. Casey explains why she changed her mind too after her four-month, rapid audit into actions taken and missed on group-based exploitation and abuse. A headline Casey theme is the ‘shying away’ from race.

Keep ReadingShow less
Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment

Shraddha Jain

Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment

FUNNY UK TOUR

The tidal wave of top Indian stand-up stars touring the UK continues with upcoming shows by Shraddha Jain this July. The hugely popular comedian – who has over a million Instagram followers – will perform her family-friendly show Aiyyo So Mini Things at The Pavilion, Reading (4), the Ondaatje Theatre, London (5), and The Old Rep Theatre, Birmingham (6). The 90-minute set promises an entertaining take on the mundane and uproarious aspects of everyday life.

Keep ReadingShow less
Comment: How populist politicians tackle personality clashes

Elon Musk with Donald Trump

Comment: How populist politicians tackle personality clashes

THE US president Donald Trump and billionaire businessman Elon Musk went to war on social media.

Geert Wilders brought the Dutch government down after less than a year. Nigel Farage scrambled to hold his Reform team together.

Keep ReadingShow less
Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment
Doctor Who
Doctor Who

Eye Spy: Top stories from the world of entertainment

RANI MAKES RETURNDoctor Who acclaimed actress Archie Panjabi added to her diverse body of work by playing the iconic villain Rani in the recently concluded series of Doctor Who. She reprised the role originally portrayed by Kate O’Mara decades ago. Unfortunately, the series – available on BBC iPlayer – has been plagued by problems and suffered plummeting ratings, largely due to poor storylines. As a result, Archie and fellow cast member Varada Sethu are unlikely to return in future episodes.

Doctor Who


Keep ReadingShow less
Priya Mulji with participants

Priya Mulji with participants at a Thailand retreat

X/ Priya Mulji

Finding my tribe in an unexpected place

Priya Mulji

I turned 43 recently, and it was the best birthday of my life. Special for so many reasons. For the first time since my twenties, I spent my birthday abroad. (In case you were wondering – Phuket, Thailand.)

Last year, I impulsively booked myself onto my friend Urvashi’s mind, body and soul expansion experience. Since then, life has taken some unexpected turns – including being made redundant from my day job – so this trip could not have come at a better time.

Keep ReadingShow less