When Srivital Choppara learned that a new Hindu temple would be devoted to the deity Venkateswara, he knew it would offer a bond with their homeland for many in the Columbus-area Indian community.
Choppara and other supporters of the Sri Venkateswara Temple of Central Ohio are from southern India, home to the city of Tirupati, site of the god’s most-prominent temple, which attracts as many as 100,000 pilgrims a day.
“When I think of the god, I think of my mom,” Choppara said. “We grew up singing his songs and little rituals around this god, so that’s how we make the connection back home.”
The local temple plans a four-day grand-opening ceremony to enshrine Venkateswara and his consorts — Sridevi, the goddess of wealth, and Bhudevi, the goddess of Earth — from Thursday to Aug. 2. Statues of the three will inhabit an orange-and-white-striped shrine at the temple’s temporary location at 9771 Fairway Dr. in Powell.
The celebrations will bring three other deities into the temple — Ganesha, with the head of an elephant; Garuda, with attributes of an eagle; and Hanuman, the monkey god.
The group plans to worship at the temporary spot for about three years as funds are raised to build a large temple on a site of nearly 24 acres near I-71 and Galena in Delaware County. The new temple will be at least 20,000 square feet, accommodate at least 1,000 worshippers and be “ state-of-the art,” said spokesman Ganesh Vathyam.
It will include an 8-foot granite statue of Venkateswara; an ornate, colorful towering entrance called a gopuram; and a brass- or copper-covered flagstaff called a dwajasthambam.
Plans are to bring sculptors from India to build the temple, and early projections place the cost at about $3 million, Vathyam said. A hope is that it will offer south-Indian heritage and culture to tourists from around the U.S., including people of other religions.
“Our goal is to introduce this culture not only to our kids — because the reason we build temples is to let our future generations know the significance of the temple and the heritage — and also to introduce it to the other side of the world.”
The temple is the second in Powell, Vathyam said. The Bharatiya Hindu Temple on Hyatts Road opened in 1994. Other Hindu worship communities meet at locations on the Northwest Side, in the University District, in Lewis Center and in Delaware.
The new temple’s main god, Venkateswara, is a form of the Hindu god Vishnu, the god of life who preserves and sustains. He is one of the three main Hindu gods. The others are Brahma, the creator, and Shiva, the destroyer.
Ram Chandrasekar, a member of the temple committee, said the temple fulfills the aspirations of local Indians, many of whom are followers of Venkateswara.
Ohio is home to more than 74,000 Asian-Americans of Indian descent, according to a state report based on 2010 and 2013 U.S. Census Bureau data. The state’s Indian community has expanded by 80 percent since 2000.
Chandrasekar estimated that about 10,000 Indian families live in central Ohio.
His wife, Vijaya Chandrasekar, said the numbers might be double that. The family moved to Columbus in 1982 and found 200 to 300 other families of Indian descent.
“When we came, there was no temple. I had to have an altar at home and practice our religion at home with the kids,” she said. “Now, the kids have so much opportunity to learn more.”
Vathyam said Columbus’ diversity makes the area an ideal place for the new temple. When he moved here in 1993 from New Jersey, he told friends there that he’d move back East once he got his green card. He never did.
“The moment I came to Ohio, after I looked at this environment and the people, the love I got, I told my friends, ‘I’m not moving back to New Jersey. I’m staying here.’ ”
For more information, visit www.svtco.org.