The little-known village of Thulasendrapuram in Tamil Nadu, the ancestral home of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, is alive with excitement as residents prepare to hold special prayers for her success in the upcoming election. Banners featuring her image are prominently displayed throughout the village, and intricate temple rituals are being organized to pray for her victory.
On November 5, villagers will conduct a special pooja at the main temple, Dharmasastha, located about 100 kilometers from Chennai and approximately 14,000 kilometers from Washington, D.C.
“We have a special pooja tomorrow morning to ensure her victory,” said former councillor Arulmozhi Sudhakar. “She has Indian roots, her ancestry is from our village, and she is a woman aspiring for a significant role in one of the most powerful countries in the world. That makes us proud, and we want her to win.”
If Harris secures victory, village leaders plan to hold an annadhanam, offering free meals to the poor. Posters and banners featuring her image have been erected, congratulating her and wishing her success in Tamil.
Thulasendrapuram gained prominence when Joe Biden selected Harris as his running mate ahead of the 2020 elections, marking a historic moment as she became the first African-American woman and the first person of Indian descent to be nominated for a national office in the U.S.
During her campaign, Harris endeared herself to her roots by mentioning her ‘chithis’—the Tamil term for a parent’s younger sister—during her speech at the Democratic National Convention in August 2020. Her grandfather, P.V. Gopalan, was born in this village a century ago before moving to Madras, and in 2014, her aunt, Dr. Sarala Gopalan, donated ₹5,000 to the local temple in Harris’s name. “That’s the only link we have to show her connection to this village,” noted M. Krishnamurthi, a retired bank employee residing in Thulasendrapuram.
“She has put our village on the map. Without her, no one would know about Thulasendrapuram, and for that, I am proud. She is a daughter of our soil, and we want her to win.”
However, the villagers are realistic about their situation and remain skeptical that Harris’s prominence will lead to increased attention or funding from the local government to improve conditions in their village. “Our roads aren’t going to be upgraded overnight,” Krishnamurthi remarked, expressing a hope that the next American president will foster a friendly relationship with India in the face of challenges posed by China.
