Close
MyNorthwest
News
Opinion
Sports
Tools
Connect

In Pakistan’s Sindh province, Hindu culture fights the odds

A man buys sweet at a famous 67-year-old sweet shop run by a Hindu businessman, in Shikarpur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. The landscape of Pakistan, and Sindh in particular, retains their imprint. It has temples, although their numbers have plummeted, businesses, education and healthcare institutions, many established before the country was created in 1947. These places are part of Pakistan's heritage, even as Hindus are forced into the shadows. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A woman with a child arrive in historical Hira Nand Ganga Bhai hospital, in Shikarpur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. The landscape of Pakistan, and Sindh in particular, retains their imprint. It has temples, although their numbers have plummeted, businesses, education and healthcare institutions, many established before the country was created in 1947. These places are part of Pakistan's heritage, even as Hindus are forced into the shadows. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A man walks in a historical college named on Chella Singh and Sital Das, Hindu bankers who donated the bulk of funding for the construction of college, in Shikarpur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. The landscape of Pakistan, and Sindh in particular, retains their imprint. It has temples, although their numbers have plummeted, businesses, education and healthcare institutions, many established before the country was created in 1947. These places are part of Pakistan's heritage, even as Hindus are forced into the shadows. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A rooftop view of the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community disembark from boat after visiting the Sadhu Bela temple, in background, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community attend a religious ceremony at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A worker prepares falooda, an ice-cream-based dessert with noodles, for customers at a famous 67-year-old sweet shop run by a Hindu businessman, in Shikarpur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. The landscape of Pakistan, and Sindh in particular, retains their imprint. It has temples, although their numbers have plummeted, businesses, education and healthcare institutions, many established before the country was created in 1947. These places are part of Pakistan's heritage, even as Hindus are forced into the shadows. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community arrives to visit at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A family from Pakistani Hindu community visit at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) A teenager from Pakistani Hindu community takes selfie with his phone while he with others visit at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community visit at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community leave through boats after visiting at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) People from Pakistani Hindu community attend a religious ceremony at the Sadhu Bela temple, located in an island on the Indus River, in Sukkur, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. On the banks of the Indus River, which flows through Pakistan and into its southern Sindh province, Hindus wait for brightly colored boats to ferry them to an island that has housed Sadhu Bela temple for almost 200 years. The island was gifted to the Hindu community by wealthy Muslim landlords in Sindh, an unthinkable act in modern-day Pakistan. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)
In Pakistan’s Sindh province, Hindu culture fights the odds