A Little India in Jackson Heights, Queens
Like a teeming, magical souk from the Arabian nights tales, it has everything from precious stones to rich silks to aromatic spices. If you’re craving for a paan or a kesar kulfi – and you’re a continent away from India, this is the place you’ll find it. If you’re looking for an ornate bridal lengha or a traditional gold wedding necklace in the heart of New York, well, have no fear – Jackson Heights is near!
Fondly nicknamed Jaikishan Heights, this gritty Little India has been the salvation of new immigrants for decades, bringing them a sweet piece of their lost homeland. It is here that they find the remembered tastes and sounds that make them feel whole again.
Jackson Heights is located in Queens, which is said to be the most ethnically diverse 115 square miles on earth. Since the 80’s, the South Asian population in New York has escalated to over 600,000 and for most new immigrants Queens has been anchor and safe harbor. While many have settled in Corona, Elmhurst, Flushing, Richmond Hill and Astoria, Jackson Heights happens to be the microcosm, the very pulsating heart of South Asia.
Indeed, you could take a trip around the countries of South Asia in less than a day, without boarding a plane! All you need is a $ 4 Metrocard, for India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are all in Jackson Heights.
The 7-subway line is the nerve center, the train that carries thousands to their jobs in Manhattan and other parts of Queens and then brings them back home. It is because of its proximity to this subway line that Jackson Heights has prospered, becoming a home away from home for so many desis from the Indian sub-continent.
India in New York
Jackson Heights remains the largest Little India in the US, and still draws large crowds from neighboring towns and states.It is a home to Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshis, a home away from home. The main action is on 74th Street although the South Asian area spreads from Roosevelt Avenue to 37th Avenue, from 70th to 78th Street. In fact, 74th Street itself has been renamed Kalpana Chawla Way as a tribute to the Indian-American astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy. Mayor Bloomberg personally visited and unveiled the sign renaming the street.
According to Shiv Dass, past president of the Jackson Heights Merchants Association, there are over 200 businesses in this one-mile stretch, including over 35 boutiques, 20 restaurants and 9 sweet shops. There are more than 30 jewelry stores with an inventory worth millions of dollars on this one street. Indeed, 74th Street is the mother of all bazaars because it has almost a dozen Indian grocery stores, which carry thousands of ethnic products from the sub-continent as well as UK, U.S. and Canada.
There is energy about Jackson Heights and a community spirit that is reflected in the lighting of the trees in the holiday season to celebrate Diwali, Christmas, Eid and Hanukah, and these lights sparkle right up to the New Year. There is also a vibrant Diwali mela which is sponsored by South Asian owned businesses, and this is attended by thousands of New Yorkers.
Today there is a thriving Little India in Edison, New Jersey, and in almost every major metropolis with a large Indian population. Yet Jackson Heights remains close to the hearts of Indian-Americans and those who are now settled in the suburbs still venture back to the place where they may have started out as new immigrants. Here they find well-remembered treats, their favorite music, a new silk saree and trinkets to go with it, not to mention the street foods of their youth.
Jackson Heights is a vibrant neighborhood, with halal meat shops, fish markets, grocery stores, sweet shops juxtaposed with glittering jewelry stores, boutiques, sari shops and video stores. It has threes of everything – you will find sweet shops with Indian, Bangladshi and Pakistani owners – thus the sweets, like jalebis or gulab jamuns, will reflect the common heritage of these three countries – and yet will be subtly different. There are close to 30 jewelry stores, carrying millions of dollars of inventory on this one street, and the different styles reflect the many regions of India, and indeed the tastes of the sub-continent.
The huge grocery stores like Apna Bazaar, Patel Brothers and Sabzi Mandi are brimming with ethnic foods and spices from not only India but also Pakistan, Bangladesh as well as the UK, US, Canada and Africa. Many of the lentils are from Nairobi, the curry sauces are from London and the desi snacks are manufactured in Toronto and New Jersey!
All these stores have a rich bounty of fresh produce spilling out on counters on the pavement, so it seems like one big bazaar with desis milling around, selecting papayas and guavas, and carting gallons of milk and ten pound basmati rice bags. The stores have a reputation for good prices, and many Latin Americans and South East Asians, who live in the area, also frequent the markets.
It’s a bustling street which sees action late into the night. Apna Bazaar, for instance, is open 24 hours a day and walk in at any time and you’ll still find crowds there, be they MDs returning from the night shift or taxi drivers taking a break. .
Patel Brothers is another major grocery chain with produce, spices, nuts of every kind, sauces and a huge array of frozen Indian delicacies, so essential for working immigrants. In the huge freezer section you will find samosas, dosas and a large variety of parathas and ready meals.
Wandering the streets you can pick up a paan or a kulfi and in good weather, even freshly squeezed sugar cane juice, a delight which many immigrants remember from their past lives in India. During mango season, sidewalk entrepreneurs set up stalls brimming with mangoes. These are from Mexico and Latin America, and more recently from India too and shoppers who need their mango fix crowd around buying carton loads.
A visit to Jackson Heights isn’t complete without visiting a mithai or sweet shop and it is amazing to see the large variety of multicolored, gemlike sweets available. During the festive months, thousands of pounds are sold to all three nationalities from the sub-continent.
Indian-style beauty parlors with threading services also thrive here, and it’s interesting to see the number of American women – and even some men – who have become customers!
Shoppers love to frequent the many boutiques. The largest is India Sari Palace, which has fabrics of every texture and hue, saris and kurtis that are quite a trend now with the mainstream.. Karishma Boutique, for instance, not only sells bridal wear and sherwanis for the men, it also has readymade saris, which don’t need to be draped.
If you’re looking for a set of tablas or Ayurvedic products, Butala Emporium is a treasure trove with everything from ethnic furniture to over 10,000 books and magazines. Whether you’re looking for a rakhi or Neem toothpaste or Herbal Henna Tulsi Shampoo – you’ll find it here.
For music lovers, there are several music stores that sell Bollywood, pop and devotional music as well as DVDs, and for Bollywood diehards, there is the small, old-style Eagle Theater, which transports fans to another world with Bollywood films.
Stand outside the cinema hall and you see how ‘phillum’ besotted everyone is: small children and grandparents, young couples, women in hijabs or in jeans and stilettos all stop to gaze at the posters of the latest from Bollywood. And just across the street is a huge larger-than-life hoarding for Tagheuer watches, with King Shah Rukh Khan gazing down on his devout constituency of Jaikishan Heights. More recently Abhishek Bachchan has settled in this bully pulpit!
A day in Jackson Heights wouldn’t be complete without a quick bite or a leisurely lunch at one of the many dhabas and restaurants like Jackson Diner and Delhi Durbar. You could also stop for some spicy fare at Kabab King, a popular joint that is open 24 hours a day, or pop into Rajbhog or Maharaja Sweets for some hot bhel or pungent mirch pakoras which will make you weep!
Yes, a trip to 74th Street in Jackson Heights is not unlike going to a Bollywood extravaganza. You cry, you smile, and you get color, spice, music, drama, and syrupy sweetness – all at one go! Paisa Vasool!
Text and photos © Lavina Melwani
Enjoy a photo gallery of Jackson Heights –
1 Comment
Definitely look forward to taking a trip to the Motherland, so close to home here in NY. Had only been there a few times in the 1980’s but I hear things have really improved.