00:00Joining me now is Priya Samant.
00:02She's the spokesperson of the Universal Oneness event in New York,
00:06where RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat is set to come and address.
00:10Priya, thank you for joining us.
00:12Now, my first question is that RSS is believed to be a Hindu organization
00:16or organization for Hindu nationalists.
00:19So is this event for Hindu Americans only?
00:24What does this Universal Oneness event mean?
00:27What is going to happen at this event?
00:28You know, when Diaspora is organizing a Universal Oneness event,
00:33which comprises of, you know, it's an interfaith event.
00:37It's a cultural and a community event.
00:40So an organization that is 100 years old,
00:43we have to learn how many generations that organization has gone through
00:50and what it has done.
00:52And we want to hear.
00:53We are very eager to hear what is it about.
00:55And it is an interfaith event.
00:57So we will have interfaith leaders participating and representing different trade traditions.
01:03By the way, I don't want to give away the surprise before the full program is announced.
01:08But I can say that diversity of voices will reflect exactly what the Universal Oneness stands for,
01:16which means, which means, which is rooted in the Indian philosophy,
01:19Vasudeva Gautambakam.
01:20That means the whole authentic family.
01:23We might have our differences.
01:25But we can still come together.
01:28We can still come together.
01:30And we can still find a common ground
01:32where we can share the, you know, the beliefs of...
01:37But you believe in getting difference of opinions together.
01:40But it's the mayor of New York where this event is being organized.
01:44Zoran Mamdani says that, well, I cannot stop this event.
01:49The city doesn't have the power.
01:50But I oppose the event.
01:52That's the mayor of the New York saying that.
01:55What do you make of that?
01:56Because you are saying interfaith leaders are coming,
01:59even with difference of opinions.
02:01But the mayor has a certain view.
02:02Do you think he should have been more welcoming?
02:04He should have come at the event if needed?
02:06How did you look at those views?
02:10See, this is...
02:12There will be a leader...
02:14I mean, there will be total guests
02:16from various different religions and communities.
02:19And they all are going to be there.
02:21And see, I respect mayor's views also.
02:24Because we live in a free world.
02:26We live in a democracy, okay?
02:28Everybody has a right to express their views.
02:31But there are a handful of people
02:35who have difference of opinions
02:37and their views are different.
02:38But there are 5,000 people from 39 cities,
02:43from 39 states, 850 cities
02:46that are going to be coming there.
02:48There are 200 partner organizations
02:50that are, you know, have partnered with Ahead
02:54to host this event.
02:57And majority of those organizations
02:58are from New York and the tri-state area.
03:01So that speaks a lot about the event
03:04and what it is trying to bring forward.
03:07See, as I said, right,
03:09I always say this,
03:11that dialogue does not mean endorsement.
03:16Listening does not mean agreement.
03:19Understanding does not mean
03:20abandoning your differences.
03:22It is universal.
03:24Oneness does not mean sameness.
03:27But you, we can still come together
03:29because we live in such a divided world right now.
03:33It is the need of time,
03:34the need of hours
03:35to bring everybody together,
03:38you know, learn from each other.
