SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Celebrations in southern India over a political development on the other side of the planet. Omkar Khandekar went to the village that some of Kamala Harris' ancestors call home.
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OMKAR KHANDEKAR, BYLINE: At a small temple in southern India, about 1,600 miles from the capital, Delhi, a priest is praying for the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
NATARAJAN: Kamala Harris (non-English language spoken).
KHANDEKAR: Priest Natarajan says, "May Kamala Harris win this election. May she visit this temple and do good for our village." We are in Thulasendrapuram, a tiny village of 2,000 people surrounded by rice fields. This is the ancestral village of Kamala Harris, where her grandfather was born decades ago. Harris has never been here. She hasn't even mentioned it in her book or any public appearances. But when Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race earlier this week, local politician Arulmozhi Sudhakar started praying for her with milk and coconuts.
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KHANDEKAR: Wearing a silk saree and sandalwood perfume, Arulmozhi tells NPR when she heard the news, she was as happy as when she had her first child. She calls Harris the daughter of the land.
ARULMOZHI SUDHAKAR: (Non-English language spoken).
KHANDEKAR: She says, "I can relate to Harris' struggle as a woman politician and, most of all, for facing the challenges with a big smile." But not everyone shares the same excitement as Arulmozhi. Political scientist Ashutosh Varshney says one shouldn't read too much into Harris' Indian roots.
ASHUTOSH VARSHNEY: Her Black identity is bigger than her Indian identity. And that's only natural given where she grew up and what role electoral demography plays in democratic elections.
KHANDEKAR: Varshney says there's also little evidence that, if elected the president, Harris will change Washington's policy towards India.
VARSHNEY: The sweet spot India occupies is that so long as America and China are the primary adversaries, India will be seen by United States and the West as a very important ally.
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KHANDEKAR: Back in her ancestral village, media attention has had unexpected benefits. Residents say after their village began appearing on TV, a local bank offered to invest in its infrastructure. And that's why local librarian R Usha wants Harris to win and hopes she will visit the village one day.
R USHA: (Non-English language spoken).
KHANDEKAR: She says the roads near her neighborhood are in bad shape. If Harris comes, authorities would no doubt roll out the red carpet, and that would also cover the potholes. For NPR News, I'm Omkar Khandekar in Thulasendrapuram, southern India. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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