Freddie Mercury honoured in unveiling of Tividale statue
He is one of the most famous rock stars that ever lived, but it was Freddie Mercury's religion rather than his music that was being celebrated in a special ceremony at a temple in the Black Country.
The Queen frontman was a devout member of the Zoroastrian faith, thought to be possibly to oldest organised religion in the world.
And his sister Kashmira Cooke and her family visited the Shri Venkateswara Balaji Temple in Tividale to help reveal a Farohar statue – a symbol of the religion.
The statue, partly dedicated to Mercury, was also unveiled by Lord Karan Bilimoria, founder of Cobra beer, who too is a believer.
Raaj Shamji, who organised the event, said: "The statue was unveiled by the two people of the Zoroastrian faith who have had the biggest impact in this country – Lord Bilimoria and Kashmira Cooke, representing Freddie Mercury."
More than 400 members of the faith from across the country visited the temple for the ceremony on Saturday, which included a talk by Mrs Cooke's son, Mercury's 25-year-old nephew Samuel.
Speaking at the event, Mrs Cooke said: "I'm very proud to be here, it's a great honour. I think secretly my brother would have been honoured. Unfortunately the faith is getting smaller because of intermarrying, which is a shame, so anything like this to promote the faith is a good thing.
"Both our parents were active members of the faith. My dad would do prayers and things at family gatherings, and my mum still practises – we grew up with it.
"We believe once you live on Earth, there is life after death, once you have been a human being you always come back better, in a better life. Freddie would have loved to have taken some of his precious things with him, he would have liked to have done the same as the Egyptian Pharaohs and taken his things, such as his Japanese art."
The Farohar, a winged symbol with a man in the centre, will now sit on top of the Zoroastrian Parsi Faith Hill, one of seven at the temple representing the seven faiths of India, such as Islam, Sikhism and Christianity. The concept is the brainchild of Dr Narayan Rao, chairman of the temple.
Made by local artist Luke Perry, whose family run the Solid Swivel company in Cradley Heath, the statue has been created out of Tata steel.
Mr Shamji added: "I wanted to make sure everything we did was Black Country-based, it was very important we used a local artist, that it was made locally, and we used heavy metal. The whole concept is to ensure that our visitors to the temple realise that Hinduism co-exists with other faiths – we have to learn from them."
