The Hindu Temple and Cultural Centre in Florey hosted its annual cultural showcase last weekend, featuring songs, music, dance, folk traditions and performing arts from across India.
Dr Andrew Leigh, Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury, attended and joined community members in celebrating the event.
Performances reflected India’s cultural variety, spanning regions, language groups and traditional attire. Families and community members filled the venue to support the artists.
The Hindu Temple and Cultural Centre was formed in 1987 and formally incorporated in April 1988. Its initial goal was to construct a temple, a library and a cultural centre; the first phase, the temple building, was completed to serve the religious and cultural needs of the Hindu community in Canberra. Located at 81 Ratcliffe Crescent, Florey, it is regarded as one of Canberra’s earliest Hindu temples. The centre hosts devotional, educational, cultural and social activities, including classes in Indian languages, meditation sessions and cultural programming.
In recent times, the temple has been subject to serious crime. In October 2024, police said vandals broke into both the Florey and Mawson temples, stealing donation boxes and a safe, and damaging sacred idols. CCTV footage showed masked individuals smashing glass doors and using a wheelbarrow to move a heavy safe. Temple leaders said this was the sixth time in two years the Florey temple had been targeted. The attacks prompted condemnation from community bodies, which called them “hate-filled desecration” and urged swift investigation.
The cultural showcase at the centre reinforces not only its religious purpose but its role as a space for cultural connection. The weekend’s performances built on that, offering the community a chance to celebrate heritage, share identity and bring Indian arts into Canberra life.
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