BENGALURU: If all was well with the world around us, Jonathan Zadka, the newly-appointed Consul General of Israel to South India, would have celebrated the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, over the weekend with family and friends.
But being in quarantine after landing in Bengaluru from his last posting in China, the celebration of dipping apples into honey and eating pomegranate seeds, was a secluded one with his wife, Hila, and two children, Daniel and Keren.
“We dip apples into honey which represents our wish for a sweet new year. Pomegranate is a highly recognisable object in Jewish tradition. The fruit supposedly consists of 613 seeds, the same as the number of commandment in the Torah – both represent the traditions symbolic of the Jewish New Year,” he says, adding that it is a quiet celebration in Israel too, where they are entering a lockdown.
Zadka’s only impressions
of Bengaluru as yet are the glimpses he caught on his ride from the airport, and the “peaceful” surroundings he senses through the window of his home in Dollars Colony. Having been to Delhi and Mumbai for brief stints in 2016, he is open to all that he can experience during his term here. “As a diplomat, it’s about sharing and engaging in the culture, heritage and history of the country we are in. The visits to India were brief, but I did enjoy the local attractions of some temples, and the cuisine,” says Zadka who has served in Japan, Australia and China.
His career as a diplomat started in 2002, before which he was working as an analyst for the Israeli PM office and held a private sector consulting position. Having arrived in India from Beijing where he acted as Minister, Deputy Chief of Mission since 2017, Zadka regrets the tension between India and China and hopes that issues are resolved in a peaceful manner with no need for further hostilities. “Israel shares an open and friendly relation with India as well as good and friendly relations with China.
This is a good opportunity to wish for peace and friendship as we celebrate our New Year,” says the qualified strategic/ organisational consultant. He received his MBA from Israel’s Institute of Technology (Technion) and his B.A in international relations and political science from Hebrew University. Zadka, who is in his 40s, takes over at a challenging time, having met his team only through video conferencing. Adjusting to the new normal of doing business with lack of face-to-face engagement, he tells us on a Zoom interaction that he is looking at the online route as an advantage.
“I recently participated in a summit by CII where there were relevant speakers from across the world. In a way, the digital world is breaking barriers,” he says, adding that they are now brainstorming innovative ways for the Bengaluru Tech Summit in November. “The idea of a consulate general in Bangalore is to promote academic relations, create a business platform, emphasise digital health, look into water management and automotives. Our embassy in Delhi is working on a collaborative project with India to ease out the coronavirus testing process,” he adds.
On a daily basis, Zadka has been receiving queries about when re-entry of flights to India will be permitted. Over the last few years, there’s been much emphasis on tourism, which Zadka is confident will bounce back once the pandemic crisis is resolved. “With Israeli flights now being allowed to fly over Middle-Eastern countries, the trip duration will be shorter and smoother,” he says.