Leona M. Anderson was trained at McMaster University, Canada and currently teaches Hinduism at the University of Regina, Canada. She has resided in both Pune and Delhi and has on several occasions been affiliated with the Deccan College, Pune. She has received grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Her articles have appeared in many journals and she has participated at symposia worldwide. Dr. Anderson is presently the Resident Director of the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute in Delhi. Her current research centres on a study of the Festival of Lord Ganapati.