Honoring the Life of Our Dearest Member
On behalf of the Hyderabad Archdiocesan Choir, with heavy hearts yet deep gratitude, we stand together as the Hyderabad Archdiocesan Choir to honour and celebrate the life of our beloved Seema Aunty.
For HAC, she was not just a choir member. She was strength. She was strategy. She was spirit. Since 2015, Seema Aunty faithfully gave her time and talent to God through the Hyderabad Archdiocesan Choir. As a core group member, she stood at the forefront of key decisions, guiding strategy, offering clarity in moments of confusion, and helping shape the direction of HAC with wisdom and conviction. Many of the paths we walk today were strengthened by her discernment and courage.
She was also a powerful soprano — her voice soaring with conviction, praise, and surrender. When she sang, she did not merely perform; she prayed. Her voice carried faith. It lifted our liturgies. It strengthened our worship.
Seema Aunty brought with her a remarkable command over language. She believed that when we sing for God, every word matters. She ensured our pronunciation was precise, our diction clear, and our delivery meaningful. She would gently correct us, refine us, and remind us that excellence in worship honours the One we sing for. Because of her, we didn’t just sing hymns — we proclaimed them.​
What made Seema Aunty extraordinary was not only her leadership or her musical gift — it was her heart. She prayed for each one of us. She celebrated our joys. She stood with us in our struggles. If something happened on the group, she was present. If someone needed encouragement, she was there. She believed in unity, in standing together, in consolidating thoughts before acting. She carried HAC in her heart.
Even when cancer began its long and painful battle, it did not take away her spirit. It did not silence her encouragement. It did not diminish her love. Through pain and uncertainty, she stayed connected, active, and thoughtful — wishing members on birthdays, praying for intentions, and cheering the choir on. That was her strength. That was her faith.
For nearly a decade, through every training and Mass from 2015 to 2020, she showed up. Faithfully. Generously. Completely. She gave her best to God, and to us. Today, we feel the emptiness her absence leaves. The soprano section will miss her voice. The core team will miss her insight. The choir will miss her corrections, her prayers, her unwavering solidarity.
But heaven has gained a soprano. We believe she now sings in a choir far more glorious than ours. And until the day we meet again, we will carry her legacy forward — by standing united, by striving for excellence, by honouring every word we sing, and by giving our time and talent to God just as she did.
Seema Aunty, thank you for your love, your leadership, your faith, and your song.
We will miss you dearly — until we meet again.
May your soul rest in eternal peace.
~ Divya Prathima
Singing Pilgrimage featured in Shepherd's Call - February 2026
Shepherd's Call - October 2025
Contribution to the Universal Church by our (HAC) Director, Michael Peria
Responsorial Psalms Book Release
Director Michael Peria Lighting the Lamp for the Liturgical Workshop
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THE ARCHDIOCESE OF HYDERABAD CHOIR CONDUCTED A ONE-DAY SEMINAR AT THE PASTORAL CENTRE ON MARCH 22ND FROM
10.00 A.M. TO 3.30 P.M.
Our Cardinal Pool Anthony, the Archbishop of Hyderabad, has instructed all the clergy to take a serious note on the liturgical singing during the liturgical and paraliturgical services during the recollection announcements. Msgr. Fr. Bala Showry has come to pray and give the inaugural talk. In his talk, he insisted that every member should sing as if he is praying to God, citing the great prayerful statement that singing is twice praying. He also appreciated Mr. Peria's initiative and the services he is rendering to the Archdiocese in this regard. He thanked Mr.Michael Peria, the chief instructor of the Archdiocese choir for having consented to conduct the seminar for the leaders of choirs in the parishes.Mr.Peria later took the first session, in which he said that every choir member particularly, the choir leader should follow the rules and norms of the Roman Missal and should consult the local parish priest with regard to any changes and select the hymns according to the liturgical readings of the day, not vice versa.Mrs. Divya took the second session, making the audience more active and participative. Mr.Anthony took the third session in which he insisted that every choir should follow the documents related to sacred liturgy and music in connection with singing for the holy mass. and also there were a few questions from the audience that could not be answered within the given time. So, Ms.Anna,made a WhatsApp group of all the members so that every question may be answered as time permits through the media. Finally, I thank God for making this seminar possible under the guidance of our Cardinal along with guidance of Fr. Victor's and Msgr. Fr. Bala showry's. I thank all the parish priests who have taken special interest in sending the members to the seminar. The representatives of the parishes were more than 111 members, It was indeed great to have the first seminar of its kind.
- Fr. Dion Issac, Pastoral Centre Director
SHEPHERD'S CALL, APRILL 2023
