PUDCHYA VARSHI LAUKAR YAA !

PUDCHYA VARSHI LAUKAR YAA !

Come early next year …
Ganapathy Bappa has not been generous this year.  Not atleast to us Bangaloreans.
What is supposed to be a thanksgiving celebration after a good monsoon, hardly feels so this year.

This year’s Ganapathy festival marks the beginning of a year long drought as the monsoon spell normally ends with the Ganapathy visarjan.  

This year, the newspapers were abuzz with pleas from corporators and the government requesting people to buy eco friendly Ganapathy and immerse them in artificial tanks and not pollute the water bodies.  

 

Here is the total count of Ganapathy idols at our apartment complex that were kept for visarjan.

Not bad - about 50% of people have heeded to the call and have chosen to buy an unpainted clay version of the elephant god rather than go with the painted version. 

In the south; ok atleast in my family we always got home a clay Ganapathy.  Those were the days when painted ganapathy idols were expensive.  Over the years as affluence increased and more importantly since neighbours got home more colourful versions home we started feeling left out. Call it peer pressure or keeping up with the Joneses . We joined the gang.

The social wisdom behind Ganapathy idol being made of clay was lost in the interim.

After many years, the unfashionable clay version is back in fashion again and we made the eco-friendly fashion statement by getting the Ganapathy made out of Clay .

 

There was not much by way of pandal hopping in the area that I live in.  I am not sure if this speaks of a lack of community feeling or just sheer urbanization with an influx of migrants who are yet to find their roots in the neighbourhood. BEML layout had a couple of sarvanajik Ganapathy pandals like last year. 

Our Apartment had one and this was the time for residents to contribute, come together and socialize. The response including mine, was luke warm to say the least.    

 

 

 

 

The Ganapthy at the entrance of Hypercity supermarket was the one that took the cake this year.

This GEMS Ganapathy was irrestitably sweet.   

Nevertheless … Miss you Mumbai

Ganapathy Bappa maurya !!

Pudchya varshi laukar yaa !

Come early next year …

At this rate we really need the rains early next year. Our borewells are drying up.

And the water Mafia is sucking us dry. Ganapathy Bappa - come back and save us.