Pudchya Varshi Laukar Ya ( 2013)

Grey, overcast and cloudy skies, a perpetual drizzle and fresh sprouts of greenery all over.

 Before you realize it, the ganapati and gouri idols covered in transparent plastic raincoats,  displayed on pedestrian platforms all over the city remind you that this year’s monsoon would soon come to an end.       

 

To make a difference ( TMAD) and NGO working on social issues, set up a stall selling Eco-friendly ganapati idols made entirely of clay. No paints, sprays and chemicals on the idol.

The trend is catching on . There were so many families who chose to buy their Ganesha idol from the eco friendly, not so glamorous TMAD stall instead of the colourful ones. 

 

That is a strong commitment to save the water bodies from getting contaminated in the days to come.  It is a small change but a significant change in the mindset of people. 

 

The big pandals are still all about grand, ostentatious, colourful and huge Ganesha idols.   

It is only a matter of time and hopefully they too will yield to the call of eco friendliness and clay ganapati idols in the years to come.

Being eco-friendly will soon become the style statement.

 

We bought home our Ganapati Bappa, made entirely of fresh, wet clay. Our normal vegetable vendor at the street corner has put up a stall selling ganpati idols, Pooja items, flowers and garlands for the festival ahead.  She is raking in a bounty today. Flowers and garlands are selling  10 times the cost that they were selling yesterday. This is Capitalism at its best.      

 

And why not ? Her customers are paying ( albeit grudgingly) and she is only a supplier at the end of a large supply chain.     

 

Her customers seem to be oblivious to all that doom and gloom about the economy predicted in the months to come. As of today it is all nice and bright.

Moreover it is celebration time.

Ganpati Bappa  deserves a royal sendoff.

 

 

 
It is that time of the year, to say thanks to Ganpati bappa for the bountiful monsoon this year.   Unlike last year, Ganpati bappa or rather the  monsoons have been more than generous this year.

 

Rains and floods made newspaper headlines throughout India.  The now routine bickering for Cauvery water between Tamil-Nadu and Karnataka had to come to a hard stop for a while now because the Cauvery was almost overflowing a couple of weeks ago.

It is time to celebrate the end of the monsoon season and look forward to a bountiful harvest and the onset of winter and then the spring before the scorching summer.

 Doom and gloom in the economy, the weakening of the rupee, erratic exchange rates, even more erratic gold and onion prices,  unemployment, impending layoffs, corruptions, scandals, elections, gossips, the latest releases from Apple,  Abhishek Bachans’, microsoft , google, shan rukh khan and  Samsung … we will brave all this in the year ahead until Ganpati bappa reigns once again..

 

Ganpati Bappa Maurya

Pudchya Varshi Laukar yaa !!!

 

 

Dancing in the streets to the drum beats amidst that heavy downpour with complete strangers, like there is no tomorrow…

Immersing your Ganpati idol at the local water body along with the others big and small…

Bringing a handful of wet clay that was part of your idol back home for keeps until the next year …

 

 

 

Ah... how I  Miss you Mumbai...