Welcome the harbinger of hope

The vibrant and colourful idols bedecking the stores and street sides mark the arrival of Lord Ganesha. With a sense of revelry in the air, the Capital is all set to welcome Lord Ganesha on 9 September. As you step inside one of Delhi’s biggest Ganesha temples, Sri Vinayak Mandir in Sarojini Nagar, the celebratory mood sets in. 

The sound of hymns in the open verandah takes you in its direction. The head priest of the temple, TRS Murthy tells Metrolife, “We celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi during the Garbhotsva phase. We have been conducting havans from 30 August onwards wherein everybody from the community is welcome to take part. I anticipate a footfall of 5000 people over the weekend.” Garbhotsva phase refers to the period prior to the birth of Lord Ganesha, while Janmotsva implies the time-period post Ganesh Chaturthi.

The Maharashtrian Mandals in the city- of which Laxmi Nagar and Uttam Nagar are reckoned to be the best at organising this festival - are preparing to unfold a series of programmes post Ganesh Chaturthi. The founder president of Laxmi nagar Samiti throws light on their preparations, “We have been celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi since the last 12 years. We organise patriotic shows and engage people from every state of India in our festivities.”

Going by the scaffoldings and banners at Dilli Haat, in Pitampura and INA market, one knows that the excitement is touching its zenith here. The organising committtee’s head, R.M Hejib gives a lowdown on the 10-day fiesta saying, “A 6-feet-long Ganesha idol made of fibre glass will be reinstalled in both the haats. Apart from it, we have planned a lot of musical and theatrical shows in these two haats and Siri Fort auditorium.” 

The potter market around Sarojini Nagar, Mayur Vihar and Jhandewalan are all abuzz. The price ranges from small clay idols marked at Rs 150 to beautifully adorned three-feet-tall idols for Rs 8000. Ask Ram Lal, a middle-aged-potter ardently spraying an idol about his sales, and he says, “Everybody keeps on asking for huge discounts but owing to inflation, we cannot provide any. This hasn’t affected the sales as it is festival season and they end up buying these idols, anyway.”

Get ready Delhiites, this Ganesh Chaturthi bring the Lord of good-luck and happiness to your households and get the best out of the celebratory mood in the city.