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Festivities Then & Now

Festivals always bring with it immense nostalgia especially when one lives away from the motherland. For me, Ganesh Chaturti is one such day. When growing up, the festival was celebrated with great aplomb at home. Decorations, food, attire - every aspect was given a lot of importance. My memories of this celebration therefore are very vivid.


Preparation for this very important festival would begin weeks in advance. Laddoos, nevris, chaklis and shakkarparas would be made by the womenfolk. Us children were strictly asked to keep our hands off the goodies until Ganpati Bappa had had his fill. 


I remember accompanying my mother to the flower market in the heart of Mumbai to buy fresh flowers for the ‘mantap’. The many rows of colourful asters, roses and marigold; the fragrance of jasmine and ‘sugandhi’ is still alive in my memory. 


My grandmother would sincerely take stock of all the pooja items and ensure that all the silverware was sparkling in time for the pooja.





The attire and jewellery for the occasion would be carefully selected. I remember this being the most exciting part for me and my cousins. Matching bangles and bindis to accompany our finest outfits.


We would begin the celebrations with Gauri pooja, followed by Ganesha pooja. We had innumerable people over for lunch and the food just flowed, much like the love within our home. 


Fast forward to today, managing two small children amidst other personal challenges is far from easy. Add to this the self set expectations to celebrate the festival can get very overwhelming. So this year I have decided to recalibrate these expectations and celebrate the festival within the limitations of what my body is now capable of doing.


I may no longer have pictures to evidence an elaborate celebration to share on family WhatsApp groups neither will I receive a plethora of compliments as I am no longer in confluence with the norm. However I sincerely hope that my boys are able to create their own special memories of our own little celebration of this significant festival. That’s all that matters. 


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