Marbat festival: Nagpur’s tryst with a century-old tradition of banishing ‘evil’

Here, the Kali (black) Marbat stands in wait even as hundreds of revellers throng the area, shouting, “Ida pida gheun jaa ge Marbat (Take away all evil and go, Marbat)…Rog rai gheun jaa ge Marbat (Take away all diseases and go, Marbat)”.

The burning of the effigies, the residents of Nagpur believe, wards off negativity and removes misfortune from their lives. Vivek Bawankar, a government employee, is one such believer. “The tradition has been in place before India got independence. My grandfather actively participated in creating the Pili (yellow) Marbat,” says Bawankar, whose grandfather was on the organising committee of the festival.

A Marbat is a large, colourful effigy that is traditionally crafted for this unique festival.

The origin of the Marbat festival

Rahul Jambhulkar, a research scholar from IIT Bombay, explains the three main narratives that drive the origin of the Marbat festival. “One suggests that the festival dates back to the peasantry in the region. A lot of clay dolls are placed in the households on the day of Pola, and on Tanha Pola, these idols along with Palash branches are burned at city crossroads or outside the house. It was especially the farmer community that followed this ritual to deal with insects and unwanted evil,” he says.

“Another narrative involves the Kali Marbat representing Nagpur Queen Baka Bai of the royal Bhonsles, symbolising the anger of the people at her surrender to the British. The Kali Marbat is also believed to symbolise Putana,” he adds, referring to the demoness who tried to kill Lord Krishna with poisoned milk.

“The third narrative links the Pili Marbat to British rule,” Jambhulkar says, adding that all these narratives run parallel in folklore.

Shubham Gabhane of the Tarhane Teli Samaj, the makers of the Pili Marbat, agrees with Jambhulkar. “The youth were fed up with the tyranny of British rule. They constantly thought about how to expel the British from the country but the British imposed legal restrictions on public gatherings. However, the residents of the Tarhane Teli community saw an opportunity to unite people through religious activities, which had some leeway under British rule. The society came together to combat British oppression by initiating the Marbat festival, using it as a means to organise and build solidarity among the people,” Gabhane said.

Black, yellow and red: The effigies

A Marbat is a large, colourful female effigy that is traditionally crafted for this unique festival. Often made of bamboo, clay, and paper, the effigies are designed to represent different forms of evil, like disease, oppression, crimes, harmful influences etc.

In the past, there were just two effigies, the Kali Marbat and the Pili (yellow) Marbat. But with time, the number of effigies has increased.

In the past, there were just two effigies, the Kali Marbat and the Pili Marbat. But with time, the number of effigies has increased.

The Kali Marbat symbolises general misfortune, the historical figure of Queen Baka Bai or the demoness Putana from Hindu mythology, and the Pili Marbat represents British colonial rule. Both these effigies are made at two different locations in Nagpur by different communities.

The Pili Marbat, which stands tall at 18-20 feet, is made by the Tarhane Teli community in Nagpur’s Jagnath Budhwari area, and the around-14-feet-tall Kali Marbat is made by the Kali Marbat Utsav Committee comprising shopkeepers near Nehru Putla Square.

While the Kali Marbat was reportedly first made in 1881, the Pili Marbat followed in 1885. Recently, two additional effigies, the Laal (red) Marbat and Bhuri (brown) Marbat have been introduced, the different colours serving as identifiers.

“The effigy’s design remains consistent each year,” says Nikhil Harde from the Kali Marbat Utsav Committee.

Giving company to the Marbats are smaller male effigies known as Badgyas made by various communities across the city. These small effigies also represent evils in society and carry placards of social issues.

Long walk through the old city

On the day of the Marbat festival, the effigies are carried from their creation sites to the Nehru Putla Square where the Kali Marbat waits for them as the host (since she is made at the same spot). First, the Badgyas arrive and greet her. Once the Pili Marbat arrives, the effigies are paraded for approximately 6.5 km through the lanes of the old city before being burned. The Kali Marbat is incinerated at Harihar Mandir while the Pili Marbat is burned at Naik Talao. Other Marbats and Badgyas are burned in the areas where they were originally made.

“Both the Pili Marbat and Kali Marbat hold deep cultural significance, with local offerings and worship beginning from the day they are installed,” says Mandira Neware, who has been conducting Marbat Heritage Walks for the past four years to showcase the festival’s grandeur.

A small fair comes up around the Pili Marbat in the narrow lanes of the city, she says, where women make offerings to the Marbat, believing it to be auspicious and capable of granting wishes. “The day when both Marbats converge or meet at the Nehru Putla Square is particularly memorable,” she adds.

Neware also highlighted an interesting aspect of the Kali Marbat, associated with the story of Putana, saying many people bring their children to the Kali Marbat for symbolic breastfeeding.

Jambhulkar says the central theme of the Marbat festival has consistently been the eradication of evil, though specific issues are addressed each year. The Marbat is traditionally burned to symbolise the removal of evil from society. “Before 1991, the festival was marked by chaotic practices, with people often abusing or striking the effigy with wooden sticks, believing it to represent evil. Today, however, the grand procession has evolved into a well-celebrated festival,” he adds.

Bawankar, who has been witnessing the festival since childhood as he stays close to where the Pili Marbat is crafted every year, agrees. “I strongly believe that Marbat takes away all the evil and social problems along with it. It is with this belief that people from nearby villages visit the city during the Marbat festival,” he says.