Journalism of Courage
Five must-visit Ganesh mandals
Innovative displays and thoughtful themes help lure pandal hoppers
The Hind Tarun Mandal is staging a play titled Ab tumhare Hawale Watan Sathiyo based on Kargil War. Our play reflects the bravery of the jawans who fought the Kargil War, said mandal president Dilip Madhukar Giramkar.
Over 22 artistes are involved in the play that showcases a MIG aircraft with combat demonstrations,firing shots and special effects of lighting and fireworks. An exhibition of over 300 Kargil War photos are also displayed at the mandal.
From the war-torn zone of Kargil,one is transported to the dreamy world of Ajintha,a film by Nitin Chandrakanth Desai based on the famous Ajanta caves in Aurangabad,at The Babu Ghenu Mitra Mandal near Mandai. It is a replica of the Ajanta caves.
The pillars and eroded walls of the cave are decorated with old paintings. This Ganesh mandal expects more than 15 lakh visitors during the 10-day festival.
The Tulsibaugh Sarvajanik Ganesh Utsav Mandal does not lag behind when it comes to artwork. In the Mayur Mahal replica,the pandal has beautiful sculptures of peacocks done by artist Vivek Katokar.
The young members of the Seva Mitra Mandal are playing a documentary on wastage of food from 7 pm to midnight.
The 10-minute film is being shown through a projector free of cost. We have had a full house with over 100 people for every show, said Chetan Pawar,president.
It is a basic thing that we are all taught,but still we end up wasting food. There are many people who cannot afford even one meal a day.
We want to spread this awareness, he added.
From a kilometre away,one can spot the bright pandal set up by Chimnaya Ganpati Mandal at Sadashiv Peth.
The pandal is decorated using 35,000 LED lights of 4mm and 5mm circuited into a microprocessor that disconnects the noise from the lights.
We have decorated a 35-foot-high representation of Ganpati and his Mooshak (mouse) dancing in celebration with LED lights. It is a beautiful sight, said Sunil Rasal,president.
Marathi music edges out Bollywood from soundboxes
Marathi lavanis to upbeat remixes,devotional songs to narrative stories,Ganesh mandals have it all on their playlists. However,in a pointed departure from the norm,there are some who have managed to steer their audio sounds away from Bollywood songs like I or Halkat Jawaani,and take on a different beat.
The Shree Shivaji Mandal,celebrating its 199th anniversary this year,prefers to play some traditional Marathi tunes and remixes of old Marathi hits.
We have prohibited our volunteers from playing vulgar tracks and have asked them not to play songs with offensive or provocative lyrics. Since its a festival,it must be celebrated in a proper way. We encourage music and upbeat tracks but not provocative lyrics, said president of the mandal Praveen Tarawade. The mandal also plays Konkani all-time-favourite tracks in the evenings.
There are many mandals like Suryodyan Mitra Mandal which do not play music at all.
Since the theme of our pandal is to narrate the story of bhakt Kanaka Das from Uduppi,we play a recording of the story from 6 pm to midnight, said president of the mandal Jaydeep Kuttiyan. Every evening,children and senior citizens alike gather at the pandal in Somwar Peth to listen to some delightful storytelling.The sound system that we are using is 10 years old. We dont even remember the brand of speakers but as long as they work well our purpose is solved, he added.
Tarun Vikas Mandal on Dhole Patil Road also refrains from playing Bollywood songs. The organisers here play only bhajans and devotional songs from 6 am to midnight,at low volume. The devotional songs played at the mandal instill the true essence of the festival. People tend to forget the significance and the devotional aspect of the festival with all the happening tracks being played in full volume at most pandals, said Krishna Yalana,resident of Dhole Patil Road.
