Immersion Sidelights

The serpentine queue formed in front of a small stall at Girgaum Chowpatty on Sunday was not for immersing the elephant-headed god but comprised devotees and visitors waiting to quench hunger pangs.

Hungry Kya?
The serpentine queue formed in front of a small stall at Girgaum Chowpatty on Sunday was not for immersing the elephant-headed god but comprised devotees and visitors waiting to quench hunger pangs. Ramesh A Manipuri8217;s stall has been distributing free vada pavs to the milling crowds that visit the beach on Anant Chaturdashi for the past eight years. This year, there was an addition-packets of farsan and biscuits.

8220;We earn and make money the entire year, so why not spend one day just giving back?8221; asks Ramesh, who distributed 2,500 vada pavs last year. Ramesh says his friends celebrate the Ganesh festival with great fervour and then contribute towards his initiative.

While his stall is located a few metres away, it remains closed on immersion day. This year, Manipuri had 6,000 vada pavs to give away, 40 kg of farsan, and 200 kg of biscuits.

An interesting footnote: Manipuri is a native of Haryana.

The Loudest Sena
The hub of the visarjan celebrations, Lalbaug, played host to a political battle with a difference. The Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena may not see eye to eye on a regular basis, but at the Lalbaug junction, the two political parties had set up stages on opposite sides of the road, complete with DJs and huge loudspeakers. One MNS activist, tongue-in-cheek, warned the rival Sena to turn down the volume. 8220;It is adding to noise pollution. Sena leaders are requested to keep the noise under control,8221; he said, even as his own camp8217;s DJ blasted remixed bhajans at full decibel.

No Entry
The media, especially television channels who had geared up for the grand finale at Girgaum Chowpatty and had been promised a vantage point at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation8217;s dais, were turned away at the last minute. The pandal, usually shared by dignitaries and mediapersons, was out of bounds for press owing to security concerns. Electronic media houses8217; OB vans were also removed from the beachfront late Saturday night and had to later scrounge for space on the congested main road and.

Marathi manoos
Municipal Commissioner Jairaj Phatak arrived dressed in traditional Mahrashtrian attire to bid adeiu to the elephant-headed god. With a colourful red peshwa pagdi and white bandhgala, the IAS officer looked every bit the Marathi manoos at the VIP pandal. 8220;For the last 116 years, Mumbai has been celebrating the Ganesh festival. This year too we are celebrating the festival with equal enthusiasm,8221; he said. 8220;Ganpati is a reigning god for Hindus, but for the Marathi manoos he is the main deity and we seek his blessings and strength,8221; he said.

Green volunteers
While garbage may hold no value for many, it earns 58 year-old Vijaya Rajan Shetty her daily bread. And during Ganpati visarjan it earns her Rs 80. Shetty, a Karnataka native but a Mumbaiite by birth, has been coming to the Girgaum Chowpati for the past seven years with 10-15 other women. 8220;We are all from Goregaon8217;s Santosh Nagar and have been a part of the Forum of Recyclers Community and Environment FORCE for the past seven years. While on other days we collect garbage from buildings on Napean Sea Road, we come here every visarjan,8221; said Shetty. On other dyas, they sell scrap that they sort to earn their living, but immersion day brings some ready cash too. Asked whether they have tried any other job Shetty8217;s friend Sulochana Perimal Gounder quipped, 8220;For 20 years we have done only this and for 20 more years to come, this is our fate. We don8217;t know any other skill except for sorting and collecting garbage.8221;

contributed by Swatee Kher, Shweta Desai and Riya Kartha