MUMBAI: A Bal Ganesha astride a motorcycle at a workshop near Apna Bazar in Andheri. A towering 45ft-tall avatar resembling Lord Indra at Khetwadi 11th Lane in Girgaum. And approximately 2.1 lakh idols in between, each beautiful, each creative, spread across Mumbai.
Maharashtra’s biggest festival of Ganeshotsav will flag off to a colourful start with the ‘pran-pratishtha’ (installation) aarti Tuesday morning. Households and mandals alike have put their best foot forward to welcome their favourite god at his annual homecoming from September 19-28.
While mandals had already taken delivery of the idols from workshops, families, who install the deity for a day-and-a-half, came for pick up Monday. And many of them had to scurry for cover bearing their idols as the rain gods showered blessings upon hearing loud chants of ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya!’
The Lalbaug-Parel belt is the epicentre of festivity. The Lalbaugcha Raja Ganeshotsav in association with The Times of India is the biggest draw of the season. Now in its 90th year, the stately Raja lords over a historic setting designed to commemorate the 350th anniversary of Shivaji Maharaj’s coronation as Chhatrapati. “The occasion of his Rajyabhishek marked the establishment of Hindavi Swaraj, which inspires us Maharashtrians to this day,” said Balasaheb Kamble, president of Lalbaugcha Raja mandal.
This beauteous set turned out to be the final assignment that art director Nitin Desai accomplished for the Raja shortly before his death August 2. “It was Desai who carved the grand gate of Raigad fort at our pandal entrance. He executed replicas of the Shivkaal throne, nagarkhana and backdrop for our deity before he passed away,” said Kamble. Shivaji’s Rajmudra (official stamp) which seals the promise of “shining for the welfare of the people” is placed prominently beside the idol.
Echoing a similar theme, the Ganesh Gully mandal nearby has carved an elaborate model of Raigad Fort where Chhatrapati Shivaji was anointed king. Their 22ft-tall idol watches over two shrines, the nagarkhana, Shivaji’s samadhi as well as a retinue of elephants and horses.
Another big mandal in the Girangaon (erstwhile mill land) stretch, which earns a footfall of lakhs, is the Chinchpokli Cha Chintamani. Its arrival procession is the biggest in all of Maharashtra, with 1-1.5 lakh spectators flooding the streets. The mandal conducted a formal unveiling of its Shri Ram avatar idol flanked by Sita and Laxman Sunday.
It is Kalachowkie police station that has its hands full manning these three giants among five big mandals in Lalbaug. Senior inspector Pramod Bhowate said, “We appeal to people to safeguard their valuables during darshan. Around 5-6 lakh people arrive in Lalbaug for Ganeshotsav, especially on weekends…We have deployed policemen in plainclothes, SRP, RAF and installed 240 CCTVs.” A total of 15 DCPs, 2,024 officers from ACP to PSI rank and 11,726 staff have been put on Ganeshotsav bandobast duty across the city.
Maharashtra’s biggest festival of Ganeshotsav will flag off to a colourful start with the ‘pran-pratishtha’ (installation) aarti Tuesday morning. Households and mandals alike have put their best foot forward to welcome their favourite god at his annual homecoming from September 19-28.
While mandals had already taken delivery of the idols from workshops, families, who install the deity for a day-and-a-half, came for pick up Monday. And many of them had to scurry for cover bearing their idols as the rain gods showered blessings upon hearing loud chants of ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya!’
The Lalbaug-Parel belt is the epicentre of festivity. The Lalbaugcha Raja Ganeshotsav in association with The Times of India is the biggest draw of the season. Now in its 90th year, the stately Raja lords over a historic setting designed to commemorate the 350th anniversary of Shivaji Maharaj’s coronation as Chhatrapati. “The occasion of his Rajyabhishek marked the establishment of Hindavi Swaraj, which inspires us Maharashtrians to this day,” said Balasaheb Kamble, president of Lalbaugcha Raja mandal.
This beauteous set turned out to be the final assignment that art director Nitin Desai accomplished for the Raja shortly before his death August 2. “It was Desai who carved the grand gate of Raigad fort at our pandal entrance. He executed replicas of the Shivkaal throne, nagarkhana and backdrop for our deity before he passed away,” said Kamble. Shivaji’s Rajmudra (official stamp) which seals the promise of “shining for the welfare of the people” is placed prominently beside the idol.
Echoing a similar theme, the Ganesh Gully mandal nearby has carved an elaborate model of Raigad Fort where Chhatrapati Shivaji was anointed king. Their 22ft-tall idol watches over two shrines, the nagarkhana, Shivaji’s samadhi as well as a retinue of elephants and horses.
Another big mandal in the Girangaon (erstwhile mill land) stretch, which earns a footfall of lakhs, is the Chinchpokli Cha Chintamani. Its arrival procession is the biggest in all of Maharashtra, with 1-1.5 lakh spectators flooding the streets. The mandal conducted a formal unveiling of its Shri Ram avatar idol flanked by Sita and Laxman Sunday.
It is Kalachowkie police station that has its hands full manning these three giants among five big mandals in Lalbaug. Senior inspector Pramod Bhowate said, “We appeal to people to safeguard their valuables during darshan. Around 5-6 lakh people arrive in Lalbaug for Ganeshotsav, especially on weekends…We have deployed policemen in plainclothes, SRP, RAF and installed 240 CCTVs.” A total of 15 DCPs, 2,024 officers from ACP to PSI rank and 11,726 staff have been put on Ganeshotsav bandobast duty across the city.
