The frenzy called Ganpati Visarjan Procession. In Bombay.

Crowd of devotees dancing

Dancing ahead of the procession of thier Ganpati

A ganpati idol being prepared for the visarjan earlier in the day

A saint waits on the wayside as the Ganpati idol is prepared for the immersion

A policemen regulates passing crowd of Devotees

Ganpati procession

Saints and devotees walking ahead of the procession

A ganpati being carried on top of a decoratedtruck

A glimpse of the lord

Today was the final day of the Immersion of the Ganpati which arrived in the neighborhood ten days back. While I probably didn’t document the entire mandal, today was hard to miss. The music for one. It almost resembled a punjabi wedding, which I’m more familiar with. So this is how it happens. All the Ganpatis of the various mandals are today lifted and with a lot of fan fare, music ( to the taste of thier devotees) and lights and are carried along thier specific routes for immersion into the sea. In Mumbai, the Girgaon chow-patty and Juhu chow patty are famous for this. Lakhs of devotees gather with the Ganpatis for the immersion. I was strongly dissuaded from a visit, given the frenzied crowd, but as it turned out, I was able to get a glimpse of the procession which is hard not to share.

Ganpati and Strawberry Modak

  A school kid’s expression of Ganpati, made with plasticine, with an offering of  modak, a sweetmeat offered to the God, in strawberry flavor.

Ganpati Arrives

 The Ganpati festival spanning 10 days has begun in Maharashtra. On this day “Ganesha” , the elephant-headed God is said to descend on earth. Amidst fireworks and resounding drumbeats, a neighborhood Ganpati is marching towards its “Pandal”, a temporary worship place created by the community for the days of Puja (worship), atop a colourful truck here.