I woke up to the sound of banging drums in the streets. Today was Ganesh Chaturthi, a 10-day Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Ganesha. In this festival, elaborately decorated Ganeshas are put on a pedestal and then housed in huge tents for public worship. Smaller ones are also placed in individual households. Ganesh Chaturthi is a public holiday which meant I was off from work. I have seen many Ganpati’s of various sizes being transported in the prior weekends on the road. The ganpatis were only allowed to be transported on the weekends and could never be left unattended. If there was one being transported on the road, you would know as they blast music, play drums, light fireworks and of course create traffic jams which Mumbai definitely needs more of. The festival involves a lot of worshiping, dancing, and beating of the drums. At the end of the festival, all of the idols are taken to the sea for immersion where Ganesha is said to return home.
Given that I had never experienced such a festival before, I really wanted the full experience and to go visit the ganpatis. I knew that no one in the Peres household was up to go visit the ganpatis as they would be crowded and I was desperately seeking someone to go with. I was over the moon when Nisha asked if I wanted to go with her to visit a couple. There are hundreds if not thousands of ganpatis in Mumbai. The festival is also state specific and only celebrated in Maharashtra and a few other states like Goa so it is a big deal.
We decided that we would visit the two largest ganpati in Mumbai - G.S.B. Seva Mandal and Lalbaug. The queue to see the G.S.B ganpati was insane and initially we thought we could just view it from the outside, but as we got closer, we were pushed into the queue and considered ourselves committed. The queue was moving for the most part but in the end it took an hour and a half and that was with us cutting the queue. For the most part the queue was single file so it was fine but as it snaked around to the large room, we were packed like sardines shoulder to shoulder in a large crowd. At last we could finally see the golden ganpati at the end of a sea of heads!
This ganpati was gorgeous! It was completely encased in gold with marigolds draped on either side and framed with purple flowers. The line I was in was just for viewing and not for taking part in the ritual. In the middle of the two aisles, many priests were running around draped in orange and people were praying. I was admiring everyone's outfits! The women were decked out in their finest saris and gold jewelry with flowers in their hair. I am glad I chose to wear a kurta since apparently this is equivalent to Christmas for the Hindus. I guess everyone had scared me in advance of the crowds as I didn’t mind them as much as I expected. Wasn’t a big fan of being pushed though.
For the second location we jumped in a cab to go to Lalbaug. The cab driver kept saying he would just drive us past it but when I saw the crowds I thought no way and we hopped out. Like the first ganpati, there was a very long queue so we decided to visit the smaller ones nearby instead. Right on the road we saw yet another ganpati being transported. This one was very colorful and was dressed in bright pink pants.
As we walked further down the road we saw a giant pink gate draped with colorful cloth and we knew there was yet another ganpati. We had to take off our shoes to go in and view this one but there were no crowds at all so it was not a problem. Ganpati no. 3 had bright turquoise pants. I loved seeing the different outfits people dressed the idols in and the difference in the decor chosen.
We decided we had seen enough ganpati for the day so I suggested we try modak. Modak is a sweet dumpling that is specific to this festival so they were advertised everywhere. The traditional dumpling is made with rice flour and filled with jaggery and coconut before it is steamed. In the sweet shop, there were so many different flavors of modaks from mango to disco modak and even chocolate. The chef I follow on Instagram made chocolate Nutella modak so I really wanted to try that. I really just wanted 1 modak but ended up with a whole box. They were very good! Tasted like a typical Indian sweet.
As we were walking to catch a taxi there was one more ganpati in a very colorful tent. I love how vivid and bright the decor is. This one had colorful purple pants and was resting on top of an elephant head. That was ganpati no.4 and we were done for the day.
In the evening Rivson called Sonali asking for a buddy to go to Marine Drive with so I was sent. I had been wanting to catch the sunset at Marine Drive so I was more than happy to have someone to meet up with. When I arrived at Marine Drive I managed to catch the last bit of sunlight before the skyline went dark and was replaced with the bright Mumbai lights.
As I waited for Rivson I couldn’t help but notice how many men there were in the area but also how intensely and shamelessly the men just stare. I always get looks when I am speaking since I can’t hide my American accent but in this instance, I was just standing on the corner. When I crossed the street to just snap a photo I realized it was only men on that side too. Anyways, Indian men will be Indian men.
At last I was saved from the stares of creepy Indian men when Rivson arrived. He and I walked up and down Marine Drive just catching up. I hadn’t hung out with him much besides at parties so it was nice to hang out. Rivson had come by train and suggested that we return by train to Daniel's house. There is definitely some train trauma from the train ride to Goa so I reluctantly agreed to it for the experience.
Fine. The train ride wasn’t that bad at all since there were no crowds and we got seats. I guess I can now say I have survived the Mumbai local during non-peak hours. No way I would be able to ride the train by myself though without getting lost. Hanging out with Rivson was great fun and we arrived at Daniel’s to see one more ganpati and to catch a ride home. Later that night Maria’s maid brought us over the authentic modak so I can now say I have tried both! I had a great day today and was reminded of how much I love to get out and explore!
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