Hyderabad: Andhraites, Tamilians celebrate festival with gaiety, gusto in city

Hyderabad: The Andhra and Tamil communities plan to celebrate Navarati with pomp and gaiety. Various themes related to Indian mythology, such as the Mahabharata, have taken centre stage in decorations featuring clay and wooden dolls, known as Golu, showcased in their traditional style.

According to the members of the Tamil and Andhra communities, ‘Golu’, or ‘Bommala Koluvu’, is an age-old tradition followed in both the States to celebrate Navarati. Besides gods and goddesses, various social themes are also on display. It is the oldest tradition and artistic display of dolls, figurines on wooden planks, varies in odd numbers from one to nine, symbolising nine days, mainly by women and unmarried girls.

Kalyani Krishnan, a member of the Telangana Tamil Sangam, has been decorating clay dolls for the past 20 years. She shared, “During Dasara, we display them for ten days, following our tradition of setting up three, seven, or nine steps, and we must place a new doll each year. I come up with various themes annually. This year, I’ve created setups for Ram Rajya, Krishna Leela, and a Kanchi temple procession.” “It is a traditional way of showcasing culture and depicting mythological stories through various displays of dolls and figurines during the nine auspicious days of Navratri. The displays are beautifully adorned with colourful lights,” said T Sravanti, who has been organising Bommala Koluvu for the past two decades.

Raj Kumar, general secretary, Telangana Tamil Sangam, stated, “Each year, we create different themes for our doll displays inspired by Indian mythology. Additionally, we incorporate nine types of herbal and medicinal plants. This year, we have showcased Narasimha Swamy, a model of Tirupati, and the 63 Nayanmars.” “Continuing the 22-year-old tradition of our grandparents and parents, we have set up our display to depict mythological events. It features various sets, including standing poses of Lord Vishnu and eight different forms of Goddess Lakshmi. We have also invited several families from the society to view the vibrant display, seek blessings from the deities, and enjoy our traditional sundal prasadam (a mixture of sprouts),” said Kiruthika, another member of the Telangana Tamil Sangam.