Catholics here celebrated Monti festival on Wednesday. It celebrates the nativity of Mother Mary and also involves elements of the region's agricultural heritage.
Although Mother Mary's birth is celebrated by Catholics across the world on September 8, people of this region have been celebrating the harvest season on the occasion from 1776, Richard Rego, a Jesuit priest, told The Hindu .
Earlier, for nine days leading to the festival children used to adorn the statue of Mother Mary with flowers after the morning mass. These days, it has been become a one-day affair, Mr. Rego said.
Special mass, processions, singing of hymns, and distribution of sugarcane marked the celebrations on Wednesday. Newly harvested crop was blessed on the occasion. Families save the blessed grain (rice) till next year.
“One curious aspect of the meal served on the occasion is that it is completely vegetarian,” Mr. Rego said.
Mr. Rego said that another aspect of this feast is that only an odd number of dishes are prepared.
