Yakshagana buffs in Dakshina Kannada know Bashir from Bajpe as ‘Garnal Saiber’. That is because he is the lone supplier of firecrackers for the Yakshagana shows of the popular Kateel mela attached to the Durgaparameshwari temple.
‘Garnal’ means firecracker and ‘Saiber’ is how an elderly Muslim is addressed in the region. Not many know that he has also been hosting the popular ‘Devi Mahatme’ show of the mela for 13 years.
More than a century-old Durgaparameshwari Dashavatara Yakshagana Mandali, attached to the temple, now has six performing troupes. Each of them present 180 all-night shows in open area for six months from December. Garnal is burst when villain characters such as Mahishasura, Chanda and Munda, Raktabeejasura, and Gajasura enter the stage in the shows based on mythology.
Mr. Bashir, who is in his 50s, said he has been supplying firecrackers to many Yakshagana organisers for 36 years. He said the supply was started by his grandfather, when he was 14 years old. Mr. Bashir and his team also burst the crackers during the shows. He said since he “believed in the Devi”, he has been hosting the popular ‘Devi Mahatme’ show near Bajpe for 13 years.
Mr. Bashir said after the recent polarisation attempts in the coastal belt, the land of Yakshagana, some people tried to scuttle his cracker supply for the shows. But the organisers did not heed to such attempts, and he continues to get regular orders.
“God makes no discrimination, but we do,” he said, commenting on the frequent communal violence in region. He believes that the violence is for political reasons, to get votes and for individual benefits.
If the cracker supply for the shows is now slightly reduced, the reasons are not communal. It is because the organisers have been reducing the quantity because of concerns over pollution, he said. “My attachment is still intact,” Mr. Bashir said.
