As the sun sets, the lanes and by-lanes of Hanamkonda, Kazipet and Warangal brighten up.
Women, young and old, in their best attire head to nearby temples and street corners to celebrate Bathukamma – the festival of flowers
Women and children carry plates arranged with flowers of different colours and species in a cone shape. They vie with one another in arranging the flowers as high as possible. Though the evening rituals last for an hour, the women wake up early and prompt their children to collect as many flowers as possible from the neighbourhood. All the flowers available during the season – Cassia (thangedu), luffa (bera), celosia (gunugu), nelumbo (thamara) cucurbita (gummadi), marigold (banthi), crossandra (kanakambaram), ixora (ramabanam), hibiscus (mandhara), and so on are collected and splendidly arranged in an enticing fashion.
Women mostly gather at the Thousand Pillar temple, Bhadrakali temple, Padmakshi temple in Hanamkonda and some of them look for street corners in their respective localities. They form a circle and place their flowers in the middle. They go round clapping and dancing rhythmically.
All songs carry the essence ‘long live mother’ urging the goddess to take birth. These festivities last for nine days during the Durga Navaratri celebrations preceding Dasara.
Legend has it that king Daksha performed a ‘yagna’ and invited all but his youngest daughter ‘Sati’, who married Lord Siva against his will. However, Sati turns up at the place and was insulted along with her husband. She kills herself. Women make an image with turmeric paste and worship her urging her to come back to life.
