The festival of Dasara, Durga Puja or Navratri is as much about rituals and revelry as it is about food. Each community has a distinct and traditional feast and style of worshipping Goddess Durga.
While dhaks and dandiya welcome Dasara in other parts of the country, the Telugus celebrate the 10-day festival with Bommala Koluvu (display of dolls). The wooden dolls collected over the years are painstakingly arranged so that the set-up depicts a story. It could be an incident pulled out of mythological tales or a day in a vegetable market.
The dolls at D Madhuri’s house are protesting against the Goods and Service Tax. Supporting them are figurines of national leaders. In another corner are two dolls with vegetable and fruit baskets, which Madhuri has labelled Rythu Bazar. “We have always showcased a recent issue. This year it is GST; last year it was on the Telugu movie Janatha Garage . Earlier we depicted cyclone Hudhud,” she says.
While current affairs dominate at Madhuri’s residence, Vyjayanthi Pakala draws inspiration from the places and events in her surroundings.
This year the family has set up a huge replica of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam. With a meticulous eye for detailing, the family has recreated the hill on which the temple is situated. “The whole thing is made of thermocol. We plan our theme for almost a year in advance and buy dolls according to that. My collection now has over 2,000 dolls,” she says.
Traditional prasadam
While the dolls are a significant part of the festival, it is incomplete without the delicacies that are offered as prasadam . “For nine days, nine types of prasadam are made. Most are rice-based recipes like pongal , lemon rice, curd rice and bellam paranammam . There is an elaborate feast on the 10th day. Pongali, vada , dal sweets and pullihora are the signature dishes,” Madhuri says. Though most of the food items are rice-based, there is a conscious effort to include all flavours— spicy, sweet and tangy.
Bhog khichdi
For the Bengali community, Durga Puja is symbolic of the bhog offered to the Goddess. “Traditionally, the bhog used to be prepared by the best known traditional Bengali cooks called Thakurs. This tradition is still followed in some of the ancestral pujas of Kolkata. The main item of bhog is the khichudi or khichdi ,” says Sumitra Chakraborty, who shifted to Visakhapatnam recently with her son and daughter-in-law.
For the Bengalis, the Ashtami holds a special treat. After the morning’s fast, the anticipation begins. In the afternoon, people get together at the puja pandals to savour the piping hot khichdi bhog . This khichdi is different from its namesake in other parts of India. A rice and dal preparation, it also has additions like peas, potatoes, tomatoes and even cauliflowers and is served with tomato chutney and payasam. “With the bhog , there are two types of bhaja or vegetarian fries. After the puja, it is served to the devotees and guests who come on Saptami, Ashtami and Navami and sit down by the pandal and relish the feast,” says Rita Basu, a committee member of Utsav that celebrates Durga Puja at AMCOSA hall every year. On Dasami after the visarjan , families gather together and relish rice and kosha mangsho (Bengali style mutton curry). During Durga Puja, street food is savoured with vigour. While the city does not compare with Kolkata on this aspect, the Bengali Durga Puja committees recreate a small part of their home-town through delicious food stalls at the puja venues.
The Gujarati way
The nine-day festival is celebrated across the nation but the festive fervour attains a different colour for the Gujarati community. After the evening arti and puja , people dress up and step out for dandiya, which goes on till midnight. An important aspect is fasting.
Kanan Trivedi, a member of the Gujarati community, says, “People keep fast over the nine days by skipping one meal. During the fast people have fruits. Families also prepare the favourite delicacies of their forefathers over the nine days,” shares Kanan.
On a ninth day, the fast is broken and bhog is offered to the Goddess. The Gujarati bhog comprises halwa , puri and chana . The puri is tiny. The halwa and the chana offer a balance of sweet and spicy.
