HYDERABAD: It was no less than a celestial spectacle on the Police Academy Hockey Grounds in Begumpet on Sunday, as traditional finery in rainbow colours met the lithe movements of the garba. The mirror work on the chaniya cholis and kediyus reflected the lights, making the dancers look like starry fairies moving around in some sacred ritual.
The nine-day ‘The Navratri Utsav - 2019’, which began on Sunday, reverberated with the latest Bollywood Garba numbers, as singers specially flown in from Mumbai delivered one energetic song after another. Since the theme of the night was Halloween, many of them turned up with interesting face art. One such visitor, Lekha Agarwal, said, “I painted my face keeping the Halloween theme in mind. There are different themes including ‘dress like a rockstar’ for all the nine days. I play Garba every year, but this time, I will be attending only on the weekends. I was very excited when I won a pass for this event in a contest.” Pointing to her blue and yellow chaniya choli, she said, “I bought this in Badi Chowdi this morning.” Sisters Disha and Harshi Bandiga, who were also dressed in colourful ghagra cholis with traditional silver jewellery, said, “We have taken the dresses and jewellery on rent. It cost us `600 per day. We plan to come on most days.”
Various food stalls, too, were set up for the visitors. One of the most notable stalls is ‘ram ki bandi’, which is famous for its idlis and dosas. Apart from that, there were stalls selling chaat, maggi and other Indian delicacies. Saloni Jain, an organiser, said, “We have brought singers including Mayur Joshi, Harsh Shah, Sheetal Dhedia and Komal Tendulkar for the event. It is being held for the second time in the city. There are 15 prizes to be won every day. Actors Anirudh Dave and Riddhi Dogra will also be a part of the event.”A one day pass costs `500 (excluding food). One can also buy a pass for all the nine days for `2000.