Tomorrow is the start of Navarathri.
For the uninitiated,Navarathri or "Nine Nights" is a Hindu celebration of the "Shakthi" or "Goddess". The Hindu Goddess is worshiped in three forms - Durga (Goddess of valour), Lakshmi (Goddess of wealth) and Saraswathi (Goddess of learning).
Kolu is a South Indian tradition involoving a display of dolls of (traditionally) the deities of Hindu Mythology. Of course, this then expanded to include all kinds of doll display. It is a typically "ladies" function were the women of the household set up this display, invite their friends and family over, and in turn be invited to theirs - a few days of hectic, heavy duty socialization, if you will.
We had great fun setting up the kolu today. My parents-in-law helped us set it up. The dolls are displayed in a "step" like arrangment, comprising an odd number of stairs. These days people have ready-made steps that can be dismantled and stored, but we prefer to do it the old-fashioned way - use all kinds of odds and ends about the house, including bricks, table tops, wooden panels and hard bound books to build our steps. Of course, it does not look as "neat" as the readymade steps, but I feel the imperfections give it the human touch.
The dolls are usually packed in news papers and stored in the loft after each Navarathri season. We brought down the boxes of packed dolls yesterday and unwrapped them.
"Is this height alright for the third step?"
Like I said, random stuff go into building the steps.
"Mmm..is this stable enough to hold the dolls?"
Would you have guessed what went into the steps if you saw only the following picture and not my labelled diagram of parts ?
The kid wanted a kolu of her own...
And the Tundra scene we hand-made
The three Goddess. The Saraswathi on the silver throne is 200 years old and has been handed down to me through many generations.
YOU ARE INVITED.
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