Dushera Special

30th of september was the last working day of many people, one being a relative. Went for lunch to the upper cafe when I saw these two dhol wala's sitting there waiting for a farewell party to get over so that they could go home.



On a more positive note...this being the festive season thought I would share some Dushera stuff. Got invited by default as a the chief guest at a Ram leela performance at the Mouli complex Chandigarh. The hosts were gracious enough to send a Maruti van to pick me and my aunt up from home. Reached there when the performance was already on.Then after a part of the show the organisers called us up on the stage where we were introduced to the crowd. Lots of applause and all that stuff. Got a gainde ke phool ki maala and a memento as a keep sake. This is to wish all those who are lucky enough to be with families and loved ones to have a good time, enjoy the festive season.

The memento....presented by the Uttarakhand Ram leela committee. Thanks.
The audience was asked to give zordaar taaliya to the chief guests and they obliged happily. Ha ha never thought I d be a the chief guest at a Mohalla Ram Leela function. The seats are where we sat.


There were a lot of kids around, they were the noisiest and quite obviously having a great time, some monitors...brandishing sticks to keep them in order but to no avail. I used to think that we might yet lose our history but it seems its alive and kicking still.






The guy playing the role of Sabri was really good. He sang well, emoted like his life depended on it. In contrast, Ram was pretty OK, and Lakshman seemed really miffed at not been given a cordless mike.


The entry of hanuman was very popular, lots of Ramchandra Ji Ki Jai's and applause. Hanuman ji is great. All sardarji's like hanuman.

Bali and Sugreeva saying unspeakable things to one another, this was a lot of fun. There was a guy behind the curtain who had a diary in his hand that contained all the dialogues and kept on prompting them both with a magnificient stage whisper.

Bali and Sugreeva slug it out. Just as Bali got killed, our host told us to take off as there would be a huge rush soon, so we got the van that our hosts had kindly provided and came with a lot of nice memories, a garland of marigold flowers and a memento.