Bathukamma festivities bloom and nourish the sisterhood
The festival over the years has become a symbol of Telangana culture and identity. The festival begins on the day of Mahalaya Amavasya and is celebrated for nine days till Durgashtami. The final day of Bathukamma, known as Pedha or Saddula Bathukamma falls two days before Dusshera.
According to the tradition, Bathukamma was celebrated to thank Goddess Parvati for her blessings for this year’s crop harvest and income and to ask for her blessings for the next.
Feminine felicitation is the theme of this festival. It is a special occasion for women to wear traditional saris paired with jewels and other accessories. To bring out the classic grace of the attire, teenage girls wear Langa-Oni/Half-Sarees/Lehenga Cholis with jewels.
On a brass plate, flowers of different colours are carefully arranged in circular rows, one layer on top of the other. The Bathukamma gradually increases in size and looks more vibrant and colourful.
It is then kept before the family goddess and prayers are offered. In the evening women in their traditional attires gather together and begin singing folk songs by continually surrounding it, forming a magnificent human circle of togetherness, love, and sisterhood. The Bathukamma celebration announces the beauty of nature, the collective spirit of the Telangana people, and the preservation of our natural resources. As a result, Bathukamma has become an emblem of Telangana cultural identity.
Mr Sangram has made this magazine something to be proud of what we kept expecting. He is not only an Author, for Lakkars Magazine he is the South Zone Head of India and Chief Editor of Lakkars Magazine E-Book.
