My first Navaratri in UK

Its that time of the year again! Navaratri is my favourite festival of all! After I got married, my mother in law and I decided to start the tradition of Golu keeping in our household, which is basically an exhibition of various dolls and figurines, mainly featuring Gods and Goddesses and mythological characters and stories.It is said to represent the presence of Goddesses Lakshmi, Saraswati and Parvati in the household. To me personally, its a big feel-good factor and happy time with family and friends visiting for darshan and prasad and similary, us going along to everyone's places and catching up on the times gone by! :-) I also happen to be a die-hard mythology fan and this gives me the opportunity to show off my knowledge on the subject! Ha!

This year, it was just 4 months since we moved to the UK and I was pretty low about the fact that it is going to be a quiet Navaratri. Though I had brought the entire Golu collection to UK and there was no deliberation on whether to put up the Golu or not, I knew it wouldn't be anything like it was back home. Little did I know it would be so unimaginably beautiful and exciting!

Firstly, as we were putting up the Golu set, which itself is quite a laborious task, with 7 steps, we got news that cousins are visiting us from Dubai! They have 2 beautiful girls and this was particularly happy news as my little doll would have company! Brilliant! I rejoiced at the news that they would be with us for almost a week. Secondly, a very dear friend of ours from Bombay ( I insist, Bombay it is) was on an official visit! Yay! Third, I had invited my old school friends who were settled in London for a traditional Indian lunch over the weekend! All in all, this was turning out to be the best Navaratri ever!!! :-) And boy, it was! 

We freaked out totally with our cousins - hired a car (we haven't bought one yet)  and took the kids out to zoos, museums, restaurants, parks and to friends' homes for lunches and dinners.... day after day. My doll, who is as such a total outdoorsy child, loved to be with company and had a rollicking time! She cried quite a bit when they left, but it was great having them - spruced up my Navaratri totally! The friend from Bombay -  he brought a cartful of stuff for my doll - ranging from her favourite jelly chocolates to hairbands and books and games and toys - advance birthday gifts that they so lovingly put together for her :-) Thank you guys, we love you!!!! :-) And the lunch party was great! We were meeting each other after decades, it felt so good to meet and get together - at a different time, a different country... Different people, almost - now as we are from those days of pigtails and pinafores. Now we are grown women, with responsibilites ranging from the careers to the kitchen, home to children, present to future. And its great, isnt it? To realise that coming out from the same classrooms, we have chosen different lives for ourselves and to come together to discuss those and learn how we are different and/or similar? It indeed is!

So all in all, it was everything I could have asked for. Family, friends, festivities, socialising, vacationing, meeting new people, making yummy sweets for prasad and yes, the haldi-kumkum / vettalai-paaku - the essential segment of Navaratri. I'll give you a little peek into my Golu arrangement, which made me so nostalgic and reminded me sorely of my family and closest friends who I would have met if I were back home.

A few dolls that are ubiquitous to almost all Golus - 

The pot-bellied Chettiyar couple, representing the prosperous business community of South India who traditionally run grocery shops. Fruits, vegetables, and kiddie-kitchenware filled with grains and pulses are kept in front of them to represent the ideal Chettiyar shop. They stand for growth, prosperity and well-being. 

The attractive dancing girl, ideally called the Thanjavur Bommai which is again a mainstay in Golus. They are colourful and vibrant, and since each piece is balanced on top of the other, one touch gives the desired effect of a dancing woman.

This is the Marapaachi bommai (Mara = Wood, Pachi = carved). A very important part of the arrangement, it would be impossible to find a Golu without this husband and wife couple. They represent togetherness between a couple.

The 3 Devis - Saraswati, Durga and Mahalakshmi, who are worshipped throughout the 9 days - The first 3 days Goddess Durga is worshipped, the next 3 days Goddess Lakshmi and the last 3 days, Goddess Saraswati is worshipped. Though traditionally, Navaratri is said to be dedicated to the 9 forms of Devi Durga, culminating into Dussehra, which is celebrated on the 10th day - it is also referred to as Vijayadasami. 

Over a span of 7 years, we have collected these figurines for our Golu. In most households, the Golu bommais are brought down over generations, from mothers-in-law to daughters-in-law and the older dolls command a great deal of respect and pride in the Golu arrangement. Though we are nowhere there, we sincerely hope to carry on this tradition in our household for as long as we can. Collecting the dolls is also very interesting as we look around for souvenirs from places that we visit on vacations.

It's a tad too late to wish, but hey, is there a particular time ever to wish happiness and peace? So here's wishing you all a beautiful Navaratri and a prosperous future!!