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Uttar Pradesh: Christmas cheer permeates Kashi air
On the eve of Christmas on Saturday, Kashi was all set for celebrations with all its churches busy giving final touches to preparations
On the eve of Christmas on Saturday, Kashi was all set for celebrations with all its churches busy giving final touches to preparations. An ancient city, Varanasi is also famous for its historical churches.
The festive fervour was equally felt at markets, restaurants and other places. A tableau depicting the birth of Christ at St Mary’s Cathedral in Cantonment attracted onlookers in large numbers.
“Like in the past, we will be organising a grand fair this year too on Christmas,” a parish priest of St Mary’s Cathedral said. “Cultural programmes, dramas, prayers, carol singing and other attractions will also be there in the annual fair. The drama would be based on the teachings of Jesus Christ,” he added.
Similarly, at ‘Lal Girja’, another church in the temple town, was also soaked in Christmas festivities where traditional programme started from December 15 onwards. Of the many events which the church organises here, the parish members say the bonfire programme, midnight church service on the eve of Christmas, Christmas lunch and a cricket match are the most popular ones that mark Christmas festivities.
However, the unique celebrations of Varanasi is a two-hour Nativity drama titled ‘Naya Savera’ performed by the artistes of Prerna Kala Manch on the eve of Christmas at Matri Dham Ashram in Chandmari, Christ Nagar. Forty artistes depicted the birth of Jesus and various incidents related to it at a grand stage. Various social evils of those days and of present were depicted in the play.
The play also depicted the cruelty of King Herod who massacred many innocent children of Bethlehem. The play written by Fr Anil Dev IMS and directed by Fr Anand IMS has been performed every year since 1995 on the same stage except in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. A large crowd watched the play from 6.30pm to 8.00pm after which the Holy Mass was celebrated and special prayers were offered for peace and harmony.
