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Vile Parle to have the tallest eco-friendly idol in Mumbai
Mumbai: After two years of subdued celebrations of Mumbai’s favourite festival, the Ganpati mandals are leaving no stone unturned to house the biggest idol of the Hindu god
Mumbai: After two years of subdued celebrations of Mumbai’s favourite festival, the Ganpati mandals are leaving no stone unturned to house the biggest idol of the Hindu god. At 21 feet, Mumbaicha Peshwa in Vile Parle will be the tallest eco-friendly Ganesh idol, while Khetwadi in Girgaum will have a 38-feet plaster of pairs (POP) idol called Mumbaicha Maharaja for the first time. It is touted to be Mumbai’s tallest POP idol.
Raju Mayekar (45) and his father Digambar Mayekar (72) idol, who sculpted the Mumbaicha Peshwa idol, told HT that they made the 21-feet idol using tissue paper and banana fibres.
Mayekars detailed that the planning to make the tallest eco-friendly idol began in January when members of the mandal visited wedding halls to collect banana leaves and stalk to extract the fibres. “We ground them and dried them to finally assemble the idol on a Garuda bird,” Raju Mayekar said.
Explaining the tedious process, Raju Mayekar said, “It is made up of 50% banana fibres, 20% tissue paper to ensure that the idol doesn’t crack. We also used gum and chalk powder as finishing touches. In March, the dried fibres were dried under the sun to loosen the fibre gum. We then added whitening powder and carved the idol.”
The speciality of this idol is that it is very lightweight and four people can easily lift the idol. Besides, when immersed in water, the idol will turn into nirmalya (like flower waste).
Ganesh Vadval, working president, Mumbaicha Maharaja Khetwadi Galli 11, told HT that the idol’s height was previously 30 and 34 feet, but this is the first time it is 38 feet. “We are celebrating the festival after two years and we wanted to do it on a grand scale. Khetwadi has 24 mandals and has a history of housing the biggest Ganesh idols,” Vadval said.
On not making the switch to eco-friendly idols, Vadval said, “POP does melt in the ocean but it takes time. Not every murtikar can do eco-friendly Ganeshas. Also, the state government has not left us with any alternative. There is a dearth of idol makers who can sculpt idols from clay. Besides, the mandals that have completed 60 years too use POP idols.”
Kunal Patil, the maker of the idol, said that his team completed the idol in 12 days but the planning went on for a year. “We have opted for the Parshuram avatar of the Ganesha to make the new generation aware of his history. The pandal will have mountains and an ashram in the background,” Patil said.
Meanwhile, chief minister Eknath Shinde announced that those heading to the Konkan for the Ganesh festival would get an exemption from toll beginning Saturday. This will apply from Saturday to 11 September on the Mumbai-Bengaluru national highway, Mumbai-Goa national highway and other toll stations operated by the public works department (PWD).
The passes with the vehicle number and the name of the driver will be available with the police, traffic police, and RTO offices.
