Taste of Life: How “paansupari” became a staple of Ganeshotsav celebrations in Pune

The betel had a religious and semi-legal significance because it played an important part in the birth, marriage, and funeral rituals and ceremonies. It was a medium of goodwill and friendly relations; appropriate objects to be offered to the deity

The use of food as a symbol is a common phenomenon across cultures, representing personal and social relationships.

Almost all Ganeshotsav mandals organised “paansupari” functions during the last five days of the festival. These were exclusive to men. (HT FILE)

On September 29, 1929, the Marathi newspaper “Dnyanaprakash” published a letter written by Mr Keshav Ramchandra Kanetkar, Principal of Fergusson College, to the parents of the students. It concerned some events that had occurred during the Ganeshotsav celebrations in the college that year.

Since the beginning of college, students had formed “clubs” in the hostel that were divided along the lines of academic streams, regions, or caste. Some of these clubs celebrated Ganeshotsav every year, for which the college authorities had laid down some rules. The festival was to be celebrated for not more than five days, and the idol was to be immersed in a well next to the college. The immersion procession was not allowed to take the main road of the college. The celebrations had to be peaceful.

That year, the clubs violated many of these rules. The idols were immersed near the Lakdi Bridge, and students had trespassed through the Deccan Gymkhana. They banged spoons on thalis, creating a ruckus. For this behaviour, ten clubs participating in the procession were fined ₹25 each.

One of the points he made was about the nature of the celebration. Owing to the diversity of religion, caste, and opinions among the students, the college did not allow religious sermons, and the celebrations had to be confined to the clubs. Kanetkar’s letter, however, mentioned that “paansupari” was allowed during the five days of the festival.

“Paansupari” is a term, by synecdoche, for betel leaf and all the ingredients composing the betel roll in which the betel leaf is first spread with a paste of slaked lime; then pieces of betel nut, often with other spices, seeds, and flavourants, are added before folding the leaf into a small packet. “Paan” means betel leaf, and “supari” is betel nut.

The chewing of “paan” was an ancient custom throughout much of South Asia since time immemorial. It was a custom enjoyed by all strata of society, with nobility possessing elegant accessories for the storage and processing of betel leaf and nut.

The betel had a religious and semi-legal significance because it played an important part in the birth, marriage, and funeral rituals and ceremonies. It was a medium of goodwill and friendly relations; appropriate objects to be offered to the deity.

A marriage invitation was made through the presentation of betel leaf and betel nut, and their exchange on the occasion of betrothal signalled its finalisation. Its acceptance between two parties indicated reconciliation if the relations were strained. Sharing betel with their noble hosts was a sign of respect. In the Deccan region, betel leaf and nut figured prominently in royal rituals of welcome, social agreement, political alliance, and other contexts from the ninth century CE until the seventeenth century.

Over the years, “paansupari” came to mean a reception held on several occasions. It was organised when a leader or an official visited the town, or retired from service, or to mark important events like the anniversaries of social and political establishments.

It also became an important feature of the Ganeshotsav celebrations in twentieth-century Pune.

Almost all Ganeshotsav mandals organised “paansupari” functions during the last five days of the festival. These were exclusive to men. Some mandals invited only their donors, while some also included prominent citizens in their guest lists. Few were open to all.

The Ganeshotsav in the early part of the last century was known for its several dance and song troupes, known as “Ganpati mele”. Children, young men, and women who were part of these groups sang and danced in front of the deity during the festival’s ten days. These performances discussed and criticised social evils and were meant to inculcate patriotism.

Famous “mela” groups performed at important Ganpati pandals during the last five days of the festival. Several mandals hosted more than one “mela” each night. Well-known “melas” performed on the “paansupari” night. Some mandals offered “paansupari” to “mela” performers too.

Even though the betel roll could travel across members of different castes who normally would not exchange any other forms of food to maintain their respective purity status, and betel leaf and betel nut were considered to be immune to touch pollution to some extent, several mandals were known to exclude those belonging to the so-called “lower castes” from the “paansupari” reception. The so-called “asprushya”, or untouchable, “melas” were also not allowed to perform in front of the deity.

Seth Hirachand Shah established Balmitra Mandal in 1922 to celebrate Ganeshotsav. Two years later, an “asprushya mela” went to the pandal uninvited and expressed the desire to perform before the guests assembled for “paansupari”. Some members of the Mandal expressed their strong disapproval. But Shah ignored them and treated the artistes with utmost respect. After that, it became a custom to invite an “asprushya mela” on the “paansupari” night every year.

In the 1930s, some mandals started organising a “haldi-kunku” ceremony where married women applied turmeric (“haldi”) and vermilion (“kunku”) to each other’s foreheads, along with other rituals like offering perfume and rosewater. Only married women and unmarried girls were invited to the “haldi-kunku”. Since the “paansupari” for men was followed by performances by the “mela” groups, Ganeshotsav mandals began organising “powada” performances for women. “Powada” was a traditional Marathi ballad narrating heroic deeds and historical events, most often associated with Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

The details of the daily programmes of several Ganeshotsav mandals were printed in the newspapers every day. According to the schedules published in Marathi newspapers like “Dnyanaprakash” and “Kesari”, “paansupari” was organised in the evening between 5 pm and 7 pm till the 1920s, after which the event was shifted to later in the night at 8 pm.

The “haldi-kunku” and “paansupari” functions increasingly expanded their menus in the 1930s. Coffee was sometimes served to women along with “pedha” or “ladoo”. The Tambdi Jogeshwari Mandal offered coconut “ladoos” and “shira” to its male invitees. This change could be attributed to the growing affluence of the middle class of society.

Ganeshotsav mandals from the same locality organised “paansupari” on separate days to ensure maximum attendance. But since there were many mandals, several men ended up having to visit more than one “paansupari” function every evening. The solution was to make the mandals jointly organise “paansupari”. The mandals, of course, ignored the idea.

On October 3, 1929, “Dnyanaprakash” published a reply to Kanetkar’s letter written by a student who had chosen the pseudonym “Satyavakta”. He did not deny the events during the immersion ceremony and asserted the students’ right to celebrate the festival in a manner they wanted.

He suggested that all clubs in the college celebrate Ganeshotsav and organise “paansupari” together, so that the students would be able to spend more time studying and the clubs could also save a lot of money.

I do not know how and when the clubs started celebrating the festival together. But Ganeshotsav mandals in the city chose to organise the Satyanarayana Pooja instead of “paansupari” after the 1940s. With this, they moved away from a symbol of friendship, acceptance, and respect.

(Chinmay Damle is a research scientist and food enthusiast. He writes here on Pune’s food culture. He can be contacted at chinmay.damle@gmail.com)