Puneri Ganesh mandals go ‘live’ to share message

Packed in a 10-15 minute performance, “dekhavas” are known for their crisp plots that depict religious stories

Adding more colour to the Ganesh festivities in the city are the dekhavas (live performances on themes) that are organised by Ganesh mandals.

Khajina Vihir chowk Mitra Mandal at Tilak road is attracting crowd with its religious themes based on the story of Pralhad, who was a firm believer in Lord Vishnu. (Rahul Raut/HT PHOTO)

Serving up a strange mix of nationalistic fervour, religious stories, and currently relevant topics that are presented in an amusing or satirical manner, these dekhavas continue to grip Puneites who step out in the old city areas and witness the various dekhavas.

With mandals putting their best content forward, HT visited a few mandals, to get a first-hand experience of these live performances.

Khajina Vihir chowk Mitra Mandal

One such dekhava in the city that is attracting crowd is the Khajina Vihir chowk Mitra Mandal at Tilak road that is staging a religious-based skit on Pralhad, who is the son of Hiranyakashipu and a firm believer of Lord Vishnu. The performance starts with Hiranyakashipu asking Pralhad about Lord Vishnu and if he is omnipresent. To this Pralhad gives a positive response. Hiranyakashipu then asks if Lord Vishnu is present in this pillar (constructed on the stage). This is when Pralhad kicks the pillar and Lord Narasimha, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu appears on stage.

Mukund Kulkarni, who was watching the performance said, “ Religious-based dekhavas are important for children. They tell a story with sound effects, music and dialogues. This helps the children to understand the story.”

Vishrambaug Mitra Mandal

Vishrambaug Mitra Mandal in Sadashiv peth is also staging a live performance based on the Durga avatar of Parvati. In the play, Raktabeeja, a demon who multiplies if his blood fell on the ground was defeated by Goddess Kali. The play shows how the Goddess, with an outstretched tongue, drank his blood and stopped the demon from being multiplied. It was his severed heads that the Goddess Kali, now wears as a garland.

Packed in a 10-15 minute performance, the dekhavas are known for their crisp plots that deal with current and political issues. Besides keeping onlookers engaged, the performances also provide some food for thought.

Chitrashala Mitra Mandal

Chitrashala Mitra Mandal has come up with live performance based on surgical strikes. In this performance all aspects of a surgical strike are shown in a detailed manner with the help of good background music.

With these live performances, the mandals are touching upon issues that are affecting the people’s daily lives.