Bathukamma: A floral ode to feminity

It’s that time of the year again, when women folk of Telangana come out in full force to celebrate all things feminine, from the mother goddess to mother nature,
the nine days of

Bathukamma

. The State festival sees women stack up indigenous flowers into colourful cones, resembling the gopuram of a temple before dancing around it at dusk. The leaves and flowers used in the making of ‘Bathukamma’ boast of medicinal values, apart from holding great philosophical and metaphoric significance. The festival highlights the role of a woman as a life-giver who provides strength to the entire society, besides reminding us to celebrate nature.
The music, dance and community celebrations ring in a lot of cheer among women. Here’s a look at how the floral festival has unfolded in various parts of the city.

Staying true to tradition
Celebrations at Raghavendra Nagar Colony, near Suchitra circle stayed true to tradition, with the menfolk bringing in flowers of various varieties, including marigold, lotuses and roses, and the women stacking them up to make Bathukammas. Evenings see the women indulging in some fun and musical reverie with the kolatam, as they encircle a cone-shaped Bathukamma (made of cow-dung) placed in circular plates of varied sizes. women of all-age groups then float their Bathukamma, comprising fruits, flowers, leaves, in a pool of water.

The story of Navaratri told through classical dance
Women from various walks of life ushered in Bathukamma at Shilparamam, with much joy as they carried their flower stacks on their heads as a mark of respect to Goddess Durga. The evening belonged to the dancers.

Kuchipudi

by Niveditha, Bharatantyam recital by Aurangabad-based dancer V Soumya Sri and
her students, and Pramod Kumar Reddy’s

Bharatanatyam

dance ballet Nava Durga, made the legends surrounding Navaratri come alive through music and dance.

Devotion and festive cheer

Paying a musical ode to Goddess Durga, vocalist Malavika Anand’s rendered a soulful devotional concert, which lasted for over an hour at

Ravindra Bharathi

. featuring Carnatic compositions in four languages — Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil —the concert had songs that praised the Goddess in her various avatars and extolled the fact that she remains a symbol of strength for women. The guests who walked in to the auditorium were entertained by the Bathukamma Vaibhavam team, comprising women from various districts of the State. The ladies impressed onlookers with their folk performances that summarised the essence of the festival.