Chennai, Sept 1 : With Ganesh Chaturthi commencing on Thursday, Anna Hazare appears to be the dominant theme for Ganesha worshippers this year, reports Times of India.
Idol makers in Kosapet said there was a lot of demand for Ganeshas in the form of social activist Anna Hazare.
"He is our new hero," said G Ashok, an idol maker. "We also made Ganeshas keeping the cricket theme in mind because India recently won the World Cup," he said.
As there is a ban on using plaster of Paris, most idol makers have bought clay or papier-mache models from Andhra Pradesh and given finishing touches based on customer demand. In West Saidapet,
R Bhoominathan got a nine-ft tall Ganesha idol with a peacock motif.
"Last year, we used a lion motif. We went for something different as he is a god who comes in all avatars," said Bhoominathan, who was busy putting the final touches to the pandal.
They are planning to offer chakkara pongal, ven pongal, sambar rice and moong dal sundal to visitors. "Peas sundal is common so we decided to offer the costlier moong dal as it is a special occasion," he said.
Police have allowed people to install Ganesha idols at 1,200 areas in the city and have deployed 10,000 personnel around the pandals.
In T Nagar, the heady smell of boondi (small, fried pakodi made from chickpea flour) engulfed Venkatanarayana Road as organisers put the final touches to a 15 ft idol made of the savoury.
"We used 1,008 kg of boondi and decked it up with cashews, raisins and dates," said V Santhanam, the co-ordiantor of the pandal.
A chef was brought in to prepare the boondi and workers created the idol at the venue over the last 10 days.
"It cost Rs 70,000. We are continuing with the tradition of using only natural material to make the idol," said Santhanam. Last year, the idol was made of kozhukattas (sweet rice dumplings) and the year before of jaggery.
R Prabha who came with her son Mukund to see the idol was not disappointed.
"Every year they make something special. Look at the hundreds and thousands of boondi," said Prabha, pointing out the workmanship to her son.
The concept behind the idol is the same one that prompted freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak to popularise Ganesh Chathurthi, said Santhanam.
"He organised mass celebrations to bring people together during the freedom struggle. When this form of the festival came to Chennai in the 1990s, the core values remained. With this idol, we hope to symbolise the bounty and sweetness of Ganesha," he said.
The festival ends with devotees immersing the idols in the sea or water bodies. This year, the idols can be immersed into the sea at Pattinapakkam, Kasimedu, Thiruvottiyur, Neelankarai and Ennore, said police.
