Pandals, a part of our social fabric

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Follow us:WhatsappFacebookTwitterTelegram.cls-1{fill:#4d4d4d;}.cls-2{fill:#fff;}Google NewsChennai may not attain the high levels of fervour as Mumbai around Ganesh Chaturti, but the 6,500 pandals that are expected to come up across the city will indeed do much to brighten the mood for the next 10 days. These pandals will not only become temporary places of worship for locals, but will also make it easier for policemen to catch a holy snack.“We have been asked to be alert. These pandals attract crowds and that means chain snatching, pickpocketing and traffic hold-ups will be on the rise. But it is a religious festival and we will have to do our duty,” says a police officer, who did not want to be named. “It will be difficult and will be hard work, but there is a silver lining. The organisers usually keep passing on small packets of sundal and other ritual offerings to those of us stationed nearby,” adds the policeman.While these pandals are work for law enforcement officials, they hold a wholly different significance for political and social outfits. “Lokamanya Tilak used Ganesh Chaturti as a platform to mobilise support against British oppression. While we are not engaging in political mobilisation, we realise that this culture of pandals is a key part of our social fabric and leads to social cohesion and unity,” says a Hindu Makkal Katchi functionary, who was overseeing preparations at his pandal in Mylapore.“The point about social cohesion is true not only for Hindus, but also for all Christians and Muslims in the community, who do not complain about our speakers and the songs they blare out for 10 days. We reciprocate this favour with their festivals. That way, the pandals are a display of that tolerance,” he sums up.first published:September 19, 2012, 08:48 ISTlast updated:September 19, 2012, 08:48 IST
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Chennai may not attain the high levels of fervour as Mumbai around Ganesh Chaturti, but the 6,500 pandals that are expected to come up across the city will indeed do much to brighten the mood for the next 10 days. These pandals will not only become temporary places of worship for locals, but will also make it easier for policemen to catch a holy snack.

“We have been asked to be alert. These pandals attract crowds and that means chain snatching, pickpocketing and traffic hold-ups will be on the rise. But it is a religious festival and we will have to do our duty,” says a police officer, who did not want to be named. “It will be difficult and will be hard work, but there is a silver lining. The organisers usually keep passing on small packets of sundal and other ritual offerings to those of us stationed nearby,” adds the policeman.

While these pandals are work for law enforcement officials, they hold a wholly different significance for political and social outfits. “Lokamanya Tilak used Ganesh Chaturti as a platform to mobilise support against British oppression. While we are not engaging in political mobilisation, we realise that this culture of pandals is a key part of our social fabric and leads to social cohesion and unity,” says a Hindu Makkal Katchi functionary, who was overseeing preparations at his pandal in Mylapore.

“The point about social cohesion is true not only for Hindus, but also for all Christians and Muslims in the community, who do not complain about our speakers and the songs they blare out for 10 days. We reciprocate this favour with their festivals. That way, the pandals are a display of that tolerance,” he sums up.