Raghav Sharma, Bean, Jhanvi Bhatia, Funyaasi, and Radhika Bhardwaj shared their favorite Dussehra memories with us.
Every year, this season marks the arrival of festivities in the country and Dussehra is an exciting time for all of us. As kids, we enjoyed watching Ramayana with our family but more than understanding the mythology behind celebrating Dussehra, it was more about the mela and cultural fests that we looked forward to. Not to forget all the tempting food that we had the chance to hog on. We wouldn't wait to have fun during Dussehra. Looking back at these Dussehra memories, we realize that festivals don't excite us the way they did when we were little. Back then the rides at the Dussehra mela were irresistible for us but now genuinely enjoying it requires making time for it which feels like a far-fetched thing. In fact, getting to spend time with your loved ones is all we ask for during festivals now!
All of us have different memories of Dussehra and thinking back, we wish we could've relished that a tad more. We reached out to our creators to know what the festivities mean to them and what their favorite part of it was growing up. Let's take a look at some creators who shared their favorite Dushhera memories!
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Here's what they had to say!
Dhruv Bisht and Shubham Singh (@Funyaasi)
"It’s funny how both of us come from different cities (Shubham from Amritsar and Dhruv from Gurgaon) yet share very similar experiences when it comes to Dussehra. Dussehra was usually the onset of our ‘Diwali ki chhutiyan’ when we were in school and that was the most exciting part about it. Our group of friends would collect funds from the neighborhood, spend time building a huge 'Ravana' structure throughout the day and then light it up in the evening, with all the families gathered around colony parks telling us interesting stories about the festival. That moment was, sort of, a reminder for us that no matter what happens in life, good always triumphs over evil. Even now, Dussehra still evokes the same emotion in us. However, we don't celebrate it the same way. Now it includes a pooja followed by a dine-out session with family and friends, reminiscing the moments we enjoyed during Dussehra when we were kids."
"I once read somewhere, 'festivals bring everyone together. This hit my mind like nothing else. Among the other Hindu festivals, Dussehra is the closest to my heart. It resembles the courageous triumph of good over evil and marks the coming of Diwali, the festival of lights. Over the years, I saw my family following a tradition on this auspicious day. Like others, we too went to a fair to enjoy rides, drool-worthy Indian food, and the spectacle of neon lights with people’s hearty smiles. Finally, the day was concluded with the ultimate Ravan Dahan. Unfortunately, owing to the pandemic, things are not the same anymore. Earlier, Vijayadashmi meant gathering people across the nation and celebrating on a massive scale. But today, their smile is covered with a face mask. They are reluctant to dive into street food due to the trauma of health concerns in the pandemic."
"As a kid, Dussehra for me meant spending ample time with family, kick-starting Diwali cleaning at home, and then going out with them to explore the streets of Old Delhi. Dussehra always started off with my entire family sitting together and doing the Dussehra pooja. Then we used to go out to Chandi Chowk and explore the street vendors, such as Koodamal Kulfiwala, Munnalal Halwai, and Mansingh Halwai and then go attend Ramleela. I remember, as a kid, I was always awestruck by the big rides there and wanted to be on each one of them, but was also scared of heights hahaha, so the dilemma was always there.
We used to get back from the Ramleelea after seeing Ravan Dahan and then my dad used to take us out for dinner to our favorite restaurant, where we all ordered dishes that we were the fondest of. I used to order the same dish every time - naan-dal, obviously, that’s my favorite. Then we had our favorite ice-creams and our day used to end chewing the best pan from Old Delhi."
“My best memories of Dussehra are closely associated with my hometown, I remember going through the newspaper, looking at pandal photos, and asking my parents to take us there. We used to visit pandals, Ramleela shows, having pani puri and aloo tikki, which I still drool over! Now being in Mumbai, I hardly get time for myself. I miss my hometown and being with my parents during Dussehra. Even today, I would be very happy if I could get a chance to relive those moments with my family."
"Growing up I remember watching Ramayan on TV with my dada and learning about the celebration of good over evil. Since then, the day used to mandatorily start with jalebi fafda and end with watching Ravan statues getting burnt on TV. I quite vaguely remember the only time I was taken to Ram Leela Maidan. And I really wish I could relive it once. Majestic is literally the aptest word to describe how the celebrations were. Well, fast forward to today, definitely the yummiest memory is still alive and followed, thanks to the sweet snacks. But I think out of everything, the fondest memory, the one thing that I’ll never forget is watching Ramayan with dada. Dussehra was just not about celebrating the victory for him but also about the togetherness! It was never the fancy things on Dussehra for us but today making time to celebrate the truth still makes me nostalgic for the times with dada!"
What's your favorite Dussehra memory? Share it with us in the comments below!
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