9 things about Ganesh Chaturthi only a Mumbaikar would understand!

Ganesh Chaturthi brings happiness all across the country but we can’t deny the fact that certain things happen only at the heart of the festival aka the city of Mumbai!

Ganpati Bappa is on his way to our homes and nearest pandals this weekend. As Mumbaikars, we’re all ready to relive the same feeling that we’ve grown up with since the dawn of time. When Lord Ganesha arrives, the entire aura of Mumbai suddenly shifts and there are chants of ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya’ everywhere! Mumbai being one of the most culturally diverse cities in our country, brings all kinds of people together, no matter one's caste, class, religion or race.

As Mumbaikars, we collectively share the feeling of loving Ganpati Bappa and the whole city just feels like one big group hug during this season. Yes, it’s chaotic, yes there’s traffic everywhere but we find our way through it all for this festival that brings so much light and joy into our lives. We hog on modaks and dance our hearts out to welcome Bappa home in the most extravagant way possible because ‘go big or go home’ is totally our style! 

Also Read: 13 Reels that capture the essence of welcoming Bappa home!

And here’s everything we do every single year like it's our unsaid tradition!

The dhol practice that starts a month ago!

Welcoming Bappa with some dhol tasha is literally one of the best parts of the festival and the people who play the dhol feel like the coolest ever. The only way to know that the festival is approaching us soon is when you hear them practicing on the street a month ago, which is the best warm up we could ask for before we dive right into all the prep!

Taking decorations rather seriously whether we have Ganpati at our place or not

We’ve all helped our friends decorate their mandaps or collectively decorated the pandal in our building. We leave absolutely no stone unturned when it comes to the decor, sometimes suddenly pulling out our aesthetic Pinterest mood board and re creating that to the best of our abilities.

Going pandal hopping like people go cafe hopping

On the days of the festival, there are so many pandals to visit since so many invites come our way. As a Mumbaikar, our schedule is packed from dusk till dawn for the first two days for sure. It’s almost as if we’re in this unsaid competition of how many pandals we can cover in a day.

No matter the religion we follow, we’re all united for the next 10 days

It’s just beautiful how this festival brings so many different communities together. Because in Mumbai, Ganesh Chaturthi is a feeling, it’s our own love language.

Chanting the Ganpati aarti in our sleep, even if Marathi is not our first language

Whether we like it or not, the Ganpati aarti is by default etched in our memories, even if we’re not Maharashtrians. All you need is one person to start chanting, ‘Sukh karta dukh harta’ and the whole lot automatically joins!

Having a sweet spot for modak

None of us can say no to a modak. Period.

Being guilty of dancing to item songs in our building

It’s obviously inappropriate to dance to item songs as your ‘performance’ in the building but it has just somehow made its way into this festival every year (insert eye roll emoji). 

Going to Lalbagh Cha Raja at least once!

If you’re a Mumbaikar, you know Lalbagh Cha Raja is the biggest idol in the city. He is the king of the kings, the one every single person in this city goes to for seeking blessings. He is known to make all our wishes come true and hence there’s so much craze around it. Everyone from celebrities, to people from all walks of life come to Lalbagh with a wish in their hearts and hope in their eyes!

Going crazy during visarjan

The city is the most crowded but also the most vibrant and powerful during visarjan. There’s flowers in the air and we’re chanting various different things. Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Tujhko firse jalwa dikhana hi hoga, agle baras aana hai aana hi hoga’ has become a staple. But above all, we also help each other during this time, be it by navigating traffic, helping someone who is lost or helping someone carry their idol for visarjan. There’s children, young men and women doing lezim; it’s the most amazing vibe and we’ll never give this up for anything!

What are some of your favorite things about Ganesh Chaturthi as a Mumbaikar? Let us know in the comments below!

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