Celebrating Sankranti the traditional way

DHARWAD: In order to create awareness on preserving and restoring culture, Janapada Samshodhana Kendra celebrated Sankranti, the harvest festival, in a traditional way. Dressed in colourful Ilkal saris and sporting dazzling ornaments, as many as 100 women members of the Kendra gathered at Sadhanakeri Park here and performed Gangamma pooja amid chanting of mantras.
Speaking to TOI, Basalingayya Hiremath, a folk artiste who runs the Kendra, said that the event was held to show the young generation the way to celebrate Sankranti. “These days, most of the youths are digressing from the path and celebrating the festival in their own ways,” said Basalingayya.
Another member of the Kendra, Vishweshwari Hiremath, said, “As compared to the rural areas, festivals in the city are celebrated in a different way. Most of us have come up with a variety of dishes like rotti prepared by using sesame seeds, different kinds of brinjal curries and sweets made of jaggery and sugar, which are hardly found in cities.”
“We are aiming to restore the tradition which is fading away these days. Today, all of us have gathered here to showcase the way festivals were celebrated earlier,” she added.
Shanta Devi Gunjal, another participant aged 80, recollected the way festivals were celebrated in her childhood. “These days, all the festivals have become meaningless. The joy before the festival is not seen these days. Readymade dishes and busy life are ruining the culture,” she said.