Zestful celebration of Ugadi by Telugus, Gudi Padava by Marathis and Cheti Chand, the new year of Sindhis brought to the fore the cross-culture dynamics of Vijayawada city, on Friday.
If aroma of traditional Andhra delicacies like pulihora, saggu biyyam paayasam, pesara gaarelu, bellam paravannam and poornalu wafted from the kitchens of Telugu households, Sindhi rasois saw women dishing out Tairi , the sweetened rice and chana .
While Telugus were busy preparing a mix of shadruchulu (six tastes) of the Ugadi pachchadi , Sindhis indulged in their share of festivity, food, prayer and music.
Sindhis worship their Ishta Dev Jhulelal on this day.
The Sindu Bhavan in Brindavan Colony teemed with Sindhis who gathered to offer prayers to Jhulelal.
Women used flour dough to make a round base to place a large crystallised sugar (mishri) and decorate it with silver edible foil and dry fruits.
Another mould is in the shape of a lamp with the stuffing of cloves and cardamom. The moulds, along with sweetened rice, cooked chana, fruits, biscuits, flowers, vermillion and a few coins are placed in a big tray which is then placed on their heads before turning 360 degrees and offering prayers.
They then headed to River Krishna to feed the fish and sing kirtans.
Sindhi folk dance
“This is because we come from the region of the river Sindhu and pray to Lord Jhulelal, the god of the seas,” said Nikhil Asrani, a youngster from the Sindhi community. “In this globalized era, it is easy to lose one’s identity. We Sindhis are close-knit community and make the best of such occasions to celebrate our togetherness,” says Karisma Peswani.
After day-long prayers associated with a series of rituals, evening was the time to break into a song-and-dance saga.
One of the traditions is chhej , a Sindhi folk dance similar to the Gujarati dandiya raas . Women in a group, almost all of them above 40, danced in a circle while their doting spouses watched the rare spectacle.
Traditional Sindhi songs were sung and children gave speeches in Sindhi language. The organisers of the event ensured all things Sindhi this year.
