Chhath fervour: Youth in Delhi to celebrate with #famjam
Chhath Puja celebrations are in full swing, and joining in the fun are many college students, who’ve stayed back in the city this year. Sharing their excitement to be part of the festival in its original avatar, like the pre-Covid times, some Delhi University students share how they are bonding with their families over festivities.
Celebrated with loads of excitement, by those who belong to the eastern belt of India, Chhath Puja is a festival that holds a lot of significance for many. Seeing the elderly in the family take to the traditions and rituals, the youngsters also feel inspired to pray to the Sun God alongside feasting on delicious home cooked prasad that includes the sweetness of kheer and thekuas!
The festivities have begun, and indulging in the merriment are many youngsters who have stayed back in the Capital this time around, for varied reasons. What brings them together is the excitement to be able to celebrate sans Covid curbs.
‘Iss baar meri daadi, Delhi aa rahi hain’
“Mere ghar mein chhath bahut dhoom dham se manaya jaata hai. Meri dadi karti hain yeh puja, aur iss baar woh Sitamarhi se idhar aa rahi hain, yahin puja karengi,” shares Tulsi Kumari, a final-year student of BSc (Hons) Physical Science with Computer at Shyam Lal College, DU. She’s looking forward to visit a ghat where her relatives could perform the ritual of offering water to the Sun God. Kumari adds, “Waise to jin logon ke ghar mein chhath puja hoti hai, woh apne hometown jana prefer karte hain. Even though all the rituals followed are the same, yahan chhath manane ki ek khasiyat hai ki log jab saath aatein hain, as a community.”
Virtual celebrations to the rescue
“Pehli baar mai apni family se door hoon, during Chhath,” shares Punita Kumari, a final-year student of Mathematics (Hons) at Shaheed Rajguru College of Applied Sciences for Women. She plans to stay back in the city to focus on her studies, and virtually join in all the fun back home in Siwan, Bihar. “The plan is to seek comfort in dishes that are cooked especially during the puja,” says Kumari, adding, “Main iss saal apne ghar nahi jaa paungi, but now that we have seen the worse times, this feels much better for I will celebrate online! Meri ma believes ki agar mann mei shraddha ho toh kahin se bhi aap pray kar sakte ho. Toh jab woh ghat pe jayenge puja karne, toh main bhi idhar Delhi mei baith kar virtually dekh lungi and unke saath shamil ho jaungi... Aur kyuki iss baar main dilli mei hi hun, toh mera plan hai ki mai ghar pe thekua banau, to enjoy the festival.”
Humane side to the festivities
Prithvi Raj Kumar, a final-year student of Hindi (Hons) at Swami Shraddhanand College, says, “Chhath Puja family ke saath manaya jaata hai, and mere ghar mein meri mummy yeh puja karti hain. Iss bar woh Delhi se hi plan kar rahi hain, so hum Mangolpuri mein jo Chhath Park hai, wahan jayenge puja karne.”
Usually those celebrating the festival distribute food among the less fortunate. But Kumar says, “This time we plan to go a step ahead... Maine apne sare doston ko motivate kiya for a blood donation drive; puja ke samay mein karne ke liye. I plan to tell my mummy ki mujhe bag bharke prasad dein jo main dusre logon mei bhi baat sakun taki chhathi maiyya ka aashirwaad sabko mille! I had even told my friends to come over, kyuki unke ghar pe nahi hota hai yeh puja toh unmei bhi bahut excitement hai to see how this festival is celebrated.”
Clean river, healthy city
After partaking the festivities, some city-based youngsters will join hands with NGO Meherbaan India Foundation, which organises regular cleaning drives at the Yamuna. “Since last year, we have been regularly cleaning the river banks, every weekend. After a massive response, YouTuber Flying Beast also took part in one of our cleanliness drives at the embankments,” informs Aleena Rehman, founder of the foundation, sharing that the organisation has planned to conduct a drive after this Chhatth Puja, “Humara plan hai ki first week of November mein hum cleanliness drive karenge, so that we can collect all the non-biodegradable wastes (like polythene bags), after the festivities. For this drive, a number of students from Delhi University and Jamia Hamdard will join us as volunteers. The location, of the drives we conduct, keeps changing because the river bank is so vast. This time we are planning to conduct a drive near Kashmere Gate, and hope more people can join us in this initiative!”
Author tweets Anu_95m