Colourful Pongal starts in southern Orissa

With a sizeable Telugu population in this Orissa-Andhra border town,the festival is celebrated with pomp and gaiety. In some places,Oriyas also joined Telugus to celebrate the festival.

“It’s is the biggest annual festival of Telugu people and they celebrate it across the country in association with others,” said V Satya Narayana.

Besides Berhampur,Telugu dominated villages in and around Goplapur,Chhatrapur and Chikiti in Ganjam district also celebrate the festival with their counter part Oriyas.

On the eve of Pongal,second day of the three-day festival,people in different localities lit traditional bonfire to mark the Bhogi. Telugu girls decorated their houses with colourful rangolis and staged the cultural shows.

Several girls staged Dandia dance at Military Line,in the morning of Bhogi. The girls of different ages staged the Gujarati dance to appease the Lord Krishan and Radha.

“We perform Dandia because of we believe Lord Krishna and Radha like this dance much,” said one of the performers. Bhogi is also marked the closing ceremony of Gobbi,a month-long ritual celebrated by the female folks.

Clad in new dresses,Telugus of all age groups greeted each other. They would distribute “pongali” – food prepared with the newly harvested rice,dal,jaggery,dry fruits,sugar and milk on pongal day tomorrow. Several people here also celebrated pongal.

People celebrate pongal to thank the Sun God. The Pongali cooked in a new clay pot is offered to Sun God and partaken as Prasad. “Pongal is the auspicious day for us and the day to evoke the forefathers of the family and offered food to them,” said Nageswar Rao,a school teacher.

After Shankranti,kanuma is another festival for Telugu farmers. But here,this festival is celebrated in a low key. Kanuma is a festival of farmers when the cattle and the cattle-sheds are cleaned.

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