Dasara Bombe Party - Episode 2

Onward we go, reveling in the gorgeous ethnic splendor of the pictures and stories shared by you this Dasara. Aalayam feels truly honored to be a vehicle to bring your fond Dasara imagery to the world!

Welcome to the Dasara Bombe Party – Episode 2

Deepa Gopalarathnam - Image 1

Deepa Gopalarathnam 

The village in my Golu, which I would like to call Thillaistanam, after my own in my hometown of Thanjavur, depicts a typical morning in a village. The paddy fields are being ploughed by oxen and saplings are being planted, a cartful of grain is ready to be transported on a bullock cart, the vegetable seller is going about her business of selling organic vegetables, typically grown on the small patch of land she owns. 

A family is celebrating Pongal and the Pongal is being made and offered to Surya Bhagavan in front of their home as a thanking gesture for a great harvest that they have been blessed with.

The 2 big dolls are a signature of Tanjavur, the ' Tanjavur Thalai Aati ' bommais that are famous all around the world.

Bhavana - Image 1

Bhavana Hanchimane 

I hail from Karnataka. Dasara, as you know very well, is big in that state. It's our Nada habba. I love the festivities associated with this festival. The dolls, the pooje, the banni leaves ritual....., 

I, too, am in the US and festivals such as these are my links to the good old days.

My dolls/bombes are very close to my heart as I remember who has gifted me each one.

The dashavatara, for instance, was gifted to me by my chikkamma ( younger maternal aunt), The pattadha-bombes by my mom during my wedding, Vasudeva carrying Krishna, by a very close friend of my mom and so on.

When I arrange these dolls, I remember them, the day I received them. Everything. Somehow that makes me feel that they are all a part of my festival here.

My favorite one for this year is my newest addition, Nasreddin Hodja. Remember reading about him in Tinkle?!!  I picked him up on my recent trip to Turkey. He is so adorable and so is his donkey. :) 

Bhavana - Image 2

Prasanna - Image 1

Prasanna Tummala 

Each and every doll/statue of this display is special to me, as each one is collected by my over the years. Living in the country away from where you were born and raised makes it challenging to instill your cultures and traditions within your children. 

But I feel I have passed and blessed when I see my 8 year old little girl creating her own display besides mine.

Deepa Ramakrishnan - Image 1

Deepa Ramakrishnan 

The tradition of Navarathri Golu for me is about celebrating the 'Shakthi' within all of us.I think of it as a time to refocus and channel my inner strength to achieve my dreams by soaking in the positive energy that emanates from the golu. 

I enjoy collecting Ganeshas and I am constantly on the lookout for unique figurines. 

Happy Navarathri! More happiness to you all!

Gayathri - Image 1

Gayathri Sanjay

Dusshera (Golu) is such a creative representation of the Indian epics and also a reminder of the colorful and rich culture we grew up with.  

I'm nostalgic putting together these pieces and being one with such ethnicity

Gowri Vikram and  Shreedevi Rao (Daughter and Mom duo)

This is the picture of the Saraswathi Puja done by my parents today for Navarathri, My mom stitched the saree for her doll which is 62 years old! Her Veena is also 52 years old.

Gowri's mom - Image 1

I want to wish all of you a Happy Saraswathi Habba! Today, I made my kids do the Puja in our home, here's a picture of the Goddess Saraswati, in her resplendent glory!

Gowri - Image 1

It is heartwarming to be able to partake in your festivities, to hear your sweet stories, and to share your enthusiasm! The Dasara Bombe Party was so popular this year at Aalayam, Deepa and I are planning to make this an annual tradition!

Before we go, we want to share with you some more Golu pictures, some that our readers and friends, like Sangeetha and Suchitra shared, and some from Deepa and my Bombe Habba tableaux!

Sangeetha - Image 1

Suchitra - Image 1

Suchitra - Image 2

Suchitra - Image 3

We feel a pang of melancholy that the Habba is drawing to a close this year, but we will sharpen those storyboarding pencils, as we create our "kathas" for next year to set the Bombes on the stage we create, in our homes, with our families!

But for now, enjoy Deepa's rendition of the musical ensemble of Kalaimani Columbus Sisters! 

Replete with Bombe baagina (divine offering) with her mom's scrumptious besan ladoo. 

Deepa - Image 1

And presenting  too the Ashta Lakshmi congregation from Deepa's abode!

Deepa - Image 2

Supriya - Image 1

Finally, the labor of love from my household, this Dasara! 

The Ten-headed Ravana (the ten headed demon king who kidnapped the heroine of Ramayana) take center stage in the Ramayana themed ensemble wall display!!

What fun it was to design the Ravana masks, shop for supplies and put our creative heads (ha ha, pun intended!) together (all girls in the house, including my twin 6 year olds!) to bring the Ravanas to life!

That’s what festivals do, they act as fertile ground for creating memories, for fostering the sense of community and for strengthening relationships (yes, even the tumultuous ones!) .

Happy Dasara everyone! 

Dasara Bombe Party - Episode 1!

Happy Navaratri all!! 

Here’s unfolding Episode 1 of the joyous Dasara Bombe Party!

Thank you all for sending in your pictures and heart felt Dasara Bombe stories to Aalayam. Your pictures and stories are making our Dasara Bombe Habba rich, layered and textured.

And we are blown away by your enthusiasm, zest and passion! Your pictures and stories are reinforcing our belief that we are doing good, to keep up the age-old, but well-worn traditions in these modern times, to suit our convenience, and to fuel our creative energies!

It's so exciting to see various affectionate renderings of the well-loved bombes, and the stories surrounding each picture!! 

Without much ado, I present to the Aalayam family, your Bombe pictures and stories!

Shyla Kodi - Image 1

Shyla Kodi 

Coming from Karnataka, "Mysooru Jumboo Savari"(Dasara procession) is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of Navaraathri. 

Dasara is considered as "Naada Habba" (state festival), which symbolizes the tradition and rich cultural history of the state and Jumboo Savari is a glimpse of that.  

I was thrilled when I found these beautiful, hand painted dolls and decided to display them as main theme for our first gombe habba, home away from home.

Shyla Kodi - Image 2

Soumya Balasubramani 

Navrathri on our home is a season of abundance - of festivity, dolls, dance and of course delicacies. 

I love the whole creative process: setting up, unwrapping the dolls that have been tucked away safely for a whole year, sharing stories about them with my son as we set up and having friends over to share our culture with them. 

Soumya Balasubramani - Image 1

We have been fortunate enough to inherit some dolls that are more than 35 years old from my husband's home as well as mine. We grew up seeing some of these dolls in our golu and it is nostalgic to be able to share them with generation next now. 

Soumya Balasubramani - Image 2

For me it is extremely important to make children feel like they are a part of the process and this year's 'Houston' -complete with NASA, the never ending construction and the Houston zoo by my son is an attempt at that.

Soumya Balasubramani - Image 3

Over the years we have also had friends from different parts of the world give us dolls to add to our collection and it has been wonderful to see our golu grow from Indian to global.

Happy Navrathri to all!

Soumya Balasubramani - Image 4

Gowri - Image 1

Gowri Vikram

Dasara doll festival is celebrated during Navaratri. I want to talk about my Pattada Gombe.

These are a pair of Rosewood dolls which I have dressed very colorfully using paper, silk and sequence material. These dolls are always dressed in traditional attire. Pattada Gombe depicts Lord Narayana and Goddess Lakshmi who take the form of King and Queen (Husband and Wife) and take part in Dasara festivities. 

These Pattada Gombes are the main dolls , and are given special importance in Bombe Habba. These dolls were handed over to me during my wedding by my parents to continue with the tradition of our Bombe Habba.

Suparna - Image 1

Suparna Rao 

My mother has always loved this unique festival of Bombe Habba and this has always been a time of fanfare, enthusiasm and fond memories for me. And over the years, while I have always enjoyed every bit of the process, from the careful unpacking to the loving display, I think Navaratri has taken on a whole new meaning with the arrival of my daughter.

She has inherited my mother's love for the dolls and together, they have spent many a happy hour planning themes and arranging the display. It's so heartening for me to see my mom's happiness at seeing her enthusiasm reflected in her granddaughter's eyes.

We try to add to the collection every year. And there are some old favorites that make an unfailing appearance. But, regardless of what dolls grace our house each year, I am most thankful and blessed for the precious memories being made and bonds that are being strengthened each time October rolls around.

Sridevi - Image 1

Sridevi 

Happy Dasara.

A combination of Music and Yoga is the answer to a blissful life!

Suman - Image 1

Suman

This Golu was special because it was the very 1st Golu we kept in 1998, when my kids were 6 and 4. 

The kids actually decorated the bottom 2 steps. Years later the tradition continues with bigger and grander displays, but the 1st is always the most special.

Amazing right? Poignant, Picturesque and Perfect!! 

This community Dasara celebration is not over yet! 

Just when you thought you had the best time browsing through the images shared by the bombe aficionados around the world, you are in for  more treats in the upcoming  

Dasara Bombe Party - Episode 2 (this episode includes pictures from Deepa and my Bombe display!!) 

Stay tuned!

Love,

Supriya

Dasara Bombe Party at Aalayam!!

Dasara Bombe Habba - Lots of color and a little bit of kitsch!

Dasara inspirations from Deepa's Home

Alright, I am back with more from our Dasara inspiration station. Dear Aalayam readers, whether you chose to let your hair down and get your groove on to the Raas Garbha or chose to set the stage for an eye catching doll display (golu, bommai koluvu, bombe habba) we hope that your Dussehra festivities have gained momentum by now and that you are having a lot of fun as Vijayadashami draws closer.

It’s Navrathri and we pay obeisance to the Divine mother, the indomitable Shakti and venerate the triumph of good over evil in our distinctive ways and resultantly honor mythology, religion and culture.  Previously, we have talked about the role that religion and culture play in helping us embrace our roots.  Ethnic celebrations bring a sense of home.  For those of us who are away from home, we are fondly reminded of the festive fervor in our colorful bazaars and we recollect the festivities with a nostalgic sigh. And so, we give in to the Desi ethos of celebratory gaiety and try to recreate that festive magic at home, wherever home may be.

For me, the doll festival is not an inherited ritual. My parents’ version of Dasara celebrations included Laxmi and Saraswati puja- a simple worshipping of the different feminine embodiments of the Divine but did not include the doll festival. I started the bombe Habba (doll festival) in my married home fairly recently (last year actually – remember this?). 

So, I am still a novice trying to piece together the ins and outs. You can trace the tradition back to diverse legends and customs and I  (thanks to the internet, my mom, aunts and friends) have adapted a version that is fun and convenient!  Why did I decide to make the bombe habba a part of our Dasara tradition? I turn to celebrations as a way of igniting my 11 year old's curiosity about a culture that he is so far removed from and aspire to help him appreciate the beauty and diversity in both cultures. I want him to be able to draw from his own childhood memories as he goes about defining who he is. I guess for most parents like ourselves, who are raising kids in a bi-cultural environment the goal is to have our kids develop an appreciation for their heritage and symbolism as their bicultural identities are shaping up. Festivals are a great way to enable this reconciliation.

 I also love to customize our festivals/holidays and I do this by tapping into the artist in me. I enjoy turning our celebration into a unique combination of cultural antecedents and artistic expression and create an experience we as a family can remember years from now!

So, without much further ado I welcome you all to our Bombe Habba /doll display! Our display this year has lots of color and a little bit of kitsch with spatterings of folk influences!

 I moved it to our study this year and used the same étagère to display my dolls. By simply moving it to another location and using a different wall color as the backdrop – the display already looks different!

You can view pictures from last year’s display here.

Allow me to highlight a few things in our display-

Custom works of art - Took a life of their own as our display came to life! A couple of handcrafted (by me) elephants adorn the top of our display serving as symbolic reminders of the royal elephants (carrying the Chinnada Ambari) of Mysore Dasara. 

My son’s heart-warming rendition of doll festival was an invaluable lesson in expressing oneself.

Handcrafted elephant wall hangings – These are a seemly tribute to the splendor and aristocracy of the parade elephants of the Mysore kings. Incorporating timeless Rajasthani handicrafts was a fun way to turn my Dasara spectacle into a North meets South cultural kaleidoscope!

 Kaali in Madhubani form- The mother represents transcendent power and courage as Kaali. Her charisma and exuberance is rightly captured in this folk art rendition. Pulling pieces from your art collection into your festive tableau is a great way to get some extra mileage out of your favorite pieces.

Heirlooms – I decided it was time to start collecting things that would be looked at as time –worn family treasures years from now, objects that would carry with them a sense of history, meaning and tradition. I love this delicately handcrafted carousel with its vivid colors and tuneful music – I found this on my recent trip to France and knew this would be a wonderful keepsake. It makes a great addition to our “magical” row sharing the space with fairies and knights and another keepsake – the tin Ferris wheel that is a replica of the original 1900’s penny toys. I love the lithographic printing on this timeless toy!

Parade of Gods – Our display this year was a little more tradition heavy than last year as we had what I like to fondly refer to as the “Parade Gods”. After all, Golu or bombe habba is a depiction of all celestial beings standing still while Shakti attempts to reinstate cosmic balance. I hope as my doll collection grows, I can one day have a gorgeous display of luminous idols in gorgeous jewel tones that are all symmetrically laid out (sigh!)

And because everyone’s got to have a favorite…. I have one too! Isn’t this just adorable – if I may say so myself?

Setting up the doll display has taught me that passion, dedication; hard work can all be expressions of worship. Dussehra tells the story of the Divine Mother recreating herself perhaps symbolizing the need for recycling and rejuvenation of our strengths and our spirit! I wish you a peaceful and prosperous time as you celebrate with your own families.

Shubho Bijoya!

Cheers!

~Deepa

P.S: All images are from my home and taken by my husband. Please do not use without permission.