International Ganesh Festival 2023 Day 3: Darshan At Revered Ganesh Pandals, One And Half Day Visarjan At Chowpatty

Ganesh Chaturthi in Maharashtra is way more than just a religious celebration, it is a cultural extravaganza, partly undescribable for the spirit that takes over. My first Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai and the celebrations were grand, to say the least, with lanes dotted with pandals, processions accompanied with music and dancing, festive food offerings, and everything coming together like a beautiful melody.

Iconic Ganpati Darshan Experiences

When I got to know that Maharashtra Tourism has a day dedicated to Ganpati Darshans for the group, I was sure that it would go grandeur. It began with darshan at the Siddhivinayak Temple, one of the most visited and revered Lord Ganesha temples in the country. Thanks to the seamless arrangements we got easy access to the sanctum. We also went live from the temple to give a glimpse of our darshan experience, if you missed watching it, click here.

Next, it was time for Ganesh Galli Mumbaicha Raja, the famous Ganesh Galli area in Mumbai known for its innovative pandal designs, and this time, the locals kept it around Chandrayaan 3 to celebrate India's big win.

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The day's darshan ended with the respected GSB (Goud Saraswat Brahmin) community, a Seva Ganesh Mandal, well-known in Mumbai. After speaking to a member of the community, we got to know that the grand Ganpati idol was embellished with around 69 kilos of gold and 300 kilos of silver. It was truly a blessed day with the smooth darshan affairs at all the pandals.

One And A Half Day Visarjan

It was a divine happening that I got to be a part of not just the Ganpati sthapna but the visarjan too. Ganesh Chaturthi visarjan durations vary based on the local customs and beliefs. For the one-and-a-half-day visarjan, we headed to the Girgaon Chowpatty, along with the Queen's necklace. It was a rush area with families bringing in their Bappa idols decorated with garlands. I got lucky enough to witness the last Ganpati aarti happening before the visarjan by a family. 'Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya' (O Lord Ganesha, please return quickly next year) chanted the families as they bid farewell to Bappa.

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More updates and videos from the International Ganesh Festival 2023, organised by Maharashtra Tourism are up on our website and social media handles, don’t forget to check them out!