Alfiya Shaikh/Pune

Replicas of three highly revered (Manache) Ganpati idols from Pune are making their way to Jammu and Kashmir for the Ganeshotsav, also called Ganesh Chaturthi. The festival dedicated to Lord Ganesha will be celebrated as a community festival amid renewed threats from terrorist organisations to the Hindus living in the Valley.

This marks the fifth consecutive year of Ganeshotsav celebrations in the Kashmir Valley, a special initiative led by the Shrimant Bhausaheb Rangari Ganpati Trust and other prominent mandals of Pune.

A special ceremony was recently held at the Trust's temple to mark this milestone. During the event, replicas of Pune's prestigious 'Shri Kasba Ganpati', 'Shri Tambdi Jogeshwari', and 'Ganpati Guruji Talim' were officially handed over to the representatives of Ganesh Mandals from Kashmir.

The idols were safely dispatched to the valley after ceremonial worship. They were handed over to Kashmir-based representatives Mohit Bhan, Rishabh Chaku, Shishant Chaku, Sandeep Raina, Sanjeev Raina, Hitesh Raina, and Sandeep Kaul.

Prominent figures from Pune, including Senior Police Inspector Ulhas Kadam, Pravin Pardeshi, Vikas Pawar, Prashant Tikar, and Suraj Thorat, were also present to support this cultural exchange.

Kashmiri Pandits celebrate the Ganesh festival differently. They make roath (Fried sweetened bread), and families pray on one of the designated days of the fortnight beginning on Ganesh Chaturthi (Monday, September 14, 2026), and they call it Pann Dann. Traditionally Kashmiri Hindus celebrate this festival in their homes. However the community celebration on the lines held in Maharashtra and elsewhere has caught up with them in recent years.

Punit Balan, Trustee of the Shrimant Bhausaheb Rangari Ganpati Trust, shared an exciting. He revealed that a six-foot idol of Shri Bhausaheb Rangari Ganpati is also being sent to Anantnag. This massive idol is intended for a proposed Ganesh temple, which is planned to be constructed on a 2,500 sq ft plot in the region.

Explaining his motivation behind reviving the festival, Balan said his Kashmiri friends had shared stories of the festival’s past existence in the valley and how it was eventually discontinued. This inspired him to help restart the tradition in 2022. Highlighting the schedule for this year, he mentioned that Ganeshotsav will be celebrated for one-and-a-half days in Srinagar, and for five days in Anantnag and Kupwara.

The most commendable aspect of this year's festival is the sheer courage of the local organisers. Balan praised their determination, noting that activists had received death threats from terrorist organisations.

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Despite these threats, their enthusiasm to celebrate Ganeshotsav without worrying about their own lives is truly inspiring. The continued support from Pune’s mandals aims to strengthen this tradition and deepen the cultural association with the Kashmir Valley.