Ganesh Festival

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated all over India, the festival is most extravagant at Mumbai and Pune. Traditionally a household affair, it was converted into a public celebration a century ago when the freedom fighter Lokmanya Tilak, used it to unite the masses for the freedom struggle. Ganesh (or Ganpati as he is often affectionately called) is, after all, the remover of obstacles. At the end of 11 day festival, plaster and clay images of Ganesh, some of them 6m high, are taken from home to street mandals (shrines) and carried in huge processions to be immersed in the river.