Dussehra celebrations go off with few hitches despite Tuesday rains

Despite the sudden inclement weather on Tuesday, which triggered fears of sparse crowds and fizzing fireworks, Dussehra committees saw packed crowds on Wednesday to witness the burning of Ravana. Although rain damage could be seen on effigies, celebration largely went off without a hitch across the city.

"We had an elaborate show planned to burn Ravana, fireworks were supposed to come out of the eyes and ears. It did not happen entirely as planned, but effort was made to ensure that the effigy at least burnt," said Jatinder Bhatia of the Shri Badri Kedar Ramlila Committee in Sector 46.

Organisers said they had made arrangements, in terms of plastic sheets, to protect the effigies but were caught unaware. "Even a little moisture can drench the effigies. Luckily for us, we hadn't filled our effigy with fireworks and it was burnt as per our plans," said Sunil Sharma of the Shri Ram Leela Committee in Sector 17.

Organisers say that they missed performing important scenes of Ramlila yesterday night as the audience dispersed. "Our important scenes were delayed and others had to be canceled because of the rains. The schedule for today was completely packed and difficult to accommodate additional scenes," says Naresh Bhagat from Jai Saraswati Shri Ramlila Committee sector 24. He says that the audience scattered and a child artist fainted allegedly either due to an electric shock due to the rain or the chaos that ensued after the rains.

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