Hyderabad:With Ganesh immersion drawing closer, pandal-hopping has gathered pace across Hyderabad, with families and groups of friends visiting Ganesh mandaps late into the night.
The Khairatabad Bada Ganesh witnessed a large turnout on Wednesday as devotees made their final visits before preparations for the immersion begin on Thursday. Devotees were seen visiting pandals even around 2 am.
At the Sir Marwadi Ganesh Utsav Samiti in Sultan Bazaar, organisers have adopted Ramdev Baba as the theme, depicting his history through different stations. Organiser Sumit Rathi said visitors continued to arrive until the early hours to listen to the katha.
Several Ganesh mandaps added to the festive atmosphere by distributing snacks and other treats, including butter dosa, tawa idli, ice cream and goodie bags.
The stretch from Chappal Bazaar to Esamia Bazaar, which has more than a dozen Ganesh idols, drew groups of pandal-hoppers. “We have planned to visit different places from Saturday onwards. This festival is very special and each pandal has a different vibe,” a group of visitors said.
Begum Bazaar, Goshamahal, Gowliguda and Jummerat Bazaar were among the areas that witnessed heavy footfall at night.
At the Riddhi Siddhi pandal in Feelkhana, which has a Vaikuntam theme, Srinivas and Pravalika, who visited with their family, said pandal-hopping had become an annual tradition. “This is an annual trip for us, going from one pandal to another. It is like a pilgrimage for us,” they said.
At Bowrampet in Dundigal, flowers were showered on a Ganesh idol as organisers took it out for immersion.
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