New Delhi: People of Indian new state Telangana, celebrated the folk festival Bonalu and Batukamma today with loads of zeal and euphoria.
The festival is dedicated to Hindu goddess Mahakali and is marked to ward off evil and usher in peace and harmony.
While the women cook rice with milk and jaggery in new brass or earthen pots and then carry them on their heads to offer it to Hindu goddess, the artists dress up as various goddesses and mythological characters in the processions and also perform various acts to mark the celebration of the festival.
Daughter of chief minister of southern Telangana state K. Chandrashekhar Rao, Kavitha, also carried earthen pots on her head and congratulated people of the state.
“Bonalu and Batukamma are two indigenous Telangana festivals, which are celebrated with great reverence among villages of Telangana in great numbers. Almost every household of Telangana celebrates Bonalu or Batukamma. This is absolutely indigenous and an age old festival of Telangana. After the formation of Telangana state, Telangana state government has given a state festival status to the Bonalu festival. We wish all the Telangana people very hearty congratulations on the Bonalu festival,” said Kavitha.
After Telangana was announced as India's 29th state, on 2nd June, 2014, it's the first grand state festival celebrated in the state and its capital Hyderabad.
The thriving state of Hyderabad will be the common capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for the nest 10 years.
