The roads of Hyderabad market are glittering with rangoli colours ahead of the Makar Sankranti festival. A rangoli is a colourful and creative expression of Indian art. Rangoli pattern is an art form originating in the Indian subcontinent in which patterns are created on the floor or ground using materials such as coloured rice, dry flour, coloured sand or flower petals.
While speaking to the media, one of the sellers of the Rangoli colours, Hari, said, “We bring the colours from Begum Bazar and sell them every year. At present, the sale is low but it gets higher on January 13 and 14. Due to the inflation, I am selling a 250-gram colour pack for Rs 10 and a 1 kg pack for Rs 40. We get 15 rupees as profit on selling 1 kg of colours.”
A female colour seller, Madhu, from the Puranapul area, said, “We buy colours from different places and sell them to people. I have been selling colours for 7-8 years. We have 25 varieties of colours. And not only colours, we sell fruits and flowers as well. The colours market is not so good nowadays as compared to previous years.”
A retailer in the Himayathnagar area, B Laxman Lal, while speaking to the media, said, “I do seasonal business for Sankranti. We also sell kites and all rangoli-related items, like rangoli designs and other things. These things are brought from different places, like Delhi and Mumbai. The purchasers come from different places to buy these rangoli designs. The sales are good this year as the school children are showing more interest in buying these colours and kites.”
A prominent festival on the Indian calendar, devotees make offerings to the Hindu deity Surya on Makar Sankranti. The day marks the first day of the sun’s transit into the Makara, marking the end of the winter solstice and the start of longer days.
Observed on January 14 every year, the festival is known by various names in different parts of the country, such as Pongal, Bihu, and Maghi. Devotees in several parts of the country performed rituals at different ghats.
In Gujarat, the festival is celebrated as Uttarayan as it marks the first day of the sun’s transit into the Makara. The State is well-known for its International Kite Flying Festival. After finishing their morning prayers, people gather on their terraces with colourful kites.
During the kite flying festival, people are often heard shouting “Kai Po Che” to the losing team. Aside from that, people eat delicacies like Chikki, which is made of sesame seeds and peanuts, and Undhiyu, which is made of winter vegetables.
Also known to strengthen the bond of friendship, this festival is all about making khichdi, kite flying, sesame sweets, and coconut laddoos. Makar Sankranti marks a message, that the winter season is now clearly, leaving.
(with inputs from ANI)
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