Second Time in 75 years Rangpanchmi Ger stands canceled in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The covid-19 pandemic has almost completed a year since it caused turmoil in the lives of people and halted their everyday lives. Since the lockdown was lifted, the people have slowly and gradually brought life to track, despite which nothing is as it was before. In 2020, before the lockdown was declared, Rangpanchmi’s Ger was set to happen in full swing, with its usual fanfare at the Rajwada Chowk. The local administration had organized everything for another successful year of Indore’s Rangpanchmi Ger, going as far as inviting the UNESCO committee to review the festival to add it to the UNESCO heritage list. But due to the rising cases of COVID-19, the event was canceled at the last minute.
It is to be noted that the Rangpanchmi Ger is an event that has been celebrated in Indore for 75 years and come what may, it was never canceled. Be it the 1975 emergency in India, or intense and severe riots, and even the time when the city was caught in the vicious claws of draught, Rangpanchmi Ger was the one thing that never ceased. The COVID-19 pandemic though has managed to cancel the event not once but twice. This year the Disaster Management team did a meeting in February end, where they mutually agreed that this year too it would be better for the safety of people to cancel the event. Every year more than 1.5 lakh people jam-pack the square at Rajwada, enjoying throwing colors and celebrating the festival with joy. The view from the top is something to be written about, certainly deserving a mention on the UNESCO list.
The tradition of Rangpanchmi Ger was started by the Holkar Dynasty in ancient times when the people used to collect on the streets for celebrations. There used to be a procession of bullock carts, and people prepared colors from flowers of palash and other herbal items. The tradition followed every year was that the people used to carry these herbal colors with them, and shower them on anyone whom they would come across or spraying water guns full of colored water. The purpose of this was that people irrespective of caste, creed, gender, would celebrate one festival together forgetting all their differences. The tradition was kept alive to date, a testament to the heritage of the city and its people.
We urge all our viewers and followers to support the government and the authorities in their endeavor to fight this pandemic in the country. We urge them to not panic and stay positive and kind to all those who are battling with this virus, stay aware and safe, and assist the authorities in any way you can to prevent further spreading of this virus.
Keep hooked on our website for regular updates of our city Indore and follow our social media handle Indore Talk on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube for creative and amazing content, keeping you up-to-date about the happenings of our city Indore!
Article By: Umme Salma Saifee
