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| Dasara - Mysore's tryst with history (Video below) |
October 23, 2015, NewsCrunch
Mysore Dasara has a majestic history of more than 400 years. Closely associated with Wodeyars, the kings of Mysore, the city celebrates the 10-day festival with cultural and religious fervour.
The festivities, which culminate with a jamboo savari or elephant procession on Vijayadashami, is indeed a walk down the memory lane.
An hour long documentary captures the different facets of this long running tradition, which flowered under royal patronage.
It brings alive centuries of myth and legacy with a narration rich in anecdotes.
Raja Wodeyar, who revived Dasara, decreed that the festivities would not be interrupted even if there is a death in the royal family. Ironically, his will was tested by the death of his eldest son Nanjaraja in 1610.
Raja Wodeyar kept his grief private and ordered the Kingdom to celebrate Dasara as in any other year.