The Dance of Dandiya and the Spirits of Navratri in Mumbai!

Navratri is a celebration of Ma Durga's victory over demons and it is celebrated in full grandeur in the city of dreams. Let's witness the Navratri in Mumbai through the lenses of some artists.

Get ready to groove to the beats of drums and shake your legs till you are done because the festival of dance is here. As the city gears up for the festival of Navratri, we have artists who will be putting up the show this year across various venues in Mumbai. Well-known singers like Aishwarya Majmudar and Nilesh Thakkar, narrate their side of stories to Local Samosa as the festival of light and liveliness takes the ramp. 

The nine-day festival is just around the corner and Mumbai gears up for the same. Stages are set and artists are ready to make people dance to the beats. For some Navratri is an emotion and for some, it is a platform to perform the musical magic. Singer Aishwariya Majumdar says, “Navratri is a festival of music that elevates us and brings us joy.” She started her journey with Navratri 8 years ago but is performing for the first time in Mumbai with her band Rangtaali in Borivali. The band of 30 members is excited to perform in front of a new crowd as they have been performing in Gujarat for the past few years. Along with the location, the way of celebrating Navratri has also changed and in the singer's opinion, music has become more modernized, steps have become differently elaborated and people dance in a more Bollywood-inspired fashion.  

Another sensation Nilesh Thakkar is also excited to continue his reign in Mumbai. People will be able to witness the Navrang Navratri with Nilesh Thakkar and his band Saaz The Beat at Borivali this year. The singer has been performing in Mumbai for years now and says, “There is no better crowd than Mumbai to perform Navratri and we thoroughly enjoy doing it every time.” In his tenure of 32 years, he has witnessed many phases of the celebrations. Earlier Navratri used to happen only in societies and buildings. “Organizing back then was not so professional and it used to happen on a smaller scale but in recent years everything has become well organized and artists get the recognition they deserve,” he adds. Despite the scale, Navratri has always entertained and brought people together.

Nilesh recalls one incident that happened to him some 7 years back when he was performing Navratri at Kora Kendra Grounds in Borivali, Mumbai. “We were performing in Navratri and there was heavy rainfall on both sides of the ground but the area where we were playing the band and the crowd was dancing was completely dry,” such is the divinity of the Ma Durga he says. 

Mumbai truly comes to light during this festival and it unites the people of the city through dance. The grander continues for 10 days and if you want to witness the events you can look out for garba events on Paytm Insider and get grooving.