No license to thrill

The Supreme Court ruling has the mandals worried that it will deprive the festival of its thrill factor

Children scrambling onto each other’s backs, forming a human pyramid to reach the dahi handi tied at a vertiginous spot — this is a common sight in the city during the Janmashtami celebrations. But this time round, things will be different. With the Supreme Court ruling restricting the height of the dahi handi human pyramid to 20 feet, popular pandals in the city are ruing that it would deprive the festival of its thrill factor. The court ruling has also restricted the age limit of the participants to 18 years, minimum.

Arun Patil, who has been a human pyramid coach for 35 years now, feels that the verdict will force pandals to stop organising the festival altogether. Arun, who is also the president of Dahi Handi Samanvey Samiti, says, “We respect the decision but I also think they have taken us back to 1984 when we would make 3-4 storey pyramids without any practise. The accidents back then were serious because we did not practise. We have over 900 mandals from across the city under the aegis of Dahi Handi Samanvey Samiti and everyone is upset with the decision. The state government gave Dahi Handi the title of an adventurous sports and which sport doesn’t have injuries ”

Priyanka Avdhurchari from Girgaon Mahila Pathak, one of the city’s women govinda troupes is now finding it difficult to find girls to be part of the mandal. “Where and how does the court expect us to find 18-year old girls who are light in weight and are willing to perform at such a short notice We have been asking people to recommend names, but we are unable to find any girls. The whole excitement has worn off, we wait for this day every year to celebrate and now the whole thrill is gone with this verdict,” she says.

For spectators, the excitement of watching children make pyramids was one of the prime reasons to step out of their houses to see the spectacle unfold, points out Girgaon resident Kajal Patil. “The whole highlight of the festival is going with your family to watch little govindas break the matki, their sheer determination and grit gave the whole festival a different fervour. Now with 18-year olds, I wonder who will climb the highest level because they won’t be light. It would’ve been better had there been an age limit for each level instead of a blanket limit for all. Also, now that the handis won’t be placed so high, it won’t be fun anymore to watch. I might as well see one in my locality instead of travelling with my family to see the special challenges.”

Agrees Dombivali resident Sagar Dhage, who says, “Such verdicts simply hamper the excitement. For kids it’s a major source of fun and pandals also make sure that they use enough safety measures. It was more of a community get-together and that will get affected now. Instead of limiting the thrill with such verdicts, the government should ensure safety measures are in place, like for instance have an ambulance handy at all venues, just in case there is a mishap,” he says.

The 20-feet rule means that now the human pyramid will only have four layers instead of the erstwhile nine layers. “People come from all over the world to watch it and it’s an important part of the city’s culture fabric. Who will be willing to organise a big level festival if on 3-4 storeys are seen in every galli We practise for months and wait for this day. Now with this judgment, no one is willing to participate,” Arun says.