Janmashtami 2020: DIY costumes and homemade décor for Lord Krishna this year

While everyone is missing the enthusiasm of matki phod and elaborate chappan bhog at the temples, people in

Madhya Pradesh

are trying to keep up the Janmashtami fervour in whatever little ways they can. To avoid the risk of exposure to COVID-19, citizens are making

festival costumes

and décor for the ceremonies at home itself. Using all the craft material available at home, and upscaling last year’s decorative items, citizens are set to celebrate a complete DIY Janmashtami.

Putting craft material to good use

The extra glitter tubes, colourful beads, gota, ribbons, satin cloth and other craft material stuffed in your stationery cupboard needs to come out now. Anjali Joshi, an engineering student from

Indore

, explains how she has been using her craft material. “Every time I used to visit the stationery or Pooja wali gully in Indore’s old city market, I would invariably pick up pretty beads, paper cut flowers, glitter tubes and lace borders. It’s all coming in handy for preparing birthday costumes for Balgopal. We even made a jhula for him using these items.” In Bhopal, social worker Ajudhya Godara has been utilising the time at her farmhouse by making DIY dress for her Lord Krishna idol. “I had a lot of décor material left after making handmade rakhis. So, I decided to make costumes for Lord Krishna from the same, without buying anything more.”

Repurposing old clothes for the decoration

This time, many have also got an opportunity to repurpose their old clothes and fabrics into DIY festival costumes for the idol. Textile artist Reba Rai from Bhopal is making clothes for the Lord Krishna idol for the first time, and she feels that the process has made her connect with the festival more. “I had time at my disposal this time and so, I decided to create a costume for Lord Krishna using a piece of silk blouse that I had. I also made two little pillows for the idol to rest. It was an interesting hour-long process and I am looking forward to adding more home-made elements to other festivals now,” she says.

Bonding over DIY sessions

For many families, the run-up to Janmashtami has become a bonding exercise. “Due to college and other social engagements, I never really sat down with my grandparents or parents to prepare for the festival. It was just about attending the puja and relishing the prasad earlier. However, this year, I learnt how to stitch borders on the idol’s costume and string beads to make jewellery from my dadi. I even assisted my mother in preparing for the elaborate bhog,” adds Anjali. Likewise, Shouvik Dabral, a final year MBA student, also learnt to decorate the ceremonial jhula for the festival. “For every festival we would buy readymade flowers and garlands for decoration. This year, I assisted my granduncle in his garden. And as our labour bore flowers in abundance, we are preparing garlands for the jhula décor together. We bonded over that and his childhood memories of the festival,” says Shouvik.

- Inputs by Farzana.Patowari1@timesgroup.com