There are many great festivals celebrated in India, and Ganesh Chaturthi is just one of them. The month-long celebration takes place in the monsoon season and the images are colorful and beautiful to behold. Baby Ganeshas (or Ganpati) literally dot the city everywhere you look! Although other parts of India celebrate this festival as well, it’s best enjoyed in Mumbai which is one of the oldest cities. Ganesh Chaturthi (also known as Vināyaka Caturthī or Āvani Gṛhṇa) is an annual celebration in honor of the elephant-headed Hindu ***, Ganesha. Ganesh Chaturthi typically falls sometime between the months of August and September, and lasts for 10 days. Mumbaites celebrate this festival with great zeal and enthusiasm. Miniature statues, or idols, of Lord Ganesh are immersed into water bodies at the end of the celebrations during Visarjan (immersion). Lord Ganesha is regarded as the patron saint of Maharashtra, and approximately 600 to 6,000 idols are commissioned in Mumbai every year. This is an astonishing number when you realize that there are over 1 billion Hindus in India alone!
