Navaratri is a nine day festival celebrated in India to honor the Mother Goddess in all her avatars. Celebrated every year in the month of September-October. It consists of the main rituals of placing the idol or image of the Goddess in homes and temples and immersed in water after the nine days of Navaratri. It is one of the festivals celebrated across the length and breadth of India, though this celebrations in one part of the country is quite different than the other. With various customs and traditions, each region of India has its own unique way of celebrating the Navaratri by honouring the various forms of Mother Goddess with their own rituals and ceremonies.
Navaratri is also celebrated in Tamil Nadu as a religious celebration to seek the blessings of Goddess Durga, Goddess Lakshmi and Goddess Saraswati in the nine special nights. These three goddesses are worshipped for three days each. Friends, relatives and neighbours are invited and clothes, jewelleries, sweets and other gifts are exchanged among them. One interesting feature as a part of the celebration is the decoration of the “Kolu” which is actually a staircase having 9 stairs, representing the 9 nights and each stair is decorated with beautiful dolls, and idols of gods and goddesses. It is said that the dolls that are used in Kolu and handed over from generation to another.
It is a strange fact that even today people in Karnataka celebrate the 9 nights of Navratri in the same manner as that was celebrated way back in 1610 by the great Vijayanagara dynasty. Navaratri is known as “Naada Habba” in Karnataka. The rituals include elephants’ procession on the streets, including fairs and exhibitions of handicrafts and artefacts.