Navaratri is a major Hindu festival celebrated in various ways across the country every year. Different states of the country have different names and customs for celebrating this festival. In southern India, Navaratri is celebrated with a unique tradition called Bombe Habba, or Golu (Kannada), Bommala Koluvu (Telugu), Bommai Kolu (Tamil), or simply Dasara dolls. This tradition involves a toy festival that is celebrated by families across Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
The festival lasts 10 days and culminates on Vijayadashami, or Dasara, when Goddess Durga won the battle against the demons (asuras) after fighting for 9 days. In Karnataka, the festival is also known as the Dasara Doll Festival.
The Dasara Doll Festival of Karnataka
The Dasara doll festival is celebrated in Karnataka through an exhibition of various dolls and figurines arranged as per custom. The dolls are arranged and exhibited on a stepped platform having an odd number of steps or tiers (usually 7, 9 or 11) and usually covered with a white or light-coloured cloth. Many households use nine steps to display dolls, signifying the nine nights of Navaratri. People ritually worship the dolls during the celebrations.
The main dolls of the festival are a pair depicting a husband and a wife. They are called Pattada Gombe or Pattath bommaikal. Her parents hand this set of main dolls to a daughter during her marriage ceremony. They present them to the new bride to start her own family and continue the festival’s tradition.
The Pattada Gombe pair is a set of traditional wooden dolls. These dolls are dressed colourfully using paper or silk textiles. The main pair of dolls is always dressed in traditional attire. Tradition usually reserves the first step of the platform for miniature idols or dolls depicting gods and goddesses. Generally the idols of Rama, Lakshmana, Seeta, Krishna, Radha, Shiva, Vishnu, Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati, etc. are used in this festival. It is also customary to have a few wooden dolls in the collection.
Dasara Doll Steps -The Arrangement of Dolls on the Tiers
Every home selects an auspicious time to begin the doll festival. The dolls are arranged as per a specific order on the tiers or steps. The hierarchy starts with the Gods being placed at the top tiers and ends with mortals of earth placed at the lower tiers of the platform.
Steps 1 to 3: The first three steps are dedicated to figurines or idols of Gods and Goddesses. These steps hold idols of various gods and goddesses.
Steps 4 to 6: The next three steps are used to arrange dolls depicting demigods, great saints or kings and queens. Due importance is given to the Mysore kings during this festival, and their miniature forms are generally seen placed on these steps.
Step 7: This step is devoted to showcasing Hindu festivals, celebrations and occasions.
Step 8: This step is decorated with scenes from everyday life, such as a park, a shop, a vegetable vendor, etc.
Step 9: The last step usually depicts the evolution of mankind or living things.
There is no hard-and-fast rule for arranging the dolls. Each household generally increases or decreases the number of stairs based on the rows or tiers needed to display the dolls available to them.
The History Associated with the Doll Festival
Legend says Goddess Durga waged war against the demon Mahishasura. To help her, all the Gods and Goddesses gave her their powers. As the Gods and Goddesses became powerless, they stood as statues. Durga triumphed over Mahishasura on the 10th day of the war, which is celebrated as Dashara. To honour the self-sacrifice of these deities, people observe the doll festival by worshipping the Gods and Goddesses in the form of dolls. This custom is believed to have been prevalent since the Vijayanagar kingdom.
Customs Followed in the Doll Festival
Most households follow a theme when arranging dolls. Some households follow a simple and traditional theme while some follow elaborate and extravagant ways of presenting their dolls. People use their creativity to showcase their collection in a unique and attractive manner. Some people depict stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata on the rows of the platform. These days, people also exhibit the dolls with modern themes like saving the environment or reducing pollution, etc.
Every year people add a new set of dolls to their collection. As a result, the collection grows every year in each household. The dolls are passed on from one generation to the next. As such, some families have dolls that are more than 100 years old.
During the 10-day period, people invite friends and family to visit and enjoy each family’s unique doll exhibition. Every day, the family presents an offering to the dolls, which is distributed among family members, neighbours, and guests as prasad.
Significance of the Doll Festival celebration
Karnataka follows the doll festival in a way that is rooted in tradition and introduces the new generation to the rich culture and mythology of the land. It also seeks divine blessings and entertains children during the Dasara festival.
The craft of traditional doll making is diminishing by the day. Mysore becomes a land of dolls during Dasara. The festival keeps the craft of wooden and clay doll-making alive and lets grown-ups become children for a few days each year.
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