Click to play videoChennai: It's Navaratri and in Chennai, it's the time when women, irrespective of whether they can sing or not are given a chance to perform.
The evenings are spent sitting and watching the Golu - an arrangement of dolls on steps. And after chitchat, comes the singing where the old and the young, the trained and the untrained, everyone is expected to sing.
Rupa Ramesh, a mother of two, spends her evenings jumping from one house to another. Sitting and chatting is a luxury she can't afford.
“I still have to go to some four to five houses here. They ask me to sit and sing, but I don't have time. I also have my own Golu at home, and have asked people to come home,” says Rupa.
Meghala R adds, “People have office work, plus there are several practical problems like traffic. So, even though we ask people to sing, they don't have time as they are in a hurry.”
While some traditions like singing are on the wane, others are still practised thereby making sundal, a tasty dal preparation specially during Golu and giving away the customary vetala-pak - betel leaves along with some gifts are customs which are not missed even today.
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