[Photo Sparks] Creativity and prosperity: YourStory wishes all its readers a happy Ganesh Chaturthi!

PhotoSparks is a weekly feature from YourStory, with photographs that celebrate the spirit of creativity and innovation. In this showcase, we feature some of the amazing designs of statues and idols during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival, and share greetings for prosperity and good luck with our readers!

In the earlier 50 posts, we brought you a wide range of creative photographs from an art fair, world music festival, painting fair, telecom expo, art museum, mobile showcase, math museum, social hackathon, bookstore, co-working space, sensorium, international design week, flower show, outdoor ads, startup roadshow, computer museum, startup T-shirts, business cards, art therapy, startup festival, Vesak, jazz festival, modern art gallery, ecopreneurs, painter-poets, health activists, eNGOs and digital innovators.

The Ganesh Chaturthi festival is hugely popular in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa and other parts of India (also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi or Chavath). It is celebrated with gusto by NRIs, particularly in the UK, US, Canada and Mauritius. Statues of the elephant god are found overseas as well, in Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand and Indonesia. (See also my photo essays on creative designs of Diwali rangoli and Onam pookalam.)

Highlights of the 10-day festival include colourful idols of Lord Ganesha in homes and public pandals, sweets like modaka and karanji, evening arati and cultural programmes, and the procession during immersion. Increasing urbanisation and pollution have also led to calls each year to make ‘eco friendly’ statues, without plaster-of-Paris and chemical paints.

The creativity of the artisans making the idols continues to amaze and delight year after year, with innovative (and even humorous!) themes and designs, as this photo essay from Bangalore shows. Lord Ganesha is worshipped before commencing any new venture, and graces many a wedding invitation card and taxi dashboard as well. He is associated with power, wisdom, prosperity, good luck, removal of obstacles, and resolution of complex situations.

Today, YourStory begins the eighth year of our journey – and we wish all our readers a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi and a prosperous year ahead!

Got a creative photograph to share? Email us at [email protected]!

See also the YourStory pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups,’ accessible as apps for Apple and Android devices.