“As a child, I would wait throughout the year for Bathukamma, my favourite festival, because I could wear new clothes and meet all my friends and relatives at one place.

We would wake up early in the morning and the men in our family help us to gather all kinds of flowers to make the Bathukamma, like Thangedu puvvulu, Gunugu puvvulu, Banthi puvvulu, Adavi Chamanthi pulu, Gummadi puvvulu, Vaamma puvvulu etc. Each of these flowers has medicinal value.

We worship Goddess Gowri and seek her blessings for the prosperity of crops and our lives. During the nine days of the festival, women of all ages gather in large numbers in the street with their Bathukammas. We form a circular group keeping our Bathukammas in the middle and celebrate the occasion by singing folk songs and claps. Each day of the Bathukamma has a name signifying the type of naivedyam. The first day of the Bathukamma festival is called Engili Pula Bathukamma and it falls on Pethara Amavasya.

While there are many stories regarding the purpose of the Bathukamma festival, I think that this festival is all about cleaning the evil thoughts in our minds and kick-starting our lives with a positive approach for a prosperous future.”