Nagpur's 145-year-old Marbat tradition draws global spotlight with Fadnavis, envoys, Bollywood stars

Nagpur city's 145-year-old and historic Marbat tradition received international recognition for the first time this year, with Bollywood artists and consuls from different countries attending the festival for the first time. Guests enjoyed the folk tradition to the beat of dhol-tasha, with the Yellow Marbat organised by the Tarhane Teli community, the Black Marbat organised by the Kali Marbat Utsav Samiti, and the Badgya organised by the Vividh Badgya Ayojan Samiti.

Those present on the occasion included Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Guardian Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Minister of State for Finance and Planning Ashish Jaiswal, MLAs Krishna Khopde, Mohan Mate, Praveen Datke and Dr Rajeev Potdar, Mayor Nita Thakre, French Consul Patrick Levrino, Norwegian Consul Monica Nyglegard, Finnish Consul Petra Theman, actor Jackie Shroff, director Subhash Ghai, cricketer Umesh Yadav, actor Ankush Chaudhari, Deputy Mayor Leela Hathibed, Standing Committee Chairperson Shivani Dani-Vakhare, ruling party leader Narendra "Balya" Borkar, Divisional Commissioner Vijayalaxmi Bidari, Police Commissioner Vishwas Nangare Patil, Municipal Commissioner Dr Vipin, senior corporator Abha Pandey, Sports Committee Chairperson Darshana Dhawad, former mayors Dayashankar Tiwari and Archana Dehankar, along with Sam TV editor Nilesh Khare, ABP Majha editor Sarita Kaushik, chef Vishnu Manohar and graphic designer Vivek Ranade.

The Chief Minister and Mayor, along with the consuls of France, Norway and Finland, showered flowers on the Yellow Marbat procession. Thousands gathered at Chitar Oli Chowk chanted "Ida Pida Gheun Ja Ge... Marbat..." in celebration.

The Marbat festival has a 145-year history. The Nagpur Municipal Corporation took the initiative to give this local tradition and culture national and international recognition, successfully organising the Marbat festival at this scale for the first time this year. Guests thanked the corporation for realising this unique idea and for Nagpurkars having preserved the tradition for a century and a half, and praised the corporation's vision of giving the festival a global character.

Speaking as chief guest, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the effort to give Nagpur's tradition a global form deserved praise. He congratulated the municipal corporation for the successful organisation of the Marbat festival under Mayor Nita Thakre's vision and the guidance of Deputy Mayor Leela Hathibed, Standing Committee Chairperson Shivani Dani-Vakhare, ruling party leader Narendra "Balya" Borkar and Sports Committee Chairperson Darshana Dhawad. He said the Marbat festival has a 145-year historical tradition and that the corporation had given it good publicity worldwide by turning it into a form of cultural tourism. The Chief Minister also expressed hope that the hardships of the common people of Maharashtra, especially the drought, would be resolved, and encouraged the organisers of the Badgya-Marbat festivities.

Kali Marbat, Pili Marbat and Badgya, celebrated the day after Pola, are an integral part of Nagpur's folk culture. The folk tradition is celebrated with fanfare every year with the aim of curbing bad and harmful forces in society and strengthening good forces. After the meeting of the Black and Yellow Marbat, people from both sides embrace and congratulate each other.

The consuls of France, Norway and Finland watched and thoroughly enjoyed the Black Marbat procession that set out from Nehru Putla. Many people took photographs and captured the moment on their mobile phones. This is where the Black Marbat meets the Yellow Marbat, which sets out from Jagnath Budhwari; after this, both processions pass through different parts of the city before being immersed in a lake. The Badgya, which sets out from Maskasath, also joins this procession. Marbats are taken out from different parts of the city, each with a different theme.

This time the Badgya's theme was based on Pakistan's Field Marshal Asim Munir. Describing Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has always spoken the language of war against India, as a "failed marshal", the Badgya was taken out.

As soon as actor Jackie Shroff said "Beedu" in his familiar style, the crowd was filled with a different kind of energy. When the chant of "Ida Pida Gheun Ja Ge...!" was raised, those present responded with "Marbat", immersing the entire atmosphere in celebration. Jackie Shroff also danced at the crowd's request and won people over by joining in the chants. Many people took selfies with him.

At the start, Mayor Nita Thakre welcomed Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis by presenting him a memento of the Marbat festival and a stole of honour. Guardian Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, all the consuls, actor Jackie Shroff, Subhash Ghai and cricketer Umesh Yadav were welcomed in the same manner. Speaking to reporters, all the guests praised the municipal corporation and other organisers for the event. The entire programme was conducted by Standing Committee Chairperson Shivani Dani-Vakhare. This first Marbat festival organised by the corporation received a tremendous response from citizens.

On Friday, September 11, French Consul Patrick Levrino, Norwegian Consul Monica Nyglegard, Finnish Consul Petra Theman, actor Jackie Shroff, director Subhash Ghai, cricketer Umesh Yadav, actor Ankush Chaudhari, editor Nilesh Khare and editor Sarita Kaushik arrived at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, where they were welcomed with bouquets of flowers.

Cricketer Umesh Yadav was moved to see the tremendous enthusiasm of people at the Marbat festival. He said it was a very exciting moment for him and that such unique things can happen only in the city of Nagpur. He expressed hope that Nagpur's traditional and cultural heritage would reach the world, and said Nagpur is no longer a small city but has become a big, progressing city.

Subhash Ghai said very few people know that Nagpur is his birthplace, which is why he has a special bond with the city. He said the Marbat festival has been celebrated in Nagpur for the past 145 years.