Mysuru Dasara To Have 18 Elephants This Year; Tusker Abhimanyu To Carry Golden Howdah

Mysuru Dasara is a 10-day festival celebrated in the state of Karnataka. The festival starts with nine nights called Navratri and culminates on Vijayadashami or the tenth day. In this regard, the forest department is gearing up for the world-famous festival this year. The department is busy with the guard selection process, and 18 elephants have been identified for the celebrations. The Gajapade will arrive in Mysuru two months before the Dasara celebrations. It is contemplated to launch Gajapayana on August 9 or 11. This year, four additional elephants will be selected under the leadership of DCF Sharanbasappa, and preparations are being made to call 18 elephants for the celebrations.

Among the elephants, nine will arrive in Mysuru in the first phase, and preparations are underway to bring five elephants in the second phase. Popular Dasara elephant Abhimanyu will carry the golden howdah or the Chinnada Ambari this year. According to the possibilities, Abhimanyu, Bhima, Ekalavya, Varalakshmi, Dhananjaya, Gopi, Rohitha, Varalakshmi and Kanjan elephants will arrive in the first phase, and Prashantha, Sugriva, Mahendra, Lakshmi, and Hiranya are likely to arrive in the second phase.

Dussehra is celebrated with grandeur in every city of the country, but Mysuru Dasara is famous all over the world. The reason for this is that the festival is celebrated grandly in Mysuru for about 10 days. The entire city is decorated with colourful lights for this celebration. People from all over the country reach the cultural city to celebrate Nada Habba.

The 10-day Dussehra festival commemorates the slaying of Mahishasura by Goddess Chamundeshwari, an incarnation of Goddess Durga. She is said to have killed the demon Mahishasura after a ten-day battle. As a celebration of this, a 10-day Nada Habba is celebrated.

The history of Mysuru Dasara is connected with the history of the city of Mysuru, which dates back to the time of the Vijayanagara Empire in mediaeval South India. Founded in the fourteenth century by two brothers named Harihara and Bukka, the festival was then called Mahanavami in this state. This nearly six-century-old festival was named Dasara by Krishnaraja Wodeyar, a popular ruler of the Wodeyar dynasty.