Bengali widows light lamps as part of Diwali celebration, at the Yamuna's Kesi Ghat, in Vrindavan, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024
Credit: PTI Photo
Mathura (UP): Thousands of widows of Vrindavan and women abandoned by their families celebrated Diwali by lighting earthen lamps at the Keshi Ghat of the Yamuna river here on Tuesday.
Dressed in white sarees, the widows also made a colourful rangoli using flower petals.
For 70-year-old Chhavi Dasi, a native of West Bengal, the celebration reminded her of her youth when she celebrated all festivals freely.
Ratami, 69, said she had never thought that she would celebrate Diwali again.
Pushpa Adhikari (74) and Ashoka Rani (60), both from West Bengal, were also visibly happy.
The celebrations were organised by NGO Sulabh Hope Foundation.
Sulabh Hope Foundation vice president Vineeta Verma said, "One of the evil practices that came into the Hindu society was to consider widows inauspicious. They were looked down upon, separated from their families and forced to spend the rest of their lives begging in pilgrimage places like Vrindavan, Varanasi and Haridwar." To counter this social evil, Sulabh’s founder the late Bindeshwar Pathak took a series of steps like celebrating Hindu festivals of Diwali and Holi in Vrindavan about 12 years ago. Sulabh has been organising Diwali celebrations every year since then, Verma said.
Thousands of widows, mostly from West Bengal, are living in Vrindavan. They were not allowed to take part in any rituals till Sulabh International extended a helping hand to them, she said.