Amidst the grand Ganeshas of Khetwadi, a 35-feet high saree-clad avatar of the deity in a pandal on 3rd Cross Lane is intriguing devotees. Visitors seek out pandal workers to find out the story behind the Ganpati in a purple saree, flanked by images of Lord Shiva and a demon.
Jaganath Bhosale, secretary of the pandal, called 'Khetwadicha Sukhkarta' patiently explains to visitors the story behind Vinayaki, the shakti or feminine form of Lord Ganesha. The Ganesh Purana, the story of the deity, says that a demon desired Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva was unsuccesful in destroying the evil force that traumatised his wife. “Lord Shiva injured the demon with his spear but the blood spilled from the wound spawned more demons. A young Ganesha watched his parents' plight and assumed the female avatar of Vinayaki. The reason why he assumed a female form is because it is believed that a woman's rage knows no boundaries,” said Bhosale.
The Vinayaki Ganesha | FPJ/ Manoj Ramakrishnan
The sarvajanik mandal | FPJ/ Manoj Ramakrishnan
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Other Khetwadi giants | FPJ/ Manoj Ramakrishnan
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The purana says that Vinayaki sucked in the blood splattered by the wounded demons with his trunk and ended the scourge of the demon. “This is the story in the purana. However, we are using the story to tell women that they should not embrace any boundaries. Goddess Vinayaki is from the puranas, but we have modern women like Ahilyabai Holkar, Rani Laxmibai, Jijamata, and Sindhutai Sakpal (a social worker who cared for abandoned girls and women) to guide the modern woman,” said Bhosale.
The elephant-headed goddess is known by various names, Stri Ganesha,Vainayaki, Vighneshvari, and Ganeshani, all of them feminine forms of Ganesha's epithets. Vinayaki is sometimes also seen as the part of the sixty-four yoginis. Jain and Buddhist traditions also talk of an elephant-headed goddess. There is a temple dedicated to the deity in Pune.
The pandal at 3rd Khetwadi Cross Lane was established in 1968 and this is its 57th year. The pandal's Ganesha assumes various avatars. In 2023, the deity took the form of Khandoba, a manifestation of Shiva worshipped in a shrine in Jejuri, Maharashtra.
Khetwadi, a locality of 14 streets and several cross lanes have some of the highest densities of sarvajanik or community Ganesh pandals in the city. The Ganeshas here are also among the tallest in the city, with the one on 8th Lane claimed to be 40 feet high. “Every lane vies with each other to host the tallest idol and the best decorations. Do not call it a competition but every lane wants to be special,” said Pragnesh Mistry of the 2nd and 3rd Cross Lanes pandal which hosts the Khetwadi Cha Maharaja, a 25-foot giant.
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The lanes of the locality, where the chawls are being replaced by multi-storeyed buildings, are sometimes too narrow to accommodate their giant guests. Mistry said their pandal was the first to have a 25 feet idol in 1980. “Since then Khetwadi has the tallest Ganeshas in the city,” said Mistry who added that the pandal's idol is wider than the entrance to the lane, requiring the organisers to rotate the 13-feet wide idol sideways to usher it into its 10-day abode.
