Worries over, Dasara set for big start

Mysore:b Come Thursday and  Mysore will opens its doors to nearly 15 lakh tourists  arriving for the 10 –day cultural extravaganza that will take off with  Jnanpith awardee, Girish Karnad  inaugurating the Dasara festivities  at Chamundi Hills in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his cabinet colleagues.  

With all irritants sorted out between the palace and the government, the city is looking forward to an action packed Dasara.   Caparisoned elephants, musical nights , a food mela, a flower show, adventure sports, a film festival, wrestling bouts, and a torchlight parade promise to keep tourists and locals alike engaged over the next few days.

The dampener is the void left by the demise of the last scion of the royal family, Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar in December last. With his passing away Dasara will for the first time be  celebrated in the royal city in the absence of a ‘titular’ king. The golden throne that the late maharaja traditionally ascended during the Khas Durbar will now have a royal sword placed on it by a male member of the royal family chosen by his widow,  Maharani Pramoda Devi. While its unclear who will perform the task,  it is believed Mr. Wadiyar’s nephew, Chaduranga Kantharaj Urs, son of his eldest sister, Gayatri Devi, who  lit the pyre during his funeral, could be the chosen one.

But a palace officer warned against giving too much importance to the ceremony as it gave no indication of who would be  Wadiyar’s successor.