In Amaravati, film stars are new scarecrows
Earlier pictures of the ‘devil’ as conceptualised by folklore, were used on under-construction buildings.
Vijayawada: In an interesting departure from tradition, some people are now using posters of film actresses to ward of the ‘evil eye’. Earlier pictures of the ‘devil’ as conceptualised by folklore, were used on under-construction buildings.
Posters of film actresses are now replacing these pictures of devils around the constructions of new buildings in Amaravati to ward off the evil eye or nazar/nardrishti.
To ward off the evil eye, and the envy of neighbours, superstitious people hang facemasks of devils around a new construction site. But now, owners of under-construction houses are putting up posters of popular actresses like Anushka and Hebba Patel.
Local residents P. Venkateswarlu and N. Krishna say that the ‘devil’ has long been used to ward off the evil eye. “The idea is to divert attention from the building. Posters of actresses, if possible scantily clad, do the trick as well. Anyone sighting the building will start thinking about the heroines, and not of the construction,” said a local.
Photographs of film star Anushka in a bikini and of Hebba Patel were spotted on an under-construction building at Mandadam in Amaravati.
There has been a surge in the construction of new buildings in the villages of the upcoming state capital, Amaravati.