Manchester Celebrates Vibrant Rath Yatra Festival with Enthusiastic Participation

A Grand Celebration in Manchester

Manchester (UK): The city of Manchester recently celebrated its fifth Rath Yatra festival with great enthusiasm and spiritual energy. The Gita Bhawan, known as the home of the Lord of the Universe, was beautifully adorned for this special occasion. Organized by the North West Odisha Society, this year's event sparked remarkable interest and excitement among both participants and organizers.

Over a thousand devotees, both Odia and non-Odia, gathered at Gita Bhawan with their families to partake in the festivities. At approximately 12:45 p.m., the four deities were carried in a Dhadi Pahandi procession to the vibrantly decorated chariot stationed outside Gita Bhawan. The chariot featured stunning Patachitra artwork created by the talented artist Pragyan Babu. The atmosphere was filled with the sounds of hymns, enthusiastic chants like 'Hari Bol' and 'Jai Jagannath', along with the resonating sounds of conch shells and traditional musical instruments such as Ghanta, Mardala, Jhanja, and Mrudanga.

A standout moment of the celebration was the Pahandi of Devi Subhadra, which was performed solely by women. The chariot journeyed through Wilbraham Road, Werburgh’s Road, Brantingham Road, and Withington Road before returning to the Gita Bhawan premises. Notable attendees included Councillor Vimal Choski and the esteemed spiritual leader Devi Chitralekha from India. The divine discourse by renowned motivational speaker Dr. Deepak Gupta was particularly moving and impactful. The festival also featured soothing Bhajan performances by acclaimed vocalists such as Tanishka Gupta, Dr. Siba Senapati, Disha Patnaik, Jayan Panigrahi, Dr. Kapeelmeet Kaur, Deeptiman Rath, Dr. Rajinder Singh, Priyanka Geemon, Harshangda Bhatnagar, Soumya Panda, Ms. Manorama, and Ms. Supriya.

The audience was captivated by the mesmerizing dance performances of Odissi Exponents Rekha Senapati, Saanvi Sahoo, and Drishika Panigrahi. The cultural program was expertly coordinated by Ace Anchor Priyanka Bebarta. The entire event was well-organized and efficiently managed under the guidance of the Organizing Committee, which included Dr. Siba Senapati, Rekha Senapati, Siba Ranjan Biswal, Bishnu Dash, Jeeban Panigrahi, Prasanta Sahu, Sudhakar Sahoo, Bibek Babu, Surendra Nath Acharya, Sanjeev Srichandan, Prabhat Singh, and Sujeet Behera.