Mysuru Dasara 2025: Booker Prize Winner Banu Mushtaq Inaugurates Festivities at Chamundeshwari Temple (Watch)

Mysuru Dasara 2025 festivities began with grandeur as Booker Prize-winning author Banu Mushtaq inaugurated the celebrations at Chamundeshwari Temple atop Chamundi Hill. She offered floral prayers, performed rituals.

Mysuru: The 11-day Mysuru Dasara festivities began with grandeur and devotion as Booker Prize-winning author Banu Mushtaq inaugurated the celebrations atop Chamundi Hill. Amid tight police security and a warm cultural welcome, Mushtaq, dressed in a yellow Mysore silk saree with a green border and adorned with Mysuru jasmine in her hair, lit the traditional earthen lamp at the auspicious Vrishchika Lagna at 10:17 am.

The inaugural ceremony saw her offering floral prayers to the revered Goddess Sri Chamundeshwari Devi, whose idol, housed in a silver mantapa, will later be placed in the golden howdah carried by the Dasara elephant “Abhimanyu” during the grand Jamboo Savari procession on 2 October.

Visit to Chamundeshwari Temple

Before the formal inauguration, Banu Mushtaq visited the Goddess Sri Chamundeshwari Devi temple along with Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and other dignitaries. During her visit, she received Mangalaarathi, fruits, and a blue silk saree offered by the Sri Chamundeshwari Kshethra Development Authority, following traditional temple customs.

Grand Stage Inauguration and Felicitation

At the stage adjacent to the temple, Mushtaq inaugurated the festivities with traditional rituals, lighting the lamp and performing floral offerings to the deity. She was felicitated by the Mysuru district administration with the Mysuru Peta and a wooden sculpture of a Howdah Elephant, honouring her contribution and presence at the event.

Dignitaries and Political Leaders Present

Several political leaders and dignitaries attended the event, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Mysuru district-in-charge Minister HC Mahadevappa, Minister for Kannada and Culture Shivaraj Tangadagi, Tourism Minister HK Patil, Ministers KH Muniyappa, K Venkatesh, and Chamundeshwari MLA GT Devegowda. Their presence highlighted the importance of the event in the state’s cultural calendar.

Cultural Welcome and Festive Procession

Banu Mushtaq was accorded a grand welcome upon entering Chamundi Hill, accompanied by performances from folk cultural troupes including Veeragaase and Dollu Kunitha. The procession and cultural presentations added a vibrant and traditional touch to the inauguration, setting the tone for the remaining days of the festival.

Dasara 2025 Celebrations Continue

The Mysuru Dasara festival, one of Karnataka’s most celebrated cultural events, will continue over the next 11 days with a series of religious rituals, cultural performances, and processions. The highlight remains the Jamboo Savari on 2 October, when Goddess Chamundeshwari Devi’s idol will be carried in a golden howdah atop the Dasara elephant “Abhimanyu”, attracting thousands of devotees and tourists from across the country.