A Visit to Shreemant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganapati temple

A Visit to Shreemant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganapati temple

Known as Dagdusheth Halwai Ganapati temple, one among the most ancient Ganesha temples in India. A must visit if you are in Pune. Dagdusheth Temple was established in the year 1893 at the heart of the Pune city. 

There is an interesting story behind this prime attraction. Mr. Dagdusheth Halwai was a successful sweet seller and a rich businessman originally from Karnataka, settled in Pune. In late 1800s, he lost his son in a plague epidemic. This caused Dagdusheth and his wife to go into deep depression. To heal themselves, their Guru recommended building a Ganesha temple. This was completed in 1893.

Reached the temple late afternoon. Nothing has changed much since my last visit back in 2009, the same old busy noisy streets, just the way I wanted it to be. The Ganesha idol made of gold and you don’t have come inside to see the Lord, you can peep through the big broad glass window from the front sidewalk of the temple. However inside it’s a completely different environment. You will be surprised to witness the charming serene inside the temple. The dense smoke of incense sticks and the sound of temple bell might give you the ‘right amount’ of peacefulness you were looking for.

It was kinda dark inside the temple, the harsh afternoon sunlight peeping from the outside can be tricky for photography. This time I was defensive or you can say lazy, shooting the people inside the temple. People were curious though. Before they start asking me for who and where, I started conversing with a Modak seller. Modak is a sweet dumpling popular in Maharashtra and is believed to be Lord Ganesha favorite food. It’s delicious.

Wanted to shoot the temple. And ended up talking photographs of the people in and around the temple. I guess that’s the problem with the street photographer like me.

All the photos taken using Fuji 18-55 lens. This is a long-awaited photo walk at Dagdusheth and the first in Pune.

The relationship with the city started back in 2009, my first job. Famous for its pleasant and soothing climate throughout the year, I fell in love with the city within very short span of time. 

Today is the birthday of Lord Ganesha. May Lord Ganesha bring you good luck, more happiness and prosperity. Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to all of you 🙂

First post of September, 2016. Will be back to Kolkata in couple of days after spending a lovely month in Pune. I would love to hear your feedback on the photographs .

So how are you doing ? Good eh ?

A Visit to Shreemant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganapati temple