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A Pichwai Backdrop for Lord Ganesh in this home
A Pichwai theme, handmade décor, customised idol and traditional Nathdwara temple cuisine—architect Rinki Kotak’s Ganesh Chaturthi is a big, happy family affair. And it is all eco-friendly
The custom of Ganesh Chaturthi that rolls around every year has always been more than just an exercise of devotion. The well-loved God has become a muse to artistic and fantastical imagination that unfailingly comes to the forefront around this time. Architects Mihir and Rinki Kotak, too, pull out all the stops when it comes to channelling their creative spirit for the occasion. And they have been doing so for a long time. “It’s been 20-plus years of celebrating the festival with our entire family, office team, clients, vendors and friends,” says Rinki Kotak, co-founder of the firm 4th Dimension Architects along with husband Mihir. For the Kotak family, Ganesh Chaturthi has become “probably bigger than Diwali. Now it’s the most awaited festival for our daughters—and our pet.” In the last two decades, meticulous planning, untiring enthusiasm, unique ideas and a generosity of spirit have come to be expected aspects of Ganesh Chaturthi at the Kotak home.
Rinki Kotak speaks to Beautiful Homes about this festival that has become a canvas for inspired creative expression, a manifestation of their devotion and an occasion that goes deeper than just an annual celebration. Edited excerpts from an interview:
Beautiful Homes (BH): What does this festival mean to you personally? Are there any specific traditions you follow?
Rinki Kotak (RK): Mihir has been a Ganesh devotee since childhood. I am a Vaishnav, so when I got married to him, I wasn’t aware that the Ganpati idol was also brought into homes during Ganesh Chaturthi. I thought the festivities were limited to sarvajanik mandals. Over time, I have understood the significance of Ganesh Chaturthi and the emotions attached to it.
BH: Do you have any childhood memories or anecdotes from Ganesh celebrations?
RK: My experience of the festival was all about visiting the sarvajanik pandals with family. I used to love the ones that had a storyline and strong message behind them! For Mihir, it was all about having people around him. He would tell me stories about how he would personally ensure that each and every kid in the locality would be with him to welcome Bappa each year and have the most memorable aarti, with bells, dholaks and other musical instruments. I think it’s perhaps these memories, coupled with the two of us being architects, that are responsible for the way we celebrate the festival. It always has a strong concept. We also strive to give back to society every year during this time.
Every aspect of the decoration, from the backdrop to materials, is handmade or hand picked; the colour of the Ganesh murti is also inspired by the theme.
Every member of the family participates in getting the house ready for the occasion; Rinki Kotak and her daughters are donning Pichwai-themed dupattas.
BH: What goes into planning for the occasion? And how have the traditions, decorations, etc evolved over time?
RK: We follow a different theme every year. In fact, it’s customary for us to start planning nearly three to four months beforehand. We have a lot of discussions about the theme, the concept, the decor, the Prasadam (return gift), and even the clothing. We hand-make the decor and have our idol customised as well. The murti is always in colours that relate to the theme. We also decide on one small message we want to communicate through Bappa to all our guests via decor, in terms of an activity, a video message and Prasadam.
BH: Is there any specific focus on the materials you use in your decorations?
RK: We make sure that we don’t harm the environment, so the materials are mostly handmade and painted by our daughters. The flowers are all real which we give away to Nirmalya, an NGO that converts floral waste into compost. On one occasion, we collected plastic waste from our guests which we recycled through another NGO. We also carry out the visarjan in artificial lakes. And we always ensure that we don’t adorn them with any artificial jewellery.
The Prasadam or return gift this year includes potlis with the image of Srinathji.
The food, also inspired by the theme, is the kind typically offered to Srinathji of Nathdwara, Rajasthan—purple yam chaat, thandai, kachori and dhokla.
BH: What’s on the cards this year?
RK: This year, the Ganesh is in the swaroop of Shrinathji from Nathdwara, so we’re dressing up in ghagra-cholis with Pichwai-themed dupattas. The food is traditional Shrinathji-centric cuisine—purple yam chaat, kachori and dhokla with thandai. We will be serving it in those eco-friendly dried-leaf disposable bowls and plates. Even the Prasadam is a Shrinathji-themed potli with a small German-silver-made tulsi.
BH: How does the cuisine play into the overall theme?
RK: Food is intrinsic to our celebration. For one year, it was a fusion of typical Maharashtrian cuisine, so we served vada-pav fondue. When we planned a theme centred on the Tirupati Balaji swaroop of Bappa, we welcomed guests with a Chandan tika and served them rasam-wada and payasam. This year, the theme being Pichwai, the food, as mentioned above, fits that particular theme.
The Ganesh festival is also all about sweet treats like ukadiche (steamed) modak, talniche (fried) modak and laddoos.
BH: Do the themes also extend to welcoming guests who drop in?
RK: The Prasadam/return gift, for instance, is also unique and related to the theme. When the theme was ‘Go Green’, we gave our guests a small indoor plant. Last year, we asked guests to bring old clothes or shoes to donate to a Lonavala-based school for the blind. In return, we distributed wax candles they made. We also did a small activity like blindfolding the guests for just 30 seconds and trying to put a tika on Bappa; the activity made us all realise how privileged we are to be able to see.
The feast of sweets include modak, steamed and fried, and a variety of other offerings.
BH: What’s the most important aspect of this entire process for you?
RK: The entire family is involved in the process and everything is handmade or handpicked. Someone takes care of the backdrop, someone else is in charge of the lighting, and someone handles the painting; it’s the best family time we have together!
Photography by Prachi Damle
The Ganesh Chaturthi festival celebrated in Rinki and Mihir Kotak's home has been going on for over 20 years.
It's been a tradition in the family to use floral arrangements made with real flowers, which are sent to an NGO Nirmalya at the end of the celebration to be turned into compost.
The theme this year is centred on Pichwai (Shrinathji of Nathdwara).
Homeowners and architects Rinki and Mihir Kotak, who are the co-founders of 4th Dimesion Architects.
In keeping with the theme, the food is served on dried-leaf plates and bowls.
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