'Bathukamma' festival enters Guinness Book of World Records

Hyderabad (Telangana), Oct. 8 (ANI): Telangana state festival 'Bathukamma' today entered the Guinness Book of World Records as 9,292 women participated in the ceremony at L.B. Stadium that was also attended by Tennis star Sania Mirza here. They achieved this feat despite bad weather and as they danced around bathukamma (flower stack, arranged with different unique seasonal flowers most of them with medicinal values). Guinness world record representative Jaisimha told ANI, "Today we were here to witness and officiate the event. There was a heavy rain today but the women stayed back despite and we now congratulate the government and the people of Telangana for entering Bathukamma in the Guinness book of world records with 9,292 people on October 8 2016. Miss Planet India Rashmi Thakur, who was attending the celebrations, said, "It is a proud moment for Telangana and its people who achieved the task on a very short notice as its been only two years of the KCR government and even as it was raining." Baba Fasiuddin, Deputy Mayor GHMC), said, "We congratulate all the women who helped us achieve this as well as thank the police , GHMC, tourism and culture department and water authority who helped us carry out this huge festivity." Telagana Toursim Secretary Venkateshwarlu said that he hopes that after this record we hope the foreign tourists take notice of our festival and culture and will come here to know more about it. Bathukamma festival is a symbol of Telangana cultural identity and celebrated during the latter half of monsoon and before the onset of winter. The festival celebrates the inherent relationship between earth, water and the human beings. During the entire preceding week, women make 'Boddemma' (a deity of Gowri - mother Durga - made with earthly mud) along with 'Bathukamma' and immerse it in a pond. It is believed that it helps reinforce ponds and retain more water. The flowers used in Bathukamma have a great quality of purifying water and such flowers when immersed in abundance in a pond, it have the effect of cleansing water and making the environment much better. (ANI)