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By:

Rajendra Pandharpure

15 April 2025 at 7:55:54 pm

The BJP’s Ganesha Gambit

Pune’s Ganeshotsav has become an enormous civic and political stage, and the ruling party has proved adept at occupying it. Pune: The city’s Ganeshotsav is entering its final phase, but the festival has already demonstrated something beyond its extraordinary crowds and familiar spectacle: the extent to which it has become a political stage. This year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has left a particularly visible imprint on the festivities, using an event that reaches deep into the city’s...

The BJP’s Ganesha Gambit

Pune’s Ganeshotsav has become an enormous civic and political stage, and the ruling party has proved adept at occupying it. Pune: The city’s Ganeshotsav is entering its final phase, but the festival has already demonstrated something beyond its extraordinary crowds and familiar spectacle: the extent to which it has become a political stage. This year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has left a particularly visible imprint on the festivities, using an event that reaches deep into the city’s neighbourhoods as an opportunity for public outreach. The political appropriation of the festival has not, however, been without a counter-current. Demands were raised for curbs on noise pollution, loudspeakers and the volume of dhol-tasha performances. The argument was not against Ganeshotsav itself, but for moderation - notably, a complete ban on DJ music and limits on the number of dhol and tasha instruments used by performing troupes. Familiar Troubles The festival’s reality has been rather different. Major roads have been occupied by mandaps. Processions celebrating the arrival of Lord Ganesha have unfolded amid punishing noise. DJ music, while subject to restrictions, has continued. Traffic congestion has become a familiar feature of the festival, with the movement of political leaders adding another layer to the city’s already strained roads. The Peth areas have remained crowded deep into the night. The Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati temple has drawn enormous crowds for darshan from the opening day. From the old city to housing societies and neighbourhood mandals, Ganeshotsav touches virtually every part of Pune. For a political party seeking a direct connection with citizens, few occasions offer such a ready-made network of people, institutions and local influencers. The BJP enters this festival with an unusually formidable organisational base. It has two MPs, seven MLAs and more than 100 corporators in Pune. Murlidhar Mohol, one of the city’s MPs, is a Union Minister of State. Chandrakant Patil is a Cabinet minister in the Maharashtra government, while Madhuri Misal is a Minister of State. The party’s presence also extends into the festival’s organisational architecture. Its influence is visible across numerous mandals, large and small. BJP MLA Hemant Rasane is General Secretary of the Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Sarvajanik Ganpati Trust. Kunal Tilak, a member of Lokmanya Tilak’s family, is a BJP corporator. The political and cultural histories of Pune therefore intersect in ways that are difficult to ignore. The BJP’s senior leadership has also made the most of the occasion. National President Nitin Nabin visited Pune to seek Lord Ganesha’s blessings, while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited the city before and during the festival. Such visits are about more than religious observance. In a festival watched by millions and embedded in the city’s social life, political visibility comes almost automatically. There is also talk in Pune that the BJP provided substantial financial support to Dhol-Lezim troupes and their organisers, with claims that some major mandals received financial backing as well. These claims would require independent verification, but the perception itself points to the depth of the political contest around Ganeshotsav. BJP workers, according to local observers, have also sought to make their presence more conspicuous than that of festivities organised by housing societies. Useful Expedient The festival arrives at a politically useful moment for the BJP. The party has faced disquiet on several fronts. Young people have been agitated over the paper-leak controversy. Broader public dissatisfaction has been voiced over inflation and unemployment, while government policies relating to ethanol and charges associated with UPI transactions have also generated criticism. While a political party can defend a policy in a press conference and advertise its achievements, during Ganeshotsav, its workers can be physically present in neighbourhoods, among processions, mandals, cultural groups and devotees. Politics thus becomes less about argument and more about visibility. That is the BJP’s advantage in Pune. Ganeshotsav, after all, is not simply a sequence of religious rituals. It is an elaborate civic network involving local organisers, volunteers, cultural groups, businesses, residents and political representatives. Whoever has influence over that network acquires a powerful channel of communication with the city. The BJP appears to understand this particularly well. Its strength in Pune’s electoral politics has been reinforced by a presence that extends beyond elections and into the institutions and social spaces that organise public life. The irony is that the very scale of the festival that makes it politically attractive also magnifies the civic costs. The political value of Ganeshotsav and the civic burden it creates are therefore two sides of the same phenomenon. For Pune, the larger question is not whether politics has entered Ganeshotsav. It has done so for decades. The more consequential question is whether the festival’s extraordinary social capital will remain primarily a vehicle for political outreach or whether the same influence can be used to reconcile celebration with the ordinary civic needs of the city. For the moment, the BJP seems to have understood the first proposition better than most.

The Currency of Composure

Writer: Divyaa Advaani 
Divyaa Advaani 
Nov 7, 2025
3 min read

In a world full of noise, some people walk in and silence the room — not with power or position, but with presence.


Recently, I met a woman who had that rare quality. Even when she was angry, her composure didn’t crack. Her words were measured, her tone graceful. She didn’t raise her voice, yet every word carried weight. Then there was another — warm, kind, effortlessly likable. She seemed to know how to handle any situation without flinching. Everyone wanted to be around her.


It made me reflect — what makes such individuals stand out so distinctly?


It isn’t only charm or communication. It’s something deeper — a personal brand built on emotional mastery and authenticity.


In business, this trait can be transformative. Whether you’re a founder leading a growing company or a CXO navigating boardrooms, your composure becomes your signature. People decide how much they can trust you, follow you, and invest in you based on how you make them feel.


Think about it. The last deal you closed, the client you lost, the team member who suddenly became disengaged — most of these moments had less to do with your skill, and more to do with how you showed up.


Calm composure during chaos. Confidence without arrogance. Warmth without losing authority. These are not soft skills — they’re strategic assets that define how your brand is perceived.


And yet, many brilliant business owners underestimate this. They invest heavily in scaling operations, hiring consultants, and running campaigns — but neglect the one brand that leads them all: their own.


Personal branding is no longer about how many people know you. It’s about what they remember about you when you leave the room.


I’ve seen CEOs who lose investor confidence simply because they appear dismissive or impatient under pressure. I’ve also seen small business owners who win large contracts simply because their calm, genuine tone builds instant trust. The difference lies not in what they know, but in how they carry themselves.


You may already have a strong business brand, but your personal brand amplifies it. In the digital era, people follow people — not logos. A poised presence, refined communication, and an aligned personal narrative can open doors no marketing budget can.


And here’s the truth — you don’t need to be someone else to do this. The most powerful personal brands are built by people who understand who they are, what they stand for, and how to express it authentically.


When you refine your presence, your brand narrative becomes effortless. People start associating your name with reliability, composure, and credibility — the three currencies that matter most in leadership.


If you’ve ever looked at someone and thought, “I wish I could be that calm, that confident, that composed,” remember — it’s not innate. It’s developed. The question is, are you consciously building that image? Or leaving it to chance?


Because the truth is — people are forming perceptions about you every day, whether you control the narrative or not.


If this resonates with you, it may be time to start shaping your brand intentionally. Perhaps it’s time to pause and ask — what impression do people carry when they think of you?


When your personal brand speaks with grace, authority, and authenticity — you don’t need to raise your voice. The world listens.


In every room you walk into, your presence speaks before you do. And when your personal brand reflects grace, calm, and conviction — opportunities respond accordingly.


To explore this further, you can reach me at suaveu6@gmail.com or find me on Instagram @suaveu6 and LinkedIn – DivyaaAdvaani.


For those ready to take the next step, reach out for a free consultation call to know the details by booking your slot with me on https://sprect.com/pro/divyaaadvaani.


Because sometimes, building your personal brand isn’t about becoming louder — it’s about becoming clearer.


(The author is a personal branding expert. She has clients from 14+ countries. Views personal.)

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