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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.

When Purpose Outgrows Profit

Writer: Divyaa Advaani 
Divyaa Advaani 
Jan 9
3 min read

There are moments when you meet people whose ambition sounds different. Not louder. Not flashier. Just… deeper. It isn’t driven by money, applause, or scale. It is driven by meaning. These are individuals who are not chasing growth for visibility, but for legacy. They want to create something that outlives them, something that speaks for a community, a belief, or an identity that has long remained unheard. Such ambition is rare — and often misunderstood.


In today’s world, success is measured loudly. Followers, revenue, reach, numbers. Yet some of the most powerful creators, founders, and leaders operate in near silence. They are not naturally social. They don’t enjoy the spotlight. They are uncomfortable “selling” themselves. But inside them burns a very real hunger — not for attention, but for impact. The irony is this: the deeper the purpose, the more invisible the person often becomes.


This is where many high-calibre professionals find themselves stuck. They have clarity of intent but not clarity of expression. They know what they want to build, but the world does not yet know why it matters. Their work is rich, but their presence is muted. Their vision is sharp, but their voice is not yet amplified. This is not a talent problem. It is not a capability problem. It is a personal branding problem.


Personal branding is often misunderstood as self-promotion. In reality, it is the art of alignment — aligning who you are, what you stand for, and how the world experiences you. Especially for people driven by purpose rather than popularity, personal branding becomes the bridge between intention and influence.


Without that bridge, even the most meaningful work risks remaining invisible.


Consider how many founders, artists, business owners, and leaders want to build something “for their people” — whether that people is a community, a culture, an industry, or a belief system. Their motivation isn’t commercial alone. It is emotional. Cultural. Almost sacred. Yet because they hesitate to be seen, to speak, to claim space, their message struggles to travel. And when the message doesn’t travel, impact stays limited.


A strong personal brand does not require someone to become louder or more social. It requires them to become clearer. Clear about their values. Clear about their story. Clear about the why behind their work. When that clarity exists, the right audiences find them — not because of noise, but because of resonance.


For leaders driven by legacy rather than limelight, personal branding serves a different purpose. It protects their intent. It ensures that their work is understood in the way it was meant to be. It allows the world to see not just the output, but the soul behind it.


In business and creative ecosystems alike, recognition does not come only from excellence. It comes from perception. From positioning. From the ability to communicate purpose in a way that others can feel. Awards, influence, credibility, and long-term respect often follow those who can articulate their vision — not just execute it.


This is why personal branding is no longer optional for serious creators and founders. Not because they want fame, but because they want their work to matter. Not because they want attention, but because they want alignment. A personal brand, when built with integrity, does not distort who you are — it reveals you. The quietest ambition often needs the strongest articulation.


And perhaps the real question is not whether you are talented enough, or driven enough, or sincere enough. It is whether the world truly understands what you are trying to build — and why it deserves to exist. If you are someone whose hunger is real, whose purpose runs deep, and whose work deserves to be experienced beyond a small circle, it may be time to reflect on how your personal brand is carrying your vision forward.


Not louder. Not flashier. But clearer. And if you’re ready to explore how your personal brand can honour your intent while expanding your impact, you’re welcome to connect for a conversation here: https://sprect.com/pro/divyaaadvaani Sometimes, all it takes is the right articulation for the right ambition to finally be seen.


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

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