(4 September 2008 4:30 pm)

MUMBAI: As the most auspicious festival of Ganesh Chaturthi approaches, the esteemed viewers of Star Majha - the breakthrough 24-hour Marathi News Channel, are in for a delight. Star Majha is showcasing ‘Bappa Majha’, a 10-day series of festive programming, starting 3 September, to celebrate the exuberance of this popular festival.

‘Bappa Majha’ will capture the entire goings on and fervor of the festival from across the state. In addition to regular highlights, updates & pandal coverage, this special series will also showcase special activities surrounding the spirit of the festival.

To boost the excitement and add to the celebrations, Star Majha has instituted various contests. ‘Star Bappa Sarvottam Ganpati Spardha’ is a competition amongst the larger community pandals, which is the largest and the only Ganesh festival which will include pandals from across Maharashtra. It will be conducted in all the regional centres of Maharashtra including Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nasik, Nagpur, Aurangabad and Kolhapur. In each centre trophies will be presented to three winners, who will be selected based on the following two criteria’s:

The pandal should be environment friendly
The Theme that is chosen for the pandal creation
The ‘STAR Bappa Gharguti Ganpati’ will be conducted in two categories i.e. one for the cities in Maharashtra and the other for cities outside Maharashtra. This activity will be conducted through the Star Majha web site.

“MORYA MORYA” – This special programme will showcase each and every story related to Ganapati and the auspicious festival. It will cover a host of activities such as the making of Ganapati, exhibitions, trends, shopping as well as the coverage of the processions. (Each bulletin, one segment, starting from 31 Aug 2008.)

“POT PUJA” - This special programme will showcase the traditional cuisine that is offered to the deity, in different parts of Maharashtra. (This will be a 10 minute special segment every day)

“DEV MAJHA” - This special programme will showcase Pandit Swanad Pund who will talk about the important aspects of the puja during the celebration of Ganesh Utsav. Small, yet important details like the significance of the number twenty one, as every thing that is offered to the deity is in 21 numbers (This will be a 30 minute special programme, every day)

“GANESH DARSHAN” - This special programme will showcase the Ganpati temples that are located in Mumbai, which are not well known but have a historical , sculptural and cultural significance (This will be a 20 minute special programme, every day)
“ASHT VINAYAK DARSHAN” – The state of Maharashtra is well known for the eight holy places of the Lord Ganesha. Star Majha will be doing eight special episodes on these holy places.

Over and above the dedicated programmes on the Ganesh festival, STAR Majha will also showcase television and film celebrities performing puja, through the “TU SUKHAKARTA” segment, which will be a part of popular programmes like Remote Majha and Dhengtadheng.

Star Majha will also be showcasing the extensive live coverage of the celebrations in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, in every bulletin of the channel. The expansive and imaginative slew of programming spanning areas of interest for everyone in the family, ‘Bappa Majha’ promises to be a fun filled, new experience, engaging the young and the old, alike.

So get ready to celebrate ‘Ganesh Chaturthi’ like never before with ‘Bappa Majha’ & keep watching all the action, only on Star Majha - the path breaking 24-hour Marathi News Channel that has re-defined its category. And just in case you miss the fun on-air, catch it online at the special Bappa Majha section on www.starmajha.com.

All in all, Ganpati Bappa Morya, only on Star Majha!