Hindustan Times ·
Actor Bhagyashree’s Ganpati aarti sparks dispute within Sangli’s royal family
The Shri Ganapati Panchayatan Sansthan, founded by the Patwardhan royal family, is at the centre of a dispute over traditional Ganpati festival rituals.
A traditional Ganpati aarti performed by actress Bhagyashree at the Shri Ganapati Panchayatan Sansthan in Sangli on Monday has triggered a dispute over the religious traditions followed by the institution.
Bhagyashree and her husband, Himalaya Dasani, performed the aarti of the diety on the first day of the Ganesh festival celebrations. The ritual was conducted before the arrival of Vijaysinhraje Patwardhan, father of Bhagyashree, who is associated with the erstwhile royal family and has traditionally been involved in the institution’s religious rituals.