Photo caption -
Devotees dance with the colourful umbrellas at the traditional Sotreo festival near Shree Shantadurga Kunkalikarin temple at Fatorpa as the procession moves towards Cuncolim on Tuesday noon.
Photo by Santosh Mirajkar
Religions unite to celebrate Sotreo festival with pomp & gaiety in Cuncolim
THE GOAN NETWORK
MARGAO
The traditional Sotreo (umbrella) festival was celebrated with great pomp, gaiety and religious fervour in Cuncolim by people from all walks of life on Tuesday.
As devotees danced with the colourful umbrellas to the beats of the drums, the palanquin carrying Goddess Shree Shantadurga Kunkalikarin was taken to Cuncolim from Fatorpa. Thousands of people welcomed the procession at specially decorated spots along the journey from Fatorpa to Cuncolim via Mollanguinim, Gotton, Buinsa, Voddy before the culmination of the festivities at Tolleabhat, near the Cuncolim Municipal Council. From Tolleabhat, the procession headed back towards Fatorpa via Demani.
As usual, people from both the Hindus and Christian communities unitedly celebrated the festival, which drew devotees from across the State.
President-elect of the Shree Shantadurga Kunkallikarin Temple, Fatorpa Kavendra Naik Desai told the media that the Sotreo festival is celebrated in a big way by people from all communities, including Hindus, Christians and Muslims.
“This is one festival wherein people from all communities unitedly celebrated irrespective of caste and creed”, he said.
Oscar Martins, belonging to the Bandekar Vangodd told the media that the festival was as usual celebrated by people of Cuncolim irrespective of caste and creed.
“Every year, the palanquin carrying Shree Shantadurga Kunkalikarin is taken to the native place at Tolleabhat-Cuncolim in a procession preceded by the Sotreos (umbrellas). Our ancestors had escaped the persecution by the Portuguese in the 16th century with the statue of the Goddess to Fatorpa”, he added.
