It is really good to see our young generation keeping the old tradition alive of making effigies of old man to mark good bye to the previous year. Yes, making effigy of old man is an opportunity for the children to display their artistic talent. I remember my childhood days when boys and girls from various wards would get together to make effigy of old man as the year drew to a close. We would throughout the day stand by the road where the effigy of the old man was placed and at night before the midnight mass going to each and every single house singing 'Old man aila re' song. Later we would share the money collected from households to celebrate the New Year with lots of love, fun, joy and happiness. It is a ritual to burn the old man effigy amid fireworks before going for midnight mass and say goodbye and thank you for the previous year. Those were the golden days of our lives with everlasting memories and I salute the young generation for keeping the tradition alive.
