Kudla Origin Rao Family (Nishanth & Shwetha Rao and their children Nirbhay (8.5 years) and Nidhi (2.4 years) and Yogish Rao Kadri and Mrs Rukmini Y Rao, grandparents of Nirbhay and Nidhi) celebrate Krishna Janmashtami in Traditional Festive Attire
Mangaluru: Every year the festival of Krishna Janmashtami celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna is awaited with eager anticipation. A growing trend in recent years has seen parents dress up their kids and toddlers as Lord Krishna for the occasion of Janmashtami, and parents would be found shopping for costumes. However this year due to the pandemic, they have had to get creative to come up with costumes. Krishna Janmashtami festival celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna and is popularly called Gokulashtami. Several fancy dress events are organised worldwide symbolising the importance of this festival.
On the day of this festival, it is an age-old custom to dress up little boys in Krishna costumes. Baby Krishna is a colourful character with some very typical signs. Lord Krishna is a God who loves to dress up and as he was a prince, he ought to have a crown. On this festive day, parents give their little prince a beautiful Krishna costume, crown, flute, waist belt and wrist bands to get him ready into a cute little one baby Krishna. And one family that has kept this age-old custom is Nishanth & Shwetha Rao and their children Nirbhay (8.5 years) and Nidhi (2.4 years) along with Mr Yogish Rao Kadri and Mrs Rukmini Y Rao, the grandparents of Nirbhay and Nidhi.
Nishanth & Shwetha Rao and their children Nirbhay (8.5 years) and Nidhi (2.4 years)
Mr Yogish Rao Kadri and Mrs Rukmini Y Rao, grandparents of Nirbhay and Nidhi
Shwetha N Rao, mother of kids Nirbhay and Nidhi, a software engineer by profession recollects her beautiful memories associated with this festival. Shwetha is basically a Mangalorean and completed her engineering graduation from NMAMIT, Nitte. She is also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer and classical singer and she wishes to utilise her gained knowledge to teach and encourage her kids to achieve great heights in future. Her true source of inspiration behind her success is none other than her parents, Mr Yogish Rao Kadri and Mrs Rukmini Y Rao, grandparents of Nirbhay and Nidhi. The strong moral support and enormous guidance they bestowed has helped Shwetha to achieve greater milestones in life, she adds.
And the journey all began in 2013 when she participated in a Fancy dress event organised by Kalkura Pratishtana, Kadri, Mangaluru when her son was just 7 months of age. A surprising fact was that the same photo was published in Kannada daily Vijayavani’s front page as “Yashodha-Krishna” which later won State level awards and other awards too. Shwetha also recollects a beautiful painting made on the same picture painted by Artist Mariappan displayed at Chitra Kala Parishath, Bengaluru which was sold out for Rs 30,000.
Shwetha with her son Nirbhay in 2013 (7 months old baby) and with her daughter Nidhi (4 months old baby) in 2019
Which kid does not love to dress up? During Janmashtami, the festival brings fancy dress ideas for kids to dress up as Lord Krishna, one of the popular gods of the Hindu religion. After all, Hindu mythology is full of stories about the childhood escapades of Lord Krishna. From his love for butter to his playful pranks, Janmashtami is not only the perfect opportunity to regale children with tales from the ancient scriptures but also to know more about Krishna costume ideas. One of the major Hindu festivals in India, Janmashtami celebrations are bound to be more fun if there is a toddler at home. After all, little Krishna’s naughtiness and mischievous ways will definitely strike a chord with your child! Also, this is the time when most schools celebrate Krishna Janmashtami with a dress-up day. It has become the norm to dress up young children like Lord Krishna and Radha. Unfortunately, due to Covid-19, all the fun has died down, and this festival is celebrated in sombre, in a simple but traditional way.
Nirbhay 8.5 years dressed up as Balarama (Krishna’s elder brother), Nidhi 2.4 years dressed up as Little Krishna
7 months old Nirbhay featured in the painting which won state-level award-Photo taken at Kadri Temple
And with little ones at home who love getting decked up, and portray them as little Krishnas, what’s more, is that the entire family gets to relive mythology during the process. It will add more charm if parents combine the fun of playing dress-up with some glorious stories from mythology behind Krishna Janmashtami. This will help make the festival even more real for your little ones. Celebrate the festival as a family and see your little Krishna glow. And one such Hindu Brahmin parents who have kept this tradition for years by dressing up their two children for this festival are Nirbhay and Nidhi’s parents, Shwetha and Nishanth, who both are Software Engineers and are currently working at Infosys, Mysore.
Shwetha says, “Thanks to Lord Krishna, every year he gives that positive energy and spirit so that I participate in the Kalkura Krishna Janmashtami festival with my kids. The entire makeup in all pictures was done only by my mother, who is very spiritual and talented. I owe a lot to her sacrifices, her love and care to my children”.
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