History 

There are many myths and legends attached to the history of Navratri: 

The Mighty Demon Mahisasur worshipped Lord Shiva and obtained the power of eternity, so he wouldn’t be killed by weapons. He started to kill and harass innocent people and set out to win seven lokas. The gods sought the help of Lord Shiva, who advised the invocation of the goddess shakti. With the God’s prayers, a divine luster sprang from the heart of Load Shiva and the bodies of all the gods and formed the goddess Adhya Shakti. The Gods gave her ornaments, arms and a lion as a vehicle. She fought with the evil Mahisasur for nine long days and nights, and at last resulted in the beheading of Mahisa on the tenth. So, the nine nights for which the war was fought is called Navratri. The tenth day that brought the triumph of good over the evil is called dussera.  

Sati (also known as Uma) married Lord Shiva against the wishes of her father, King Daksha Prajapati. In revenge, Daksha organized a huge yagna and invited all the gods and deities except his new son-in-law. Sati decided to attend the yagna despite Lord Shiva's attempt to persuade her not to. The King ignored his daughter's presence and publically abused Lord Shiva. Unable to bear her father’s insults, Sati committed suicide by jumping into the yagna fire. However, she was reborn and again won Lord Shiva as her groom and peace was restored. It is believed that since then Uma comes every year with her four children Ganesh, Kartik, Saraswati and Laxmi and two of her best friends or ‘sakhis' called Jaya and Bijaya, to visit her parent's home during Navratri. 

Why Baroda

Garba happens at night in all the major cities and villages and other states like Maharashtra. Gujarat is the main state where almost 100% people enjoy the festival of Navratri during these 10 days. Baroda or Vadodara is considered to be the cultural capital of Gujarat and the most sought after location for celebrating Navratri in Gujarat. The traditional dance steps are simple, though over the years people have been inventing more complex steps, like what you see in Mumbai. Similarly, the music was traditionally acoustic, principally composed of drums and singing, but most people now use amplified sound systems or a blend in the form of a live band with modern instruments. Baroda is a good place to find the traditional Garba in Gujarat. Even Sheri Garba’s are also popular here. United way of Baroda’s Garba is the best in the world; Lots of people from all around the world come to Baroda during Navratri. Generally, in other cities people plays Garba in a group, but in Baroda people play Garba in a single line. And that the specialty of Baroda’s Garba. As people plays in single round some times its takes 2-3 hours to complete just a one round of the ground. In Baroda, Singer Atul purohit is well known all over the world, for his singing in Garba. Barodians loves his singing.  

Even Garba for small children’s are very popular here. There are many groups of singers and musicians who are children’s and perform live during Navratri. It’s really nice to see those little kids to perform live.  

So, Come to Baroda for Navratri and you will amazed by some great Garba’s in the world. Enjoy the festival in Baroda only….