While the former will recreate the Vith-oba temple in Pandharpur, the latter has visualised a grand ‘Ram Mandir’ in Ayodhya.Devotees in underworldTwo infamous dons in Mumbai’s history are to known to have patronised Ganapati mandals. We have in fact used 800 to 900 newspapers from the vicinity to make the idol," said Rajan Zad, the idol’s sculptor.Recession, floods to pay spoilsport?Many organisers, however, claim that recession has impacted festivities.Two popular mandals, one at Kalachowki and the other in Ganesh Galli, will be recreating famous temples this year. Nevertheless, the organisers will be playing a five-minute audio-visual clip stressing on the need for conserving water, cleanliness, and voting.

It has installed a 22-foot-tall idol made of bamboo sticks, paper mache, water-soluble adhesives and natural colours..The Ganesh Mandal at Keshav Chawl, touted to be have been started in 1893, is still going strong and is known for sticking to its traditional roots despite the changing times. Like the one at Keshav Chawl, this mandal believes in keeping the celebrations simple."It took us five months to build it. The grand idol at the centre, its background shows the Milky Way and planets of the solar system, along with other elements from space. So, this year we Wholesale christmas decorations lights Factory will be having simpler decorations at our pandal," said Vasudev Sawant, whose mandal organises Chinchpoklicha Chintamani without fail every year.Mumbai: Mumbai’s favourite god has arrived, and with it begins 10 days of jubilant celebrations in honour of Ganesha – the lord of good beginnings. Incidentally, it will be celebrating 125 years of its existence.  The Tejukaya Ganpati Mandal in Lalbaug, for example, has decided to go ‘green’ to highlight the need to protect Mother Nature.The 10-day festival is also incomplete without several out-of-the-box Ganesha idols that could give many Michaelangelos a run for their money.On the top of the list is the immensely popular ‘Lalbaugcha Raja’, whose theme this year will be Chandarayaan-2’s launch.Some British-era mandals, too, like to keep it traditional and simple.In fact, organisers of Ganesh Galli’s popular ‘Mumbaicha Raja’ are known for recreating famous temples each year. "We are known for recreating temples at our pandal every Ganes-hotsav," said Aman Dalvi, secretary of the Kalacho-wki Mahaganpati Mandal.Ganeshotsav in Mumbai is, however, nothing without its innumerable ‘Sarva-janik Ganesh Mandals’, which have played a pivotal role in turning the festival into a widely recognised cultural phenomenon of the maximum city. Moreover, the floods have forced many mandals to cut down on their spending and channelise their funds towards relief efforts.Themes galoreSeveral pandals across Mumbai are also worth a ‘dekho’ for their interesting themes and intricate designs.

The Chandanwadi Sarvaj-anik Utsav Mandal, which plays host to the popular ‘Chandanwadicha Raja’, has decided to keep the decorations at its pandal simple. Interestingly, the vehicle is expected to reach moon between September 6 and 7.Another popular mandal, located at Kamat Chawl, claims to be the second oldest in Mumbai. This year, the organisers have installed a Ganesha made of pearls and seashells!Giving out a mesغير مجاز مي باشدeMandals began at the fag end of the 19th Century as a medium to mobilise people against the British.We have donated Rs 10 lakh. The Ganpati idol at Makba Chawl is one of them. Hence, it comes as no surprise that many continue to spread social mesغير مجاز مي باشدes at their pandals. Chhota Rajan, who is currently in jail, continues to organise celebrations at Tilak Nagar in Chembur, while Varadharajan, who died in 1988, once patronised a Matunga mandal.

The mummy is believed to be the body of a man named Amenrenef, who held the title of "Servant of the King’s House.Meanwhile, a 1000-year-old ancient building ruins believed to be dating back to the Jin and Yuan dynasties have been unearthed in China’s northern Hebei province.The staff working at the site have also unearthed a 6-meter-wide main road, flanked on both sides by the ruins of buildings."Amenrenefs tomb likely dates from the Third Intermediate period around 1,000 BC, probably to the 21st Dynasty, Live Science reported.. According to the head of the Spanish archaeological team, Myriam Seco Alvarez, the 3,000-year-old mummy case features "many colourful decorations recalling religious symbols of ancient Egypt."The tomb was uncovered at the southern enclosure wall of the Temple of Millions of Years," said Mahmoud Afifi, head of the ancient Egyptian antiquities department.The excavation area, which is 30-meters long and 10-meters wide, is only a small part of the building cluster of the Haifeng Town ruins.

Archaeologists have unearthed a 3,000-year-old Egyptian mummy in "very good condition" resting inside a brightly coloured wooden sarcophagus.After four months of excavation at the Haifeng Town in Huanghua City, the ruins of an ancient hearth, fire pits and wall footings have been uncovered among bricks, tiles and broken China battery led string light porcelain.Judging from preliminary assessment of the unearthed ruins, they are presumed to have been used during the Jin (960-1276) and Yuan (1271-1368) dynasties, said Lei Jianhong, director of the research office for underwater archaeology at the Hebei Cultural Relics Institute, state-run Xinhua news agency reported."The inscriptions and decorations include solar symbols, the protective goddesses Isis and Nephthys spreading their wings, the four sons of god Horus, and many other finely painted scenes, Alvarez noted.The Egyptian mummy found near Luxor had been bound with linen stuck together with plaster.

A Christmas-themed train on Thursday set out on a journey to criss-cross Pakistan in an effort to promote tolerance in the overwhelmingly Muslim country.It set off Thursday afternoon from Islamabad to Peshawar, capital of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and will travel to Lahore on Christmas day before leaving for Karachi on January China christmas lights 1. "This is a sign of tolerance, everybody will celebrate Christmas together," human rights minister Kamran Michael said, adding the public would be welcomed to visit the train and see its exhibits along its many stops.6 per cent of Pakistan’s 200 million people and have long faced discrimination - sidelined into lowly paid jobs and often the target of trumped-up blasphemy charges.. Adorned with Christmas lights and mock snowmen, and with carriages that have portraits and tributes to notable Christian Pakistanis, the government says it hopes to change mindsets in Pakistan, where attacks and persecution of religious minorities have become routine.Discrimination and violence against religious minorities is commonplace in Pakistan, where Muslims account for more than 90 per cent of the population.

In a mixing bowl crumb the chocolate sponge till breadcrumb consistency, add half the chocolate ganache, instant coffee powder dissolved in a teaspoon of China christmas lights water, rum,  and mix with hands till the mixture is even in consistency.Once slightly set, coat the rum balls with the remaining chocolate ganache. Roughly chop the almonds. Set aside.In a large bowl whisk together the flour, spices, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.Serve warm or at room temperature.Bake at 180 degree Celsius for 9 minutes.Stollen Muffins by Richa Talwar, SustenanceStollen MuffinsServes 1Ingredients1 1/4 cups flour1 cup almond flour2 teaspoons baking powder1/4 teaspoon baking soda1/2 teaspoon salt2 teaspoons orange zest1 teaspoon cardamom1/4 teaspoon allspice1/4 teaspoon nutmeg1/3 cup granulated sugar1/2 cup candied orange peel1/4 cup currants1 large egg1 cup yogurt6 tablespoons melted butterTopping2 tablespoons melted butterconfectioners sugarMethod: Preheat the oven to 190°C.Bake the cake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, or a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar for your cookie dough until they are light and fluffy. Lightly grease a standard muffin pan; or line it with papers, and grease the papers. Set aside.Cut the strawberries into 1 cm dices.

After the butter and sugar is creamed together, it is time to add the eggs and vanilla extract.Heat castor sugar in a pan and caramelise, add the roughly chopped almonds and remove the nougat on to a parchment paper. Add the chocolate and keep aside till slightly cool and then mix well. The batter will be stiff.Now add 2/3 of the crushed almond nougat into the mix and form in to small round balls (35-40 gm) and refrigerate.Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, filling the cups about 3/4 full. Mix just until smooth. Lightly grease a 10- to 12-cup bundt-style pan.In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices, sugar, candied orange peel and raisins. You want to add the eggs into your creamed butter and sugar mixture one at a time, and mix just until combined. Christmas CookieIngredients: Butter 100 gmCastor Sugar 125 gmEggs 1 noRefined Flour 150 gmSoaked Fruit 150 gmVanilla Essence 10 mlBaking Soda 5 gmMethodCream together your butter and sugar.Brush the cake with the glaze, and allow it to cool completely before serving.Add the flour mixture in three additions alternately with the water, starting and ending with the flour. Do not over whip it or the butter will separate. This should take about 5 minutes on a medium/high speed. Stir in the molasses.Now shape the cookies into your desire shapes and garnish it with liquor soaked fruit. Crush the nougat with a rolling pin till slightly coarse.Remove the cake from the oven, cool it in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a rack. The next step in making cookie dough using the creaming method is to mix in the dry incgredients along with baking soda.Quickly and gently combine the dry and wet ingredients; this should only take a few stirs with a bowl scraper or large spoon.Bake the muffins for 20 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of one muffin comes out clean.Mix the almond flakes and strawberries into the cream along with hand torn holy basil.Garnish with almonds and sliced strawberries.

This will ensure you won’t break your creamed mixture and you don’t want to beat any air into the eggs at this point.Brush the tops of the muffins with the melted butter, then dust with sugar.Remove the pan from the oven, wait 5 minutes, then transfer the muffins to a rack.Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.Whip the cream along with sugar.Add the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl after each addition.Add your dry ingredient and mix as little as possible.In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy.In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, yogurt, and melted butter.While the cake is baking, make the glaze by stirring together the water spice and sugar.Gingerbread Bundt Cake by Richa Talwar, SustenanceGingerbread BundtServes 1Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups flour2 1/2 teaspoons ginger,1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon,1 teaspoon nutmeg,1/2 teaspoon cloves,1/2 teaspoon allspice1/2 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon baking soda1 teaspoon baking powder3/4 cup unsalted butter1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed3 eggs1/2 cup molasses1 cup waterGlaze1/3 cup rum or water1/4 teaspoon ginger1/4 teaspoon cinnamon3/4 cup granulated sugarMethodPreheat the oven to 175°C.