Navratri 2024: TV actress Helly Shah recalls Garba memories

Helly Shah shared that they would celebrate the festival in Gujarat by dancing to Garba until the wee hours of the morning in Ahmedabad.

The Navratri festival began today, October 3, and television actress Helly Shah shares her fond memories of the celebrations in Gujarat. She hails from Ahmedabad, and Navratri hits differently for her as a Gujarati. As the nine days of Navratri celebrations begin, the actor recalls memories of her hometown.

Helly Shah shares her fond memories of Navratri.

Recalling her Garba memories, Helly Shah says, “Ahmedabad Navratri are crazy, and I have grown up watching that craze. And I enjoyed it when there were no time limits. We would be on the floor and do Garba till the sun came up. Then we’d have breakfast straight away and then go to sleep. Gujaratis are so passionate in Ahmedabad. I would travel to Surat, Vadodara and other places in Gujarat just to Garba and every place had a different vibe.”

Helly Shah’s core memories of the Navratri festival.

One of the core memories of the actress is her mother dressing her up in traditional chaniya choli. She said, “We would go to the famous markets and while I would still not understand fashion much at the time, my mom always used to be so enthusiastic about it. Three days back, she asked me again if she should buy chaniya choli for me. I used to go to nani’s place and would make an idol from clay, which we call Malla Mata. We would select our theme for the decorations, and I would love the serenity of the first aarti in the evening. I still get goosebumps talking about it. You can feel the power and devotion in everyone’s eyes.”

The actress sees the same Navratri enthusiasm in Mumbai too.

After moving to Mumbai for work, Helly Shah has seen the same enthusiasm among people for Navratri. She said, “Gujaratis jahan jate hain, apna jaadu spread kar hi dete hain. In Mumbai, there are so many Gujaratis, and you can see their influence. When I saw the craze of Garba here, it was really overwhelming and heartening. Main puri gulabi hoke nikli thi after my first Garba night here.”

Helly Shah concluding says that she has one regret that in all these years, she hasn’t been able to attend (singer) Falguni Pathak Garba night, but this year, she aims to do that.