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Raja Festival 

There are several festivals associated with agriculture across the country.  These festivals could be broadly divided into two categories: one at the time of the beginning of the monsoon heralding beginning of the primary farming season and second during the harvest marking the end of the season. Most of these festivals have religious connotations and particular rituals associated, besides song, dance, food and general merry making.
Odisha has a unique festival heralding the monsoon which has less of religious rituals and more of merrymaking. It is called Raja (menstruation) Festival.  Raja Parba is a four day long festival and the second day signifies beginning of the solar month of Mithuna from which the rainy season begins. It marks through biological symbolism, the moistening of the sun dried soil with the first showers of the monsoon in mid June thus making it ready for productivity. It is believed that the mother goddess Earth or the divine wife of Lord Vishnu undergoes menstruation during the first three days.The fourth day is called as Vasumatigadhua or ceremonial bath of Bhudevi. The term Raja has come from Rajaswala(meaning a menstruating woman) and during medieval period the festival became more poular as an agricultural holiday remarking the worship of Bhudevi,who is the wife of lord Jagannath.A silver idol of Bhudevi is still found in Puri Temple aside Lord Jagannatha. During the three days women are given a break from household work and time to play indoor games.Unmarried girls decorate themselves with new fashion or traditional Saree and Alatha in feet.All people abstain from walking barefoot on earth.Generally various Pithas are made of which Podopitha,andChakuliPitha are main.People play a lot of indoor and outdoor games.Girls play swings tied on tree branches whereas aged ladies play Cards and Ludo.Many villages organiseKabbadi matches among young men. It falls in mid June,the first day is called Pahili Raja,second day is MithunaSankranti,third day is BhudaahaorBasi Raja.The final fourth day is called Basumatisnan,in which the ladies bath the grinding stone as a symbol of Bhumi with turmeric paste and adore with flower,sindoor, etc.All type of seasonal fruits are offered to mother Bhumi. 
The day before first day is called Sajabajaor preparatory day during which the house ,kitchen including grinding stones are cleaned,spices are ground for three days. During these three days women and girls take rest from work and wear new sareeand ornaments. They put on alata(ceremonial red liquid) on their feet. Another interesting feature of this festival is: girls usually play on swings. Different kinds of swings (such as 'Ram Doli', 'CharkiDoli', 'PataDoli', 'DandiDoli' etc.) are mounted on the big trees. Girls take turns to ride on the swings. Swings are so much part of the festival that many have started calling it Swing Festival.
 Almost all festivals have typical songs associated with it. Raja Festival also has special songs- which speak of  love, affection, and  social behavior.  Through anonymous and composed extempore, many of these songs, through sheer beauty of diction and sentiment, has earned permanence and has gone to make the very substratum of Odisha's folk-poetry.  While girls thus scatter beauty, grace and music all around, moving up and down on the swings during the festival, young men play games and eat good food. As all agricultural activities remain suspended and a joyous atmosphere pervades, the young men of the village keep themselves busy in various types of country games, the most favourite being 'Kabadi'. Competitions are also held between different groups of villages. All nights 'Yatra' performances or 'Gotipua' dances are arranged in prosperous villages where they can afford the professional groups. Enthusiastic amateurs also arrange plays and other kinds of entertainment.
In India specially prepared food is an integral part of any festival. Raja festival has its special dish: poda(burnt/baked) pitha. It is prepared by baking dough of rice-powder, molasses, coconut, camphor, ghee etc.  Raja as a festival has less to do with religious practices and more with merry making and enjoyment.

 Monsoon 

This evening, a vegetable vendor in Dhenkanal expressed his happiness in his way (with expletives and all) as monsoon hit Kerala. This is what 24x7 news has done to us. Nana Patekar would have said: AchhaHai!

 Tailpiece: See the irony

 People ask the milkman time and again: You haven’t poured water in the milk? But when they drink, they themselves pour water in the drink.
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The author, a journalist-turned media academician lives at Dhenkanal, Odisha. He can be contacted at mrinalchatterjee@ymail.com