Rath Yatra – From Inspiration to Drawing, Women’s empowered festival garners momentum

Rathayatra – the Chariot Festival, celebrates the annual journey of the deities Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and their sister Subhadra from the Jagannath Temple to their ‘Mausi Maa House’ often referred as ‘Gundicha Temple’. This festival is deeply rooted in several legends and traditions, including a promise to Queen Gundicha and a desire to grant darshan (auspicious viewing) to all devotees.

The three chariots in the Jagannath Rath Yatra are named Nandighosha (for Lord Jagannath), Taladhwaja (for Lord Balabhadra), and Darpadalana (for Devi Subhadra).

This year, 2025 marked a renaissance in the history of Rathayatra, as Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee who had spear headed the timely completion of the Jagannath Temple in the coastal town of Digha in West Bengal has ushered a new horizon with the coveted Rathayatra diligently being organised in Digha.

As the entire world is celebrating Jagannath’s annual pilgrimage to his ‘Mausi Maa House’ with ardent fervour, what has drawn commanding attention is the drawing of the ‘Darpadalana – chariot of Sister Subhadra’ by women’s in Odisha.

Like in previous years, the chariot of Lord Jagannath’s sister Subhadra was pulled by women at Gosaninuagaon in Odisha’s Berhampur on Rath Yatra on Friday. The custom of drawing Subhadra’s chariot by women started in 1975 in Baripada, the tribal heartland of the state. In Gosaninuagaon temple, this custom started from 2000, the organisers said. Berhampur is believed to be the second place in Odisha, after Baripada, to observe such a gender-specific tradition during the yatra.

However, the chariots of Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra were pulled by male devotees, adhering to traditional customs.

“The enthusiasm among women to participate has been increasing every year since the tradition began“, said Panchanan Choudhury, manager of the Jagannath Temple Development Committee, Gosaninuagaon.

Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BeMC) Mayor Sanghamitra Dalai had the honour of being the first to pull Subhadra’s chariot this year. MLA (Berhampur) K. Anil Kumar led the pulling of Lord Jagannath’s chariot.

Several women were seen pulling Subhadra’s chariot from the temple site to Gundicha temple, located about one-and-a-half kilometres away.

“The temple committee has reserved the right of pulling Subhadra’s chariot only for women to ensure their active and respectful participation in the Rath Yatra. Because of this special reservation, women do not have to jostle with their male counterparts to get closer to the chariot. Besides, there are lesser chances of women falling victim to unscrupulous men, when they congregate to pull chariots”, the mayor Sanghamitra Dalai along with Panchanan Choudhury reaffirmed. Meanwhile, Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M said tight security arrangements were made, including the deployment of women police officers near Subhadra’s chariot.

Team Maverick