Currently, Gujarat is immersed in the festive spirit of Navratri, a celebration dedicated to the worship of Goddess Durga. Despite exhaustion from their daily work, business, or studies, people enthusiastically dress in traditional attire in the evenings and congregate at various grounds and party venues to partake in Garba events, seeking the blessings of Goddess Durga. Amidst all the enthusiasm, a video from Nadiad in Gujarat has gained significant attention wherein Gujarati actress Urvashi Solanki made derogatory remarks about this revered Hindu festival.
The video that is circulating widely depicts a woman speaking into a microphone from a Garba stage, surrounded by a large gathering of Gujaratis joyfully participating in the Garba dance.
‘In Gujarat, we prefer using the occasion of Navratri rather than Valentine’s Day to say ‘I love you’ to a girl’: Urvashi Solanki
The woman has been identified as Urvashi Solanki, a Gujarati actress. Urvashi said, “Garba of Gujarat is famous all over the world. If in Gujarat, someone wants to say ‘I love you’ to a girl, they wait for Navratri and not Valentine’s Day.”
Subsequently, Urvashi asked the audience, as she felt the need for more backing on the issue, “Right? How many of you said (I love you to a girl) in these 4 days?” However, there was not enough response from the crowd.
She further said, “If you play garba for 9 days though even on the last day you are single, then surely you have played garba only. There will be all those who will not have an affair on the ninth day, they will be waiting for the next Navratri.”
Garba organised by the Samarpan Education Trust
The video that went viral on social media was reportedly from Nadiad in Gujarat where the actress attended the Navratri celebration called Maa Shakti Garba festival organised by The Samarpan Education Trust.
Netizens demand an apology, Urvashi Solanki brazens it out
The video did not go down well with the netizens who expressed significant outrage after it started circulating on social media. Calling in a sheer insult to the Hindu festival, most of the miffed Netizens demanded that the actress should offer an apology to the Hindu community.
An X account named @i_am_prapti posted, “This Urvashi Solanki says Navratri is a festival of “affairs”. If you are single even on the ninth day, then you have played Garba only. This woman also knows that Muslim youths go to Garba in ‘disguise’ to trap our Hindu daughters, and she knows what happens after that. A stupid woman.”
A user named @just_hu_ wrote, “Navratri is the festival of worshipping Shakti Ambaji, the power of the mother of the universe, not of affairs. Really pity the mindset of this woman.”
Another X user named @DhavalP0673838 wrote, demanding an apology from the actress, “Shameful comments on our festival by the Gujarati actress named Urvashi, we want an apology for the humiliation of Sanatan dharma.”
Like many others, a user named @bdholariyaa also demanded an apology from this artist. He wrote, “Really she should apologise.”
It’s incredible that the actress didn’t bother to apologise even after being called out for disrespecting the revered Hindu festival honouring the divinity and might of Goddess Shakti or Durga. Instead, she brazened it out by sharing a report on the same published by the Hindi daily news outlet Navbharat Times.