New Delhi, Sept. 21 -- As Durga Puja approaches, with main festivities beginning from September 28, the streets have come alive with pandals and devotees carrying intricately crafted idols of Goddess Durga to them. Today was Mahalaya, the beginning of Devi Paksha.

Mahalaya signifies the mythical departure of the goddess from the Himalayas to her paternal home. It is from this day that the Durga Puja fever begins. Durga Puja festivities peak on the seventh day after Mahalaya and end on the tenth day of Dashami or Dussehra.

Artisans spend months sculpting the Durga idols. The arrival of the idols are seen as the beginning of the festivities, filling everyone with joy and homecoming.

In Mumbai, devotees were seen carrying a beautifully de...