The Gods must be Konkani

Ganapatipule

State Maharashtra

Distance 390 km S of Mumbai

Journey Time By road 8 hrs By rail 7 hrs plus road 1 hr

Location By the Arabian Sea on the southern Konkan coast, 43 km from Ratnagiri

Route NH17 from Panvel to Nivli via Kolad, Chiplun and Sangameshwar; SH106 and district road to Ganapatipule

With the affable god Ganpati, lotus in one hand and astride his trusty mouse, having descended to this beach with his army of gana (soldiers) and lent his name to the sand dunes (pule), heaven has arrived at its best address yet, now known as Ganapatipule. Dressed in his dhoti and janao, this original beach boy appeared here 400 years ago in the Swayambhu (self-originated) Temple. Both beach and temple have ever since been flooded by devotees and ocean-lovers throughout the year, particularly during the month of Bhadrapad when Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with band-baaja and flying gulal on the beach. And if the gods or the surf aren’t reason enough to make you want to get to Ganapatipule, maybe the hapus (Alphonso) mango will be!

For those who want to get under the skin of this state, Ganapatipule is an unexpected starting point to discover the landscape, art, culture and history of Maharashtra.

See and do

Arrive at the beach down the winding road from Ratnagiri and you are right by the Swayambhu Ganpati Temple, one of the paschim dwar devtas (west-coast gods). The swayambhoomi (self-created) Ganpati is very popular with the Konkani people, who crowd it especially on Angar Ki Chaturvethi, which is held every six months on a Tuesday.

Walk out of the temple and you’re on the beach, watching a village cricket match played out in a stupendous location, right by the water. Small shacks sell coconut water (no hard drinks allowed). If the romance of its setting weren’t enough, the beach is also sparsely populated and on long weekends, it is said that tourists outnumber the locals.

The waters are safe for swimming, plus there is a lifeguard here, but about three or four accidents do occur each year when people unaccustomed to the sea try swimming during low tide.

Water sports

In a bid to build on its status as a resort, MTDC has developed a water sports centre, complete with kayaks, water scooters, boats and life-jackets, on offer from October to May. The rides are pretty reasonably priced (Rs 30 per person for a four-minute spin on a water scooter; Rs 25 per person (minimum four) for a spin in the motor boat; Rs 20 per person for a kayak ride or paddle boat.

Shopping

The best thing that you can take back from the Konkan are its fruits. Dongre’s in Ganapatipule’s main market is a good option for Konkani ingredients. A recommended buy is kokum sherbet, a sweet and sour drink with a mesmerising pink colour. There are all kinds of sweets but their specialities are besan and coconut laddoos. They even have dinka-che-laddoo, made with edible gum! This is a holy town and assorted pilgrim-ware is available in the row of shops outside the Swayambhu Temple to help you worship with a full offering.

Where to eat

The best option in Ganapatipule is to walk to Kelkars, a local khanaval just outside the MTDC compound. Many such khanavals have lately sprung up in Ganapatipule, and they offer a genuine taste of Konkani vegetarian cooking with its typical flavours of coconut, coriander, lime and goda-masala (a spice blend). Their speciality is modak, a rice, coconut and jaggery sweet, offered as naivedyam to Ganpati. You can also go to the beach outside the temple where a number of stalls serve snacks, including bhajias and polis. In the summer there are always petis (cartons) of mangoes and throughout the year there is kokum, aam papad and phanas (jackfruit).