Tilak makes Ganeshotsav a public festival

Festivals became a way to bring people into public life.

Key points for UPSC

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak turned the Ganapati festival into a public celebration in 1893 and began the Shivaji festival soon after.
• The festivals carried national ideas to people who did not read English.
• Tilak ran two newspapers: Kesari in Marathi and the Mahratta in English.

Who was involved

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak · bringing people together

Test yourself

1. 1. Which newspapers did Tilak run?

   • (a) Kesari and Mahratta
   • (b) Young India and Navajivan
   • (c) Bande Mataram and Yugantar
   • (d) New India and Commonweal
   Show answer

   (a) Kesari and Mahratta. Kesari was in Marathi, the Mahratta in English.

2. 2. Why did Tilak promote public festivals?

   • (a) To bring ordinary people into national life
   • (b) To raise money for the Congress
   • (c) To please the British
   • (d) To replace temples
   Show answer

   (a) To bring ordinary people into national life. Festivals reached people beyond the English-educated.

3. 3. Besides Ganapati, Tilak started a public festival for:

   • (a) Shivaji
   • (b) Akbar
   • (c) Ashoka
   • (d) Guru Nanak
   Show answer

   (a) Shivaji. The Shivaji festival celebrated a Maratha hero.