No Lalu rockets, Nitish patakas this Diwali
October 24th, 2011 - 6:33 pm ICT by IANS
Patna, Oct 24 (IANS) It seems politicians in Bihar are losing their spark - to be replaced by the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and a cluth of Bollywood stars. Unlike every year, firecrackers named after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and former chief ministers Lalu Prasad and his wife Rabri Devi are missing from the markets this time.
Till last year, fireworks named after them, as also Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi had flooded the markets.
“Firecrackers named after Nitish, Lalu, Rabri…are not available,” Salim Ahmad, a firecracker wholesaler in Patna, told IANS.
He said this year, the likes of cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Bollywood stars are adorning the cracker covers.
“There are no Lalu bombs, Lalu rockets, Nitish patakas or Rabri phuljharis this year. It is surprising,” said Mohammed Naushad, a shopkeeper selling crackers here.
“There is demand for firecrackers named after Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor, Vidya Balan, Shah Rukh Khan, Hirthik Roshan and Dhoni,” he said.
“We are selling Kareena hydro bombs, Bipasha Basu anar, Katrina parachute and Shah Rukh Khan rockets this year,” said Munna Kumar, a wholesale agent of firecrackers.
He recalled the years when the Lalu-Rabri brand outsold all others. “The high sales of the Lalu-Rabri crackers were the accepted index of their popularity among the people till a few years ago. But that is no more the case,” he said.
A few years ago, firecrackers named after then US president George W. Bush, slain Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden and tennis sensation Sania Mirza did brisk business.
According to the Bihar Chamber of Commerce, firecrackers worth Rs.400 million are likely to be sold this Diwali.
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- Politicians lose their sparkle, Dhoni shines this Diwali (Lead) - Oct 27, 2008
- Brand Lalu-Rabri fail to glow this festival of lights - Oct 27, 2008
- Anna Hazare tops rakhi charts in Bihar - Aug 12, 2011
- Nitish, Rabri Devi file nominations - Apr 11, 2012
- Bihar celebrates Makar Sankranti with dahi-chura - Jan 14, 2010
- Nitish, Lalu, Paswan rakhis a hit in Bihar - Aug 23, 2010
- Development overrides caste in Bihar battle - Oct 17, 2010
- Rabri Devi out of chief ministerial race this election - Jul 20, 2010
- Rabri Devi gets bail for abusive remarks - May 18, 2010
- Lalu, Rabri upbeat after success of Bihar shutdown - Jan 29, 2010
- This Diwali, be wary of that anar and chakri - Oct 24, 2011
- Lalu elated with success of Bihar shutdown (Lead) - Jan 29, 2010
- JD-U and BJP sweep Bihar, RJD and Congress humiliated (Fourth Lead) - Nov 24, 2010
Tags: anar, bipasha basu, bollywood stars, brisk business, chief ministers, cluth, congress president sonia gandhi, diwali, firecrackers, hirthik roshan, kareena kapoor, katrina kaif, mahendra singh dhoni, naushad, president george w bush, rahul gandhi, sania mirza, shah rukh khan, tennis sensation, vidya balan