Earlier this week on the 5th November, we ventured out into the night to see the spectacle that is Narakasura, the 2nd day of Diwali, the Hindu Festival. This day marks the victory of good over evil with the defeat of the demon Narakasura by Lord Krishna.

So many colours (and people) filled the arena in Margao, Goa. Weaving our way through the crowds, we saw a number of effigies some smaller than others. All of the sculptures had detailed paintwork, with muscles, abs and bellies. As the evening went on the event host invited each Narakasura model to the stage to take on Lord Krishna. A magnificent performance of moving and sword swinging by Lord Krishna was unveiled, with dramatic music being performed by each team’s drumming band.

Taking photographs in such a busy place can be challenging, with people walking in front and getting in the way. However, to portray the scale of the effigies in a single photograph, a human scale was needed.This is where we step back to view the full height of the sculpture along with the anticipation growing within the crowd.

Each model has been made by a local community, all hoping to win the prize of the best Narakasura sculpture. The teams take time to prepare their performance before the showdown with Lord Krishna. This is a prime opportunity for any photographer to turn away from the towering sculptures and focus on capturing both the nerves and excitement within the team’s faces.

The back room workings of the sculptures incorporated many strings and contraptions to control them. These controls are used to make the effigies move when fighting Lord Krishna, as well as demonstrating the defeat of Narakasura. This was done in a number of ways, the body splitting in half or the head falling off. There must have been a lot of time and effort by many people to construct and design the sculptures ready for this big occasion. Some effigies were designed in such a way that they moved during the fight with the use of the string controls. On one, the arms moved, on another the legs bent and straightened to imitate walking; and on another (the sculpture with the blue and gold horns in the photograph above), the tongue also moved instilling the demon inside Narakasura.