Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees carry an idol of Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, for immersion in the sea on the last day of Ganesh Chaturthi, in Mumbai
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Devotees broke out into a riot of colours and dances with loud music amidst chants of 'Ganapati Bappa Moraya,' renting the air, as they took to streets to bid adieu to their favourite deity.

The ten-day revelry culminated on Wednesday with immersion of the elephant-headed God.

In Maharashtra, enthusiasts poured on the streets in gay abandon joining the revelry, lining behind the Ganesh idols en route to immersion sites with a tag Pudhcya Varshi Laukar Yaa (Come back soon).

In Hyderabad, about 25,000 Ganesh idols of different sizes were immersed at various lakes in the city limits with an estimated 12 lakh people taking part in the event.

Click on NEXT to see photographs of people bidding farewell to their beloved Lord...

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees carry an idol of Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, for immersion in the sea
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees watch idols of Ganesha and Lord Shiva as they are placed on the seashore before immersion
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees carry a Ganesh idol to immerse it in the waters of the Arabian Sea
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees carry a Ganesh idol to immerse it in the waters of the Arabian Sea
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees carry a Ganesh idol to immerse it in the waters of the Arabian Sea
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: A devotee carries an idol of Ganesha before immersing it in the waters of the Arabian Sea in Mumbai
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: Devotees immerse an idol of Lord Ganesha
Photographs: Gopal Chitrakar/Reuters

Goodbye, my dear Ganesha

Image: A crane lowers a Ganesh idol for immersion in river Sabarmati
Photographs: Amit Dave/Reuters

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