It was a perfect picture of religious harmony on Dola festival [Hindus festival of color]hundreds of Muslim devotees of Phalirtakia village under Jagatsinghpur district have been celebrating Dola for past 300 years along with the Hindus of the locality with traditional enthusiasm and fervor and performing it without halt still date , Muslims have no qualms about celebrating Hindu festival.
Several Burqua clad women and men wearing namaz-ki-topi [SkullCap] with children in tow waited huge numbers to offer prayers to the Hindu deity ‘Gateswar’ who visits Muslim Dargha named as Satya Pira Pitha during Dolafestival, they believe that observing Dola festival is an age old custom and tradition that reflects communal harmony of the locality, while scores ofMuslims from near by villages are flocked to witness this one day occasion observed every year. The rich local custom says that during Dola festival ‘theHindu deity of locality Gateswar first visits Satya Pira Pitha early on the start of Dola festival , The Muslims of the Phakirtakia village offer Bhoga,coconut, flower, incense stick and dry colour to the visiting deity and greetHindu priests and people accompanying God, in exchange the Hindu priests give them Bhoga and smear colour [ Abhira] at the graveyard and halts few minutes during that time Muslims recite few Sura’s of holy Koran on turn Hindus chant few Vedic Mantras,the age old rituals are locally known as Hari Hara Bheta.