Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati

Shreemant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati Temple was founded by Dagdusheth Halwai, a sweet maker who had settled in Pune, after he and his wife Laxmibai lost their only son in a plague epidemic in the 1890s. The Ganpati festival he began in 1893 is still run by the temple trust, and the present idol dates from 1968. The idol is richly adorned with gold, and the shrine is open to the street, so devotees can see the deity and offer prayers even without entering. Expect queues on Tuesdays, on Sankashti Chaturthi and above all during Ganeshotsav, when the trust's festival pandal and the temple are lit up and crowds fill Shivaji Road late into the night.