MUMBAI: Navratri organiser 'Sankalp' known for its lavish annual celebrations is going hi-tech this year.

The organisers have gone a step ahead and tied up with 'Tele-Brahma', a software application provider to simplify their work. Those attending the nine night extravaganza, to be held this year at the Bhavan's college grounds in Andheri can vote for their favourite couple, choose from 15 songs listed and vote for their favorites or watch star performer Falguni Pathak live as she croons on stage. All one has to do is switch on their 'blue tooth' on their handsets and download an application – the user friendly interface will guide the users do the rest. The technology used here is Blue-Fi.

Starting from 30 September of this month, the festival will go on for 11 days. The organisers have been granted an additional two days this time. The festival which used to be previously held at the Goregaon NSE grounds, has been shifted to Bhavan's College Ground in Andheri. "We shifted from our earlier venue because the parking space was not enough – the ground was small to accommodate everything," says Sankalp director Devendra Joshi. Provisions to park an estimated 500 cars are made at the new venue. The price of the passes have also steeped, a pass for 10 days will cost Rs 3,000, Rs 500 more than last year. Daily passes that were available for Rs 300 last year will cost Rs 400. The price of a weekend pass has gone up to Rs 600 from Rs 500.

With each passing year, the festival is getting bigger, the sponsors include Flatron LCD's and Gitanjali Jewellers. "We are giving away prizes worth Rs four to five million, like paid trips to the US and UK for winning couples, other prizes include electronic gadgets like TV's, VCD's and Music Players," says Joshi. The total churn expected at the end of the festival is Rs 20 to 25 million. Owing to the recent blasts in New Delhi, elaborate security arrangements have been made, the entire area would be checked by bomb squad every day, and spectators and participants will frisked at entrance and will have to go through metal detectors. Besides this, everybody present will be monitored by security personals via surveillance cameras.

With technology entering the traditional sphere, it would be interesting to see the functional aspect of this new element. Will youngsters be seen dancing and enjoying the color of festival? Or, simply glued to their cell phones – like we see them daily in cars or stations.