Durga Pujo: When Kolkata is at its most festive, we take a walk around it
The five-day long Bengali Hindu festival, Durga Pujo, is awaited by Bengalis round the year. This festive season, we take you to the streets of Kolkata for a peek into the city’s craftsmanship.
Durga is the mother goddess. Through a 10-day series of rituals and worship, Durga visits her home from Kailash with her children. She epitomises strength, love, and purity. Bengalis breathe ecstasy when it comes to pujo, and the city is decked with art, light and togetherness during the five days of the festival.
Selimpur Pally has gone eco-friendly this time. With wooden keys that resemble piano keys, and musical notes strung around the idol, the theme plays well with the tree that is growing right in the middle of the pandal premises.
A small pandal in Golpark has done wonders. It has been made by hand, out of Nepali handmade paper. The patterns have been drawn on white with Chinese ink.
Samaj Sebi Sangha in South Kolkata has painted the city. Literally. There are extensive patterns drawn on the streets with oil paints. Traditional dhakis ring in the festivities in the pandal, and the air fills with merry music.
Hindustan Park Sarbojonin has added a tribal feel to the festival. The pandal décor and its figurines are made of tyre and rubber tubes. A gentle lull of indigenous music hangs over the pandal, while colourful feathers have balanced out the black.
Notice the flowers. These are all made of paper! This colourful garden is eco-friendly, festive, and boasts of beautiful craftsmanship.
Tridhara Akalbodhon has created an unreal land. The idol sits at the centre, while birds, bees and other creatures fly around it. Minarets adorn this land. They have used glue cans and umbrellas to make the flying beings, and old boxes for the towers. The pandal engulfs the visitor in its near-magical ambience.
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