The Bengalis of the Steel City look all set to celebrate 'Poila Baisakh' - the Bengali New Year, on April 14. A number of programmes have been lined up by different committees in the city.
The day starts on a ritualistic note. Members of all Bengali families woke up before dawn to offer prayers to Goddess Durga for the well-being of one and all. "I will pray that I get selected in the medical entrance examination," says Mouli Ghosh, a young girl of Sonari.
City hotels have geared up for food festivals. Hotel Yashwee International and the Boulevard Hotel have decided to serve mouth watering Bengali delicacies.
Yashwee International in its festival titled- Bengali Food Festival will offer delicacies like Ilsih maccher paturi, bhapa ilish, bhapa bhetki and murg. The festival will continue till April 16.
"We have been maintaining the tradition for the last several years and we have seen that the Bengali food festival even for lesser days get a huge response. On the New Year's day, there are families, who love to eat. That is the reason we give the delicacies so that food lovers and ladies can come and enjoy,” said an official of Yashwee International
The Boulevard Hotel in Bistupur will celebrate Poila Baisakh from April 14 to April 17 with a range of preparations like would also offer kosa maangsho, kasa murgi, dhokar dalna and desserts like kamala bhog, rosogolla and payesh keeping the festival menu simple.
"like every year this year too we want to serve the authentic taste to the people. We have hired a chef from Kolkata to prepare authentic Bengali cuisine. We wanted to bring in some variety to the menu every year," said a chef of city hotel Anup Kumar.
Organisations like Bengal Club and The Milanee have lined up cultural gala. The cultural programmes include short plays, solo singing and dance performances. like any other Indian festivals, which are incomplete without its specific cuisine, special dishes relished by members of the community on the occasion.
The Bengal Club will organise a cultural programme by a local cultural group on April 16, a day after the New Year. A two-day programme titled 'Swarnajuger Gaan' on April 21 and 22 will also be organised. Artistes like Atul Prasad, Sreeradha Bandopadhyay from Kolkata will perform Rabindrasangeet on April 21 whereas modern Bengali songs by Manomoy Bhattacharya, and Madhumita Dutta Choudhury from Calcutta will be performed on April 22.
The Jharkhand Banglabhashi Yuva Morcha and Kadma New Farm Area Durga Puja Committee is all set to organise a cultural extravaganza on April 15 with a series of dance and performances to celebrate Bengali new year.