As the national Capital celebrates Goddess Durga in pandals big and small, some organisers this year around have opted for fanciful themes, others have kept it simple, a few have gone back to their roots, while many have tried to give a contemporary twist with a social message.
If that’s not enough, several pandals in Delhi-NCR have taken the road home to rejoice all things pertaining to the culture of Bengal from the red soil of Birbhum to Kolkata’s iconic Princep Ghat on the banks of the Hooghly River.
The Maruti Vihar Sarbojanin Durgotsav Committee (MVSDC) in Sector 29 Gurugram has recreated the earthy colours of Bengal, with the theme of ‘Chalo Jai Ranga Matir Deshe’.
The organisers hope to dispel the Kolkata-centric view of Bengal through the pandal. “We have selected some of the most prominent rural segments of Bengal, particularly the ‘ranga mati’, or red soiled areas, like Birbhum, Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore, to showcase their rich art and culture,” said Rabin Chakraborty, general secretary of the committee.
The pandal will have artists giving live demonstrations of art forms such as ‘potoshilpo’ from Purulia and terracotta art from Bankura. Also, there will be Baul singers from the region.
“We hope the pandal will generate wider interest and help promote tourism in these places. The items on display will also be up for sale for the benefit of the artisans,” said committee president Swapan Sarkar.
Puja committees in Delhi’s Chittaranjan Park, the quintessential Bengali colony often known as mini-Kolkata, usually go the extra mile to create unique pandals.
However, for their 42nd Puja celebrations, B-Block, CR Park, has decided to keep it simple. One of the biggest Pujas in Delhi in terms of space, B- Block is going back to the roots, with a traditional idol in ‘Daker saaj’.
“We feel it’s important to go back to being simple. It helps us to connect with our roots,” said Sayan Acharya, executive member of the Puja committee.
The pandal in Chittaranjan Park’s Pocket-40 is recreating Belur Math, the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, founded by Swami Vivekananda, a chief disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.
The Bangiya Parishad in Gurugram has recreated Kolkata’s iconic Princep Ghat for its 12th Puja celebrations, replicating the Palladian architecture of the 1841 monument.
The pandal also boasts of one of the tallest idols of Goddess Durga in the region, made by West Bengal-based artisans who put up their unit in Mehrauli. The idol measures over 18 feet in height, said Arnab Bhattacharya from the committee.
Talking about the festive fervour outside of Bengal, Bhattacharya said, “Though the theme and pandals and the scale is as large as some in Kolkata, the level of inter-personal engagement is much higher in probashi (people living outside Bengal) pujas.”
While many have chosen to go the traditional route, several pandals in the region are exploring contemporary concerns such as communal harmony and women’s empowerment.
The Arambagh Puja, for instance, focuses on communal harmony and the battle against racism, and the Matri Mandir Puja Samiti is looking at women’s empowerment.
At Arambagh, there is a huge 40-foot artwork showing Mahisasur, the demon king, above a collage of a temple, a mosque, a church, a gurudwara and a lotus temple. The Mahisasur is handsome and light skinned, defying the traditional image of an ugly, dark-skinned demon.
“India is a country which celebrates unity in diversity. Mahisasur is trying to disturb communal harmony, but Durga has overpowered him. We have a tendency to connote ugly with evil, whereas that is not the case. Evil can be anywhere and in any form. So through a handsome Mahisasur we are trying to convey a message against racism,” said Abhijit Bose, executive chairman of Arambagh Puja.