Arjun Palit
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Durga Puja : A bong Emotion
Every year when the first calendar comes. The First question that rises in every Bengalis mind is 'When is Durga Puja ?'
Durga puja is celebrated all over India in the Indian calendar month of Ashwin (September -October ) . As per Hindu mythology the festival celebrates the victory of goddess Durga against the ever transforming shape Asur /Mahisasura the demon , hence it epitomizes the victory of Good over devil forces.
The preparation of Durga Puja begins almost 3-4 months prior to the actual day of the festival, although it is celebrated with a complete enthusiasm , happiness and joy all over the country, but it has a special and a different emotion in Kolkata .
I had read so much and have seen so many photographs or videos of Durga puja , but this time I decided to pack my bag ,the Camera and stepped out to Kolkata to experience this for the very first time. In a Bengalis mind the excitement accumulates each day as the festival nears .. also it would be equally sad after it gets over.
Kolkata known as City of joy gets dressed up with a different look and feel from the an usual busy daily life . Every street, lanes , restaurant and the shops, malls begin overflowing with a huge crowd of people each nearing day, even though Bengalis carry out shopping almost throughout the year , but the shopping before Puja has a different level of excitement and energy. Ranging from buying new clothes , household stuffs to decorative items, the enthusiasm fills all the age groups.
Kolkata once used to be the British capital of India and has numerous iconic structures, a happening life to photograph, to begin from The famous Howrah bridge , the Victoria memorial , Princep ghat , Kali ghat ,the hand pulled Rikshaws , Trams to People offering early morning prayers at the banks of hoogly river etc provide some of the amazing subjects. A few of them can take anyone to an old British era , the finest thing to be liked is that , it is preserved and maintained at present to mark a memento of the old heritage.
Mahalaya - The pre-arrival of Goddess
Seven days prior to Durga Puja , comes a special day called Mahalaya . Its an auspicious day that marks the beginning of Devi-Paksha and the end of the Pitri-Paksha (the mourning period).
In this morning people wake up early and take bath in the rivers, it is believed to be the last day to offer water to their ancestors and offer prayers to their happy souls before the sun god . This is known as the holy Tarpan.
One can listen to Sanskrit recitation (originally composed by orater Birendra Krishna Bhadra) which is broadcasted through the Radio all over Kolkata in the dawn of Mahalaya. The hymns and the chants of the recitation brings a positive energy ,a feeling of happiness and as well an excitation about an upcoming arrival of the mother goddess.
The Story of Durga and Mahisasura
According to Hindu Mythology a demon named Rambha was born within a buffalo and he had divinely powers to change various forms to cause destruction and thats how he became the powerful Mahisasura ,he was blessed with the great Lord Bramha and started taking authorities over Heaven hell and earth , he even acquired a wish or a vardan from the lord that he wouldn't be killed by any Animal ,god or a Man and that's how he started creating great suffering to all the gods , living beings and the entire universe. So one day all the gods decided to converge their powers together and gave birth of a supreme power who was named the goddess Durga.
Every year during this period, Goddess Durga visits earth along with her four children siddhivinayak Ganesha , Goddess of wealth Lakshmi , Goddess of education Sarawasti and Dev senapati Kartikeya to destroy the Mahisasura ,which personifies all evil energies in the earth.
While the preparation of Durga puja goes on all over Kolkata , Skilled Artisians and craftsmen from all over West Bengal come to kolkata start construction of pandals ,design of lights and begin composition of theme based pandals.
Unlike the passion to capture the visual stories,the fact which always created a curiosity in my mind is to see the work of the artisans who create the Durga idols , and it carried me to visit Kumartuli (the colony of creators of the lord).
Kumartuli is an old human settlement located at the banks of hoogly river (a tributary of Ganges )particularly at North Kolkata. The nearest metro station is Sovabazar Sonatuni , i had to reach this place passing the old vintage dingy lanes of North Kolkata . This place is a colony of idol makers ,(Kumar or Kumbhar) potters ,artisans and painters .
Every year during Durga Puja thousands of Durga pratimas (idols) are constructed from scratch,painted and properly finished and transported to pandals , homes all over Kolkata and even distributed all over the entire country .
Clay from the beds of Hoogly river , the humid weather of Kolkata , and sunshine are the key things necessary to make the Durga idols , This year it rains a lot more compared to other previous years , hence these craftsmen had to face numerous challenges in drying the freshly created idols.
The most auspicious and a photographic event in the making of these idols, is the time when the eyes of the goddess is being painted. While photographing the scene , i found myself struggling between lot of other people and photographers who unlike me had come to experience the auspicious occasion.
The finished idols are finally ready to be delivered to the respective clients, big Pandals or even in house setups of families via trucks ,carts or taxis or even carried over own shoulders by the people. The People of Kumartuli are extremely down to earth and they have a lot of emotional attachment with the business of idol making, which is the ultimate only source of income through out the year.
Idols are transported with great care and boundless feelings , it feels like a child bringing his mother in his home with great care and love , the fact is they are going to see each other only once a year.
Finally the day comes ,which every one has eagerly waited for so long.
Maha Shashthi - The 6th day of Navaratri. People including children,adults and elders begin pandal hopping and take a glance of 100s of durga idols all over kolkata from this evening till late night.
The distinct architecture of lights , and theme based pandals all over the Kolkata , had taken me to the world of stories . It is extremely difficult to believe the level of skillset used in creation of each and every pandal will eventually remain temporary .and its something i have never witnessed before.
The entire Kolkata city gets decorated like a bengali bride in these days, With the sounds of Dhak (drums) all over , bells ,a soothing smell of Dhunichi (coconut incense in earthen pots) in every pandals purifies the soul from inside and after seeing Maa durga decorated in an utmost traditional outfit , it is sufficient to trigger an adrenaline rush .
Durga puja is celebrated for 10 days ,beginning from the the next day of Mahalaya , However the important days where the celebration and joy is in full form are the 6th to 9 th days of the puja,
Maha Shaptami -The 7th day of Navaratri , the actual puja ritual begins , people offer prayers before the lord every morning , and is ended with Shandhi puja (i.e the evening prayers) .
Maha Ashtami -The 8th day of Navaratri , is the most auspicious day of Puja , is celebrated with complete rituals across Hindu culture . However it is incomplete without Dhunuchi dance in the sound of dhaak.
Maha Navami -The 9th day of Navaratri, is the last day of the battle , this is the last day of end of all evils and beginning of a new life hence thats the day in which the goddess Durga took the form of Mahisasur Mardini to destroy the demon Mahisasura,
Apart from rituals and practices , Durga puja is also about having delicious street food , variety of sweets , dancing together with the near and dear ,flaunting new outfits, Bong addas ( Bengali gossips) and of course late night pandal hopping . The city hosts approximately 4000 Durga puja pandals scattered in from lanes ,streets, houses and to big associations all over.
As i state at the beginning , the excitement of arrival of the Durga Puja is so high among people of Kolkata , it becomes equally sad and emotional , once the last day of Puja arrives.
Vijaya Dashami -The 10 th and the final day of Navaratri - This is the day of visarjan or immersion of the Goddess. It is believed The supreme mother sends departs her four children to the heaven, before she finally take a leave from earth. This day is celebrated as Dusherra all over India , unlike Lord Rama who destroyed the demon Ravana from goddess Durga , hence this day signifies a victory or Vijay of good over the evil all over the country
Married women bid farewell to the lord through an event named Sindur utsav or Vermilion festival. Using Sindur ( Vermilion) and betel leaves, women bid farewell to the goddess and her children also pray for the happiness and well being for each other.
After all the joy and glory, finally the moment arrives to depart the mother . The durga idols along with the remaining idols of the four children are put into vehicles and are immersed at the banks of river Ganges .Streets of Kolkata again fills with processions and sounds of dhaak and bells everywhere
In all directions one can hear loud chants of Bolo Durga Maai ki jai . (Hail the mother Durga)
People depart for her happiness , at the same time hiding compassion in their hearts .
Immersion of the idols is itself an emotional sight to experience, however the people will cherish until next year . Honestly it had swollen my heart as well ,photographing the enriched moments. People of kolkata console each other with only one sentence ' Aashche bochor abar hobe '( This will happen again in next year, until then live happy and cherish the present).
In books We have only read about the city Kolkata , its glory its rich cultures ,the truth of the fact is the city has so much more to offer. Where else would anyone find an opulent tradition and culture in the world ,other than the city of joy itself !!!
If anyone wish to experience the cultures of India , then i would suggest, one must start from Kolkata .
