It is that time of the year when happiness grips every Bengali soul, no matter which part of the world they reside in. It is the time to rekindle, revive all the energy crushed under the wheels of routine and ruthless life.
Yes, we are talking about Eastern India’s biggest festival ‘Durga Pujo’ — the festival which celebrates the triumph of good over the evil. With the ever-increasing Bengali population in the land of temples, namma Chennai too is gearing up to usher in goddess Durga, the epitome of strength. DC speaks to some of the leading Pujo organisers about what is in store for this year.
South Cultural Madras Association celebrates its 39th Durgotsav:
This year, on Sashthi (Sep 26) the SMCA Puja (with 300-odd members) will be jointly inaugurated by Chief Justice of Madras High Court, Ms. Indira Banerjee (the guest of honour) and the youngest Indian spy Saraswathi Rajamani.
However, Ananadamela (when all members will cook one or the other Bengali dish, from kosha mangsho to malpoa, basically to showcase their culinary skills and put out their own stalls on the premises) on Panchami evening will unofficially mark the beginning of SMCA Pujo.
Among the other cultural programmes, this year a special fusion of Devi Vandana and a performance by renowned Bharatnatyam dancer Uma B. Rameshon in front of the deity, and an all-women’s play, will be part of the celebrations, shares Bhaswar Mukherjee, current the president of the association.
“We are expecting a foot-fall of around 5,000 per day. It can go up to 10,000. However, it’s not a static crowd as people come from various places,” Mukherjee reveals.
However, amidst all the rituals and traditions, tummies won’t get neglected! “Food stalls will be put out by people from both Chennai and Kolkata,” smiles the president.
From Rajasthani pickle to Kolkata mithai, sufficient arrangements are being made to tantalise the taste buds.
Stalls ( free of cost) will also be organised by people from an orphanage managed by the SMCA trust. “The proceeds from the Pujo go into SMCA trust, which is used for a lot of philanthropic activities,” says Mukherjee.
Referring to some unknown facts about the association, Bhaswar Mukherjee, reveals why the word ‘Bengali’ is missing in the name of the association — “We want all the communities to come together.”
The Bengal Association Pujo — the oldest in the circle:
Moloy Kumar Roy, the secretary of the Bengal Association. which is in its 84th year, reveals some of the some interesting facts surrounding the Puja including how the club has managed to retain the same artisan (Jiban Paul) since 1991 and the main priest for as long as 25 years.
As always, the five days will be packed with fun, food, cultural programmes, but what is special this year is ‘Riturang’ by Thankamani Kutty’s team on Sashthi and a performance by the association’s women’s wing ‘Tilottama’.
“Each participant will dress up like the quintessential mother of the respective Indian state that she is representing and perform to a song from that particular state. In the end, they all will assemble to perform for Vande Mataram and Milae Sur Mera Tumhara,” says the secretary about the one-of-its kind event.
Regarding foot-fall, Roy expects a staggering 12,000 members to attend the event.
Dakshin Chennai Prabashi Cultural Association:
Though this Association is comparatively young (four years old), in comparison to the other well-established ones in city, Chidananda Patra, operation head and joint treasurer of the association, recalls how they have come a long way in a short span of time — “A family of five ( all from the neighboring IT hubs) clubbed together and started a Facebook community called ‘Jhalmuri’, followed by conducting a Saraswati Puja. It turned out to be a huge success. That motivated us to come all the way to organising Bengal’s greatest festival ever. And then DCPCA happened. Now, we have 170 (approx) members.”
“There will be a pictorial display of famous Bengali personalities on the puja premises,” adds Patra. Special attractions include dhunuchi dance by DCPCA women, a Bollywood night, dandiya with the DJ and some lipsmacking food by really big names in the relevant circles.
Madras Kali Bari prioritises rituals over cultural programmes:
When on one hand, most of the associations in city are busy blending cultural activities into the traditionalism of Pujo, Madras Kali Bari still continues to stick mostly to ‘just Pujo/ religious rituals’.
The Kali temple, which has been modeled mainly on the Maa Bhavatarini of Kolkata’s Dakshineshwar temple, has also been organising Golu for the last 16 years, with lord Hanuman being the theme this year. However, this Pujo is not completely devoid of cultural programmes.
“Cultural programmes take place, but not in a grand way as in the other places,” says Gautam Pyne, manager of the temple.
“We mainly see male worship here. The temple was established in 1975. Locals would initially avoid coming to this place but now they are more in numbers than us and their enthusiasm about Puja is really appealing,” smiles Pyne.
