Hour of the Goddess: The phenomenal festival called Durga Puja

The Rio and Venice carnivals, La Tomatina, Chinese New Year… I see very few Indian names — with the exception of Holi — on the list of the most colourful or amazing festivals across the world. I can’t comment on the grandeur of these world-renowned events since I haven’t seen most of them. But is there any festival in the world where an ENTIRE city is turned into one huge art gallery for five days? Can any festival boast of illuminating an entire city with innumerable colourful light bulbs, many of which are designed to depict themes through ‘animation’? Where in the world does an entire city reverberate with the sound of drumbeats for five days? Where do millions of people throng the streets of a city for 120 hours at a stretch?

I can just go on and on actually. And I believe the answer to most (or all) of these questions will be “No”. And yet, Kolkata’s Durga Puja is nowhere on the list of the most amazing festivals of the world. Perhaps we just lack marketing skills. Anyway, since Bengal’s biggest festival is only about 40 days away, I thought it’s time I did my duty as a Bengali travel blogger and let my non-Indian readers know about the most amazing ‘carnival’ they have probably never heard of.

Durga Puja — or the worship of the 10-armed Goddess Durga — is essentially a Hindu religious festival. But with time, Durga Puja has come to denote a lot more. It’s a social festival, a carnival, a time for homecoming, a time for bonding and much more, all thanks to the ‘community’ celebrations that started in Kolkata over a century ago. We now have over 4,000 community celebrations across the city organized with donations from the people or with the help of corporate sponsors.

You will find a makeshift pandal(a temporary structure made with a cloth awning strung up over bamboo poles) tucked in a corner of almost EVERY road, lane and bylane of the city. Their purpose is more than housing the goddess’ idol — because each one of them is unique in design.

The more prosperous of the organizers have theme-based pandals. So, you may see Konarak’s famous Sun Temple claiming pride of place by the side of a busy road; or the Titanic perched in a corner of a park; or maybe, Machu Picchu transported to a non-descript bylane; or better still, a German village coming alive in the middle of a quintessential Bengali locality. And trust me, some of the structures look so remarkably close to the original that you may have to rub your eyes in disbelief.

So intense is the competition to grab eyeballs that in 2011, one of the organizers, Ekdalia Evergreen Club, appointed renowned German artistGregor Schneider to design the theme for their pandal.

Themes are not only restricted to the pandal. Though most organisers still prefer the traditional idol (see box below), many have started innovating in this department, too, for some time. And, these statues are artwork par excellence, each one trying to beat the other in novelty. All a visitor has to do is walk into a pandalto enjoy this artwork. There are no entry fees, though you may have to stand in serpentine queues for hours to enter the most popular pandals.

Another area of grabbing limelight is lighting. Most of the bigger and medium organisers try to experiment with the theme(s) of illumination that’s mounted on either side of the road leading to their pandals. The themes may include mythology, current affairs, sports, art, politics — just about anything under the sun. And, the illuminations are mostly ‘animated’.

The most amazing part? All these crop up only for five days like the fabled palace of Arabian Nights. Then it’s all gone. The idols are immersed in the Ganges (only a few find a place in a museum nowadays), the pandals and illuminations are taken off — everything kind of vanishes into thin air! 

 For Bengalis, no celebration is complete without food. We live food, we talk food, we dream food and we appreciate (good) food. So how can Durga Puja be complete without a little talk of food?

As it is, Kolkata is famous for its street food— that ranges from Mughlai to Chinese to north as well as south Indian and some things essentially Kolkatan fare. During Durga Puja, some of the smaller eateries are probably open 24 hours. I remember having a cold biryani at 5am in a north Kolkata eatery while out pandal-hopping all night with friends.

If I have to name a single childhood memory associated with Durga Puja and food, it would perhaps be having candyfloss at Deshapriya Park in between taking the many joyrides that spring up at the fair that is organized there. (Incidentally, Deshapriya Park is installing what it claims to be ‘the world’s tallest idol’ at 100+ feet this Puja). On the road leading to most of the bigger and medium-sized pandals, you will find ice cream, ice-lollies, candies, snacks, beverages and even full meals being sold at small makeshift stalls.

But it’s not only about street food. The most endearing aspect of Durga Puja food for Bengalis is the bhog— the meal that is offered to the goddess and is later eaten by her devotees (people like you and me) as the ‘sanctified’ food. The menu is mostly the same — plain rice or pulao (a vegetarian version of pilaf), daal (legumes), a mixed-vegetable curry, five kinds of fried veggies, payesh (rice boiled in milk and sugar), sweet chutney and sweets. Sometimes, there’s fish and ‘sanctified’ goat meat — that is, coming from an animal that’s ritually sacrificed (boli) to the Goddess.

Somehow, all these items ALWAYS taste better as bhog than otherwise. Maybe it’s the combined flavours of the incense, flowers, camphor, smoke, etc. that go into the food that makes it so tasty. It’s best to have bhog at a household where Durga Puja is organized. Many community organizers also serve bhog to visitors at midday, sometimes for a price and sometimes for free.

Last but not the least, don’t forget to enjoy the sweets on Bijoya Dashami, the last day of the Pujas, after the idol has been immersed in the Ganges. 

Exactly a week before Mahasaptami (see box) is Mahalaya, which marks the end of Pitri Paksha (the fortnight of the forefathers) and the beginning of Devi Paksha (the fortnight of the Goddess). On this day, men offer water to their forefathers at the Ganges early in the morning. But Mahalaya has a much greater significance for Bengalis. It’s the morning when All India Radio airs Mahishasuramardini.

Radio? In the age of smart phones, tabs, MP3 players? Yes. Because it’s not only about the programme. It’s the nostalgia, the ‘feel’ of hearing those songs and religious chants at 4am (when it’s aired) that make generation after generation of Bengalis set an alarm to wake up at that hour and tune into AIR. Many probably use their radio only that one time every year. After all, Mahishasuramardini is no ordinary programme.

'Mahishasuramardini' is another name for Goddess Durga — the slayer of the buffalo-headed demon Mahishasura (mahish=buffalo, asura=demon, mardini=slayer). When it started being aired in 1931, it used to be a live performance. Every year, the singers and musicians would gather at the AIR studio in the wee hours of Mahalaya to perform it from 4am. In a television interview, one of the singers said she would bathe and put on new clothes in the middle of the night simply because the programme was related to the Goddess and hence, auspicious.  

Since 1958, the recorded version has been aired. For some time now, CDs have been available (I myself own one) and it’s also available on YouTube (click here to hear the full version of Mahishasuramardini and here if you are interested in knowing more details about the programme). But, as I said, for millions of Bengalis, nothing matches the charm and nostalgia of tuning in to AIR at 4am on Mahalaya.

There’s more of music to Durga Puja, which cannot be complete without the beats of the dhaak(Bengal drums). In fact, the sound is so integral to Durga Puja that even if we hear the dhaak play at other times of the year, it brings to mind the memories associated with Puja. (To see and hear a dhaak play, click here.)

The beats of dhaak may, however, sound way too boisterous. There’s a saying in Bengali that goes “dhaker badyi thamle mishti” (the sound of dhaak is sweet if it stops). So, Durga Puja on the streets of Kolkata is essentially cacophony par excellence. But that is all part of this extraordinary festival. A quiet Durga Puja cannot be imagined.

To add to the chaos, many organizers play music on loudspeakers and arrange live performances with singers, musicians and even magicians near their pandals (free for visitors). So, every turn around a corner brings new sights and even sounds, the strains blending into each other. 

 There is a huge list of things to see and do on Durga Puja. Watching the clay idols being made at Kumartuli(literally, the hub of potters) in north Kolkata (which goes on for months before the Pujas) is an experience in itself. 

The rituals associated with the festival are fascinating to watch, especially if you are a guest at a household that organizes the puja (worship). Kala-bou snan(bathing of Ganesha’s plantain-wife) on Mahasaptami morning, pushpanjali(the ritual offering of flowers to the Goddess by devotees), especially on Mahashtami morning and on Sandhi Puja (see box), Kumari Puja (the worship of a little girl as the Goddess), the evening arati(prayers with an oil-lamp), sindur-khela (a ritual in which married women smear each other and the Goddess with vermilion) and the dhunuchi naach (dancing with a censer) on Bijoya Dashami and the subsequent immersions in the Ganges are spectacles and experiences not to be missed. With a little bit of planning, these can be enjoyed at the community pandals, too.

Pandal-hoppingis no less appealing. Everyone’s out in new clothes and shoes and people come down from the districts in droves to enjoy the Puja in Kolkata. You have to get used to the maddening crowds though, the chaos and cacophony, the serpentine queues and the pushing and shoving associated with them. Mornings are usually quieter and the less important pandals don’t attract so many visitors. So that’s the solution for those who’d like to avoid the crowds.

West Bengal tourismarranges some special Durga Puja tours. Click here for complete information on these (click on 'Packages').

·        It is a Hindu festival to worship the 10-armed Goddess Durga — riding a lion and armed with a weapon in every hand — who defeated the buffalo-headed demon Mahishasura. It’s said to be the victory of good over evil. Along with Durga, her children — goddesses Lakshmi and Saraswati and gods Ganesha and Kartik — and her husband Shiva are also worshipped

·        Durga Puja was originally celebrated in the season of basanta(spring). But according to mythology, Lord Ram, the hero of the epic Ramayan, woke up the Goddess untimely (akaal bodhon) to seek her blessings for defeating the demon Ravan. The Durga Puja celebrated at this time, in the season of sharat (a season, marked by a typical blue sky and fluffy white clouds, that falls between monsoon and autumn), corresponds to Lord Ram’s victory. Bijoya Dashami, the last day of Durga Puja, is also celebrated as Dusshera across India. It’s said to be the day Ram defeated Ravan — again, the victory of good over evil 

·        It takes 108 lotuses to worship Goddess Durga. At the critical hour, Lord Ram saw that one was missing (a test set by the Goddess), goes the myth. He then offered to gouge out one of his eyes, which were lotus-shaped. This pleased the Goddess

·        The festival begins on the sixth day of the lunar cycle from new moon on Mahalaya — Mahashashthi (6^th day), Mahasaptami (7^thday), Mahashtami (8^th day), Mahanabami (9^th day) and Bijoya Dashami (10^th day). Though the worship actually begins on Mahasaptami (7^th), some rituals begin on Mahashashthi (6^th), though it’s usually not part of Puja holidays. Sandhi Puja takes place at the auspicious conjunction of Mahashtami and Mahanabami. 2015 Durga Puja dates: October 19-22 (two days on the lunar calendar have merged into one in the solar cycle)

·        Durga is not only a ‘mother’ to us Bengalis, but also the ‘daughter’ who comes home with her children — Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartik — once a year from her husband Shiva’s abode in the Himalayas. There are folk songs called ‘Agamani’ (arrival) to mark her homecoming every year

·        The traditional Durga idol is supposed to be made of clay. Many of the ‘theme’ idols are made of fibreglass and other materials. But these are merely art, and a smaller clay idol can be seen somewhere in the pandal. That is the one which is worshipped

·        A pinch of clay from a sex-worker’s yard is a compulsory component in a Durga idol. I don’t know about the origin of this ritual, but I personally feel it depicts the inclusiveness of the festival. Everyone’s invited

·        A little girl who hasn’t attained puberty (kumari) is worshipped as the Goddess on Mahashtami. Especially striking is the Kumari Puja at Belur Math, the headquarters of Ramakrishna Math and Mission founded by Swami Vivekananda

·        There are two kinds of decoration for the Goddess — sholar saaj and daaker saaj. In the former, which is the more traditional, the Goddess’ ornaments are fashioned out of the locally available shola(pith). Sometime during British rule, the devotees found out about rangta(tinfoil). They started importing it from Germany and it would arrive on mail (daak). Hence the name daaker saaj

·        Lastly, don’t worry for your safety because thousands of policemen and volunteers are out on the streets for 24 hours on Puja days. Many buses ply overnight, cabbies are more than happy to get clients for whole-night pandal-hopping trips and Metro, Kolkata’s underground railway system, plies nearly the entire night