Madness, thy name is Kolkata Durga Puja. I have already posted several photographs of this madness. Here are some more pictures of famous community celebrations in south Kolkata. Officially, Durga Puja starts tomorrow. Already, the star attraction, an 88.5-foot idol, has been 'banned' (covered with a sheet) after a stampede at the venue, Deshapriya Park. The sheet was later removed. I already posted the idol's photograph in the previous post (click here to view those).
 |
| The Chetla Agrani 'pandal', one of the biggest attractions these days |
 |
| Decor at Chetla Agrani Club |
 |
| The beautiful Chtela Agrani idol |
 |
| The ceiling of the Chetla Agrani 'pandal' |
 |
| Leaving Chetla Agrani |
 |
| Decor outside the Chetla Agrani 'pandal' |
 |
| Chetla Agrani entrance |
 |
| Illumination outside Chetla Agrani club |
 |
| Illumination on the way |
 |
| Can you find the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building there? |
 |
| Towards Suruchi Sangha, another star attraction in the south. They claim to have started the 'theme puja' wave |
 |
| A nice idol I found on the way to Suruchi |
 |
| Entering Suruchi Sangha |
 |
| The Suruchi Sangha idol |
 |
| Decor at Suruchi Sangha. This image is a version of Chamundeswari Devi of Chitkul, Himachal Pradesh (click here to read my post on Chitkul) |
 |
| The Suruchi Sangha idol. Sorry, it's slightly blurred. Photography is not easy when you are wrestling with hundreds of people! |
 |
| The Suruchi Sangha 'pandal' |
 |
| On my way back from Suruchi |
 |
| A nice idol I found on the way back |
 |
| Jubamoitri, one of the oldest organizers near my home. This year, they replicated the Kalighat temple |
 |
| The beautiful idol of Jubamoitri. The rituals had started, so I couldn't go in. I managed to take this from outside |
 |
| The nice traditional idol of Jubamoitri's neighbour Forward Club |
 |
| The Forward Club 'pandal' |
 |
| Sahajatri's unique idol |
 |
| The 'pandal' of Sanghashri, a bygone star |
 |
| Inside the Sanghashri 'pandal' |
 |
| The Sanghashri idol |
 |
| This is what the road near my house looks like during Durga Puja |
 |
| Babubagan, another famous name |
 |
| The idol at Babubagan |
 |
| The ceiling of the Babubagan 'pandal' |
 |
| The Babubagan 'pandal' decor |
 |
| Entering 95 Palli |
 |
| The 95 Palli 'pandal' |
 |
| The 95 Palli idol, crafted by well-known visual artist Sanatan Dinda |
 |
| Jodhpur Park looked a bit tacky this year |
 |
| Jodhpur Park |
 |
| The Jodhpur Park idol |
 |
| The Jodhpur Park idol and 'pandal' |
 |
| Jodhpur Park decor |
 |
| The Selimpur 'pandal' looked nothing from outside |
 |
| Still nothing |
 |
| But inside, the Selimpur 'pandal' looked absolutely stunning |
 |
| The Selimpur idol was placed inside a revolving glass wall |
 |
| Leaving Selimpur |
