Durga Puja-Part 1

It is special and very special in a particular quote that belongs to me. I have a certain birthright licence over it. The quote goes as follows: "I am an Indian by Birth, a Tamilian by Heart but a Bengali by Blood" This is very profound in the sense that I had spent all my childhood days at Kolkata. I have been blessed to have witnessed the diversity of our Indian culture even as a child. 

Now back to my Kolkata days, There is a love story brewing a very special relationship between me and my father's Vespa WBN-8251. You got it right, it was my dads scooter that took me around the different lanes and by lanes of Kolkata during the Puja season. I would stand in front, hold the handle in from and vroooooom we would be off on a joy ride in the city of joy. As a child this interim period between Mahalaya was extremely joyous to me for two reasons and that sort of forms the crux of the entire story today. 

There is the rich Tradition in Tamil Nadu to celebrate the festival of Golu. Let me not delve too much into the significance of this festival. Just in a brief way, Dolls, Gods and Goddesses are celebrated by way of displaying them in a step arrangement. All the Dolls would come to life after being stored in a trunk for a year. My mother would also make a small park and there would be figurine dolls,planes and cars in the park to signify a  particular theme. A team playing Cricket somewhere. A Family on a pilgrimage to a hill temple, An airport, A Railway station somewhere, all of which would come to life. To make it look even more realistic, my dad would need to procure Saw dust which could be used to give the imagery of a garden or a beach as the case maybe. 

This important task of getting the sawdust was entrusted to me and my father. Vespa would of course be the vehicle. We would go off on our scooter but not before a few mandatory visits, to a few Pandals on the way. First it would be the Triangular Park and then the Ballygunge Circular Road.  Now the Pandals would be in the preparation stage, the idols would be covered with a cloth. The Electricians would be running around, checking the speakers, the nearby buildings and houses would have to be decked with serial lights. There would be an air of festivity all around. I would get the most vantage seat on fathers vespa while being privy to all that happened around me. 

Somehow I had taken a fancy to those serial lights and would always expect that our building also be covered with it. It was around the same time that Amitabh Bachan was making it big in Hindi Cinema. So all his hit songs would blare in the PA system. It is an experience that one needs to be in union with because that is the beauty of a Culturally Diverse India. On one side a Golu and on the other side a Durga Puja. Anyways Vespa would make its way to somewhere in Hazra where we would have access to all the saw dust in the world for just a pittance. Coming back home we would dye the sawdust in green ink to get the grass effect, dry it out in the sun and in no time we would have the park in place. 

I loved being a spoilt brat in the sense that I father would always insist on taking me around to the very best of Puja Pandals, Feasting me with the choicest of Bengali sweets and when back home my mother would have the customary and delicious Sundal to partake. It was my favorite. I would always insist on evening rides on the Vespa because that is when the city would be decked like a bride in all her finery and it was such a pleasant sight for the eyes. There was so much of a homecoming and warm hospitality during Durga Puja. You might be an unknown stranger to a particular Pada in Kolkata but come Durga Puja and you will be welcomed like a family member to any of the Pandals that you visit. To involve the entire community in the festival, a group of young men who are the part of the Pada would go on  door to door canvassing for Chanda(Donation) that would be used to cover the expenses involved in the celebration. Nothing was coaxed or forced. Every request was made voluntary and with folded hands. 

This blog is dedicated to two wonderful people one my own sister Uma who is on a nostalgia trip so the idea is to create some old magic for her and the other is in fond remembrance of my dear Vespa WBN8251 without whom this beautiful journey of the wondrous Kolkata Pandals would never have been possible. Next up in this series would be the actual Puja itself. Until then wait with bated breath. Joi Durga Maai Ki!!!!