Rickshaw, yellow taxi, tram: A slice of Kolkata in New Jersey puja pandal
Times of India | 6 October 2024
Kolkata: A slice of Kolkata, with its hand-pulled rickshaw, yellow taxi, tram, and metro rail in the backdrop of Howrah bridge, Sahid Minar and Victoria Memorial, is being crafted at a Durga Puja pandal in New Jersey, 12,875 km from Kolkata.
The present generation of kids watched with curiosity as a hand-pulled rickshaw was being crafted in the puja pandal.
Not only the rickshaw, some other things intimately associated with Kolkata made the children of the members of Trinayani, an association of Bengalis staying in New Jersey, ask questions about the city. Cutouts of yellow taxis and metro trains will be part of the decoration as well. The urge to recreate a perfect nostalgic ambience was such that the organisers have replicated a first-generation metro coach in the pandal.
“We have a two-day long puja in New Jersey, from 12th to 13th of Oct. Apart from the puja, we celebrate these days with cultural programmes and delicacies, all in the Kolkata manner,” said Sumit Dey, president of Trinayani, adding: “Last year, we had recreated the village of ‘Pather Panchali’, the iconic village Nischindipur, with all its details including huts, ‘kash’ flowers and Apu-Durga. Bengal’s rich culture and customs are reflected here in our puja.”
Supriyo Chatterjee, one of the members, shared how he, along with his friends, would roam around Kolkata and enjoy hopping from one pandal to another during the four days of puja. “I had to leave Kolkata just after Mahalaya more than a decade ago. The first two years of staying in the USA, I could not experience the fervour of the festivity. But in Trinayani, we have tried to bring back that nostalgia,” said Chatterjee.
This year, the association is crafting the idol taking inspiration from the Jamini Roy style. As the association’s brochure says: ‘where festivity meets cultural needs’. The entire decoration and the idol have been created by its members only.