In victim’s backyard, 100-ft Durga contrasts with a few quiet pujas
Times of India | 7 October 2024
Kolkata: Sodepur is a picture in contrast this puja. While areas close to the home of the R G Kar victim wear a sombre look and remain shrouded in an uneasy silence, the larger neighbourhood has been drawing crowds for the 107-ft Durga idol at Panihati, 4 kilometres away.
The ‘Abhaya’ neighbourhood with its six-seven puja pandals at Natagarh in Sodepur will go through the puja without usual events and practices like musical events, use of loudspeakers or community lunch, which have been shunned by most pujas.
Whereas the extended neighbourhood, including HB Town, Amarabati and Panihati, are set to have the usual glitz.
The Sahid Colony Sarbojonin Sarodotsab pandal — graceful with its illuminated 107-ft idol — has already started pulling crowds. “For last few days, people from distant places have gathered in a large number. It is good that people are celebrating in their own way,” said Tanmoy Das, secretary of the puja committee.
At Natagarh, the victim’s neighbourhood, a hardly audible raaga — ‘Ramkeli’ — by Ustad Ali Akbar Khan was being played at some pandals, setting a sombre ambience.
“We will perform the rituals of puja as per tradition but all other elements of celebrations will not be here at our pandal. The cultural programmes like sit-and-draw, ‘antakshari’, musical programmes have been consciously eliminated from our itinerary,” said Mita Dasgupta, secretary of the all women puja committee of Sodepur Shib Mandir. She added, “We have replaced loudspeakers with low volume speakers. They will only be used either to air important announcements or play instrumental music like sitar, sarod or violin.”
Natagarh Sarbojonin Durgotsab at Kadamtola, a puja located very close to the victim’s residence, has gone for restricted road illumination.
Suman Majumder, a neighbour of the victim, said, “I have to perform in my local puja with my students. But this year, we don’t have the usual spirit of celebrations.”
On the other side, Sodepur Deshbandhu Nagar puja at ‘Deip Prangan’ is expected to draw revellers like every year. People irrespective of ages have already started peeping through the curtains hung around the theme pandal — ‘Khul ja Simsim’. “Our puja will open on Panchami but people are already lining up,” said Sumit Paul, secretary.
The Amarabati Kalyan Samity puja, 3km from the victim’s neighbourhood, has finished its illumination on Mahalaya. “Unlike previous years, local revellers have not registered their presence yet, may be for the wet weather,” said Agnihotri Gupta, a local resident.