Durga Puja 2012 (Part 3)

The two things I love about Kolkata are her vibrancy and her diversity of culture. To me, there is no other festival, in which year after year, artists experiment and play with their imagination to come up with unique themes.

I don't exactly remember the day when I fell in love with pandal hopping, could be during the happy days between my adolescence and adulthood. This year, it was extra special because of my blog. I wanted my visitors to get a glimpse of the place where I grew up, where I learnt to dream.
These pictures are for you, my darling readers! Enjoy!

Telenga Bagan
Theme: Usage of 25 tons of Iron to capture the rich artistic heritage of Kolkata
The images of Goddess Durga, Saraswati, Lakhsmi and God Ganesh, kartik
were sculpted on metal plates

Maa Durga

Lord Ganesh and Devi Saraswati

Devi Saraswati And Lord Kartik

The following textures are taken from scripts from the puranas

The confluence of the feminine (calm)
and the masculine (ferocious)

Dumdum Prabhat Sangha
Theme: Beach 

Pillar made with coloured coke bottle caps

Dumdum Park
Theme: The amalgamation of all the colors

Devi Durga

Her Children

Ekdalia
Famous for: The huge light hanging which is brought 
every year from Rajasthan

Hindusthan Park
Theme: After the journey through the hell comes the
light, the illumination.

Maa Durga's Third Eye (Tri Nayan)

If looked carefully, the four colored Tri Nayans, depict
the various moods of Devi Durga

Maa with her Children

Jodhpur Park, 95 Pally
Theme: Devi Durga is in the books (knowledge)
The more knowledge we gain, the more stronger we 
become to fight the evil and eradicating
it from the society.

Maa Durga

Maa Durga with her children

P.S: For more pictures, visit the following links:
Kolkata at her best (part 3)
Kolkata at her Best (part 2)

Mother...&...Durga Puja!!

Every year, as the year starts, I ardently wish for autumn, the season that brings the Durga puja. There is a special connection between me and the Durga puja: it binds me and my mother together and makes us a team, which seldom happens throughout the year (she can be a bit (not really) highly dogmatic at times! Sigh!).

My mother, in all sense, is a culture freak. During my childhood days, she put me into a culture school, where I had to learn music, recitation, art and dance. Those classes were quite a burden for me because I had no clue why my mother (all of a sudden) was forcing me to take those classes.

But as time passed, as I got to know myself, I figured out that those classes were my mother’s legacies, her gift to me. She wanted me to have a part of herself, to learn the values she has gathered over the years.

After all these years, as I stand in my early years of adulthood, I know with certainty that no matter where I stay, no matter where I go, her gift will give me the strength to fight, to endure and, after all is over, to come back home, to her.

Durga Puja 2012 (Part 2)

The promised pictures. Enjoy!

Mudiali Shib Mandir
Theme: Adivashi (tribal culture)

Suruchi Sangha
The theme: create awareness about Goa's water pollution
and beach pollution due to fishing and tourism

Dead fish carcass (Not real but a work of art)

An Octopus hanging from the ceiling

Mohammad Ali Park
Theme: Replica of the Johannesburg stadium.

Mohammad Ali Park is famous of it's "Ek Chalai Thakur"
which means "All the Gods and Goddesses on the same frame"

Nalin Sarkar Street (I loved this pandal)

The entrance to the pandal
Did you notice the unique goemetry of the gates?

Charkha (Used for weaving Cotton clothes)

On entering this pandal, I noticed that there were
no idols of Ganesh, Saraswati , Lakshmi and kartik.
 Then my mother brought my attention towards
 The Stick that Devi Durga was holding in her right hand.
 The idols of Ganesh, Saraswati , Lakshmi and kartik were sculpted on the stick
The reason being that Devi Durga's strength is in her children. Her children are her source of power. And every year she comes accompanied by her children's to destroy the evil forces.

Devi Durga's feets

Kumartuli

Idol of Baba Loknath imparting an atmosphere of peace
and serenity

                                           
Stay tune for more pictures!
P.S:- This pictures are taken by me. For more pictures, visit: Kolkata at its Best (part-2)