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Durga Puja in Delhi: Going back to roots
New Delhi, Sept 28: For lakhs of Bengalis all over the national capital, the Durga Puja -- hailing the triumph of good over evil -- is not only a four-day religious programme, but a search for the roots, a connection with their tradition and culture and above all, a big yearly get-together.
New Delhi, Sept 28: For lakhs of Bengalis all over the national capital, the Durga Puja -- hailing the triumph of good over evil -- is not only a four-day religious programme,
but a search for the roots, a connection with their tradition and culture and above all, a big yearly get-together.
Perhaps, that's why the organisers of community pujas say
in one voice that the difference between 'Kolkatar Pujo' and
'Dillir Pujo' is that here the emphasis is more on cultural
functions, eating the 'Prasad' together or getting to know
people, rather than on fanfare.
"In Kolkata, big community puja committees give more importance to the idol, decoration of the pandals and lighting arrangements, but for us, it is more a get-together than anything else," says P B Som, president of one of the Durga Puja committees.
For some, it is also important to conduct the puja strictly according to the religious scriptures. Says Ananta Bijoy Bhattacharya of C R Park Kali Mandir Society, "We adhere to all the rituals, including the nine-day long 'path' (reading) from Sri Sri Chandi."
While most community pujas are centred in C R Park, the Bengali dominated locality of the capital, some places in old Delhi and Noida, Ma Durga is worshipped all over Delhi.
"More than 300 community pujas are celebrated in the capital and its fringes," says Swapan Ganguly of New Delhi Kalibari, where one of the biggest pujas is held.
Bureau Report
"In Kolkata, big community puja committees give more importance to the idol, decoration of the pandals and lighting arrangements, but for us, it is more a get-together than anything else," says P B Som, president of one of the Durga Puja committees.
For some, it is also important to conduct the puja strictly according to the religious scriptures. Says Ananta Bijoy Bhattacharya of C R Park Kali Mandir Society, "We adhere to all the rituals, including the nine-day long 'path' (reading) from Sri Sri Chandi."
While most community pujas are centred in C R Park, the Bengali dominated locality of the capital, some places in old Delhi and Noida, Ma Durga is worshipped all over Delhi.
"More than 300 community pujas are celebrated in the capital and its fringes," says Swapan Ganguly of New Delhi Kalibari, where one of the biggest pujas is held.
Bureau Report