the Puja...

...literally translates into 'worship'. But in spirit, it is much more than that. It is a festival that all Bengalis wait for all through the year. It is to them what Christmas is for people in the Western countries...maybe, even more than that. In this festival, Goddess Durga is worshiped. If one goes by mythology, the Goddess visits her parents home - Earth for 10 days, after slaying the mighty demon. This festival is the celebration of the this great homecoming, with the final 5 days marking the biggest of the festivals. On day 10, the idol of the Goddess made with clay and hay is immersed into the river, from where, it is believed that she goes back to heaven to be one with her husband.

Kolkata boasts of the biggest celebration of this festival. Almost everybody is on the roads and every nook and corner of the city is lit up and smells of the festival. I would probably skip that part as farside is already painting that picture pretty well.

I grew up in close-knit communities in small towns. In such neighbourhoods, Durga puja is quite different from what one sees in the city of Kolkata. There, it is more about the community feeling. People just lazed around, sat together, gossip, socialize. During the day and later in the evening, there were small events and competitions for the kids, young and the old. It can range from poetry recitation to fancy dress to small skits, singing and of course, the traditional dhunuchi naach. At noon, after the Goddess is worship and the ambrosia is offered at her feet, there's a community lunch, which though very simple and elementary, tastes absolutely incredible. In fact, during those 4-5 days of the festival, hardly any cooking used to happen at home. Those few days was about coming together as a big family and celebrating the festival and also the spirit of the oneness in the community.

In Kolkata, things are a tad different. It is more about lavish pandals, lot of lighting and a beautiful of exhibition of traditional and modern artistry. Though I enjoy pandal-hopping in Kolkata quite a bit but somehow I miss the other aspects of puja in Kolkata.

Here in Hyderabad, there are a few bengali clubs/associations who try heir best to bring the Durga puja magic to the city. There are a few pandals setup here as well and the scale of celebrations is quite decent. Yesterday we went pandal-hopping (if one can call it so) here. We started off with the one closest to our house and them moved one to visit a few more in the other corner of the city. What I liked in the pandals here is the same community thing and those little events and games that keep things alive during the festival. We stood in the queue for about 45 minutes to get the bhog - the community lunch. It was hot, steaming absolutely simple but incredibly delicious. We're just mid-way through the festival and still have two more days to go.

Wishing you all a very happy Durga Puja.