Durga Puja starts this week

I am not from Calcutta, I am from Delhi. I enjoy watching Durga Puja, which takes place in our area. It is lovely to see beautiful images of the Goddess and devotion of the devotees. I feel, they just go so deep in Pooja. I also take my children along to see what is Durga Puja and also to teach them how different cultural activities take place. It is nice to know that you have been continously watching Durga Pooja, for so many years.
Best wishes for Durga Pooja!
:):)
Deepak

This came just at the time when I was hoping to start a discussion like this. Thanks for doing it for me, Couldn't have narrated it so well!
I get that you have not ever enjoyed puja in Kolkata. In Kolkata alone more than ten thousand pandals are set up, all clamouring for the admiration and praise of the deity. The city is adorned with lights. People from all over the country visit the city at this time, and every night is one mad carnival where thousands of people go pandal-hopping with their friends and family. Traffic becomes a nightmare, and indeed, most people abandon their vehicles to travel by foot after a point.
We have a blast with all kinds of indulgences and pampering ranging from clothes to food, devotion to flirtations!! I am a bengalee and cannot say how much important this puja is to us. To me its more emotional and than devotional.
Thanks.


PS: I would like to wish all a very happy Durga puja, Eid and Navratti.

While we ourselves do not celebrate Durga Puja;many people in Delhi too celebrate this .
And most of my Bengali colleagues go on a leave during this time always .Management finds it very difficult to refuse them a leave .
And of course, the Calcutta Celebrations are very Big .

Yes Mili, among all my friends in mylot you were foremost in my thoughts as you are the only Hindu Bengali I know at mylot. Today is panchami in Calcutta and as happens every year, the anticipation has reached a feverish pitch. Schools have given over and even we adults have become children in that we no longer want to sit within the confines of our office. The sky beckons us, the lights beckon us, the decorations are over, the barricades of pavements and tram-lines are over, the banners and hoardings are calling us out, the food-stalls are packed and waiting, the famous road-side SALE (specially at my Gariahat) has reached its crescendo, small colourful pamphlets with directions and Metro timings have reached us, Pujoshankhya books with their new smell is already half-finished, plans for pandal-hopping and dining have been finalized, rescheduled and finalized again, and OH I could go on and you can just imagine the ambience I am speaking of. Tomorrow is another day of office and then 4 days of much-awaited bliss. I am coming to office in new salwar-suit tomorrow and straight from here I will go pandal-hopping with my family. We will gorge on anything and everything (surprisingly stomach ailments are never a issue during this time) and take all the ‘rides’ at Deshapriya Park. And then there are others who travel during the pujas so all the trains are packed to the capacity. But I can never be out of Calcutta during this time…during these four days our mundane existence in our drab city is magically transformed just like Cinderella and her ball-room dance. Each day is a party for everybody, no matter how poor! This is what I like about these 4 days. And to see the goddess’s face for the first time after one full year, to smell the dhunuchi again, to see all the idols (even mahishashur). Oh I love Durga Puja.
I was going to wish you for this tomorrow i.e. on shashthi before our office-leave, but I will take this opportunity to wish you and your family a very very happy puja, pandal hopping, feasting, dressing, mingling and whatever and to end it all…shubho bijoya in advance.
Sudipta

Hi,
Happy durga puja to all my friends here. This is a nice discussion to bring all the bengali users together here in mylot. Iam living in mumbai but still its a celebration time here.
Here in mumbai durga pujs is all bout 'dandiya' for non bengalis. But we have a huge bengali community as well and we celebrate this festaval with lot of enthusiasm and devotion.
We invite lot of special guests to perfom here. And this year its sonu nigam and alka yagnik performing. Iam very excited as this is the only time of the year when my family takes totally off from business and other activities.

Cheers,
Tutul

I have a Bengali friend and know how important the Durga Puja is for Bengalis. I'm from Kerala and it isn't celebrated as elaborately as up north or the other souther states. We mainly have only the last two days of the puja..the Saraswati Puja and the Ayudh Puja. In fact, my son has 2 weeks off from school (we are settled in Karnataka) and the schools in Kerala haven't closed.
Though we don't celebrate all 9 days, we refrain from having fish or meat on all the 9 days. We keep our books for puja befor Saraswati puja and tools (of trade) before the Ayudh Puja. The reigning king (yes, we still have those namesake)carried the idol of the Devi or goddess from the royal temple to the Mandap (which is where I stay). He walks all the way and then the final puja is conducted at the madap.
Mysore also celebrates Durga puja with great pomp but different from Bengal. My Bangali friend is married to a person from Mysore and they alternate between Calcutta and Mysore during puja time.

Hi Mili! Have you forgot my state ORISSA in your list of states celebrating Durga Pooja? There is too much cultural as well as religiuos similarities and even tie ups between your state West Bengal and my state Orissa! Durga Pooja is one of the most important festivals that carries such similarities! Here at my state, it is a remarkable festival also, being celebrated in villages as well as in cities equally. The four days; 'Saptami', 'Durgastami' (Mahastami), 'Navami' and 'Vijaya Dashami' (Dussera/ Dasahara) are the days of spiritual celebration, merry making and rejoicing. I know, this festival is celebrated most rejoicingly at Kolkata, such that days and nights carry no difference for these four days!

Hope, you will be rejoicing well at London. Thanks for this nice posting!

Well with due respect to Bengali traditions and culture,there is no doubt that Durga Puja is one of the
most colourfull festivals in the country.

But we in Karnataka too celebrate it with much reverance and importance although it is called Dasara here,on the
day of Durgaashtami/Mahanavmi all the vehicles,factories,
agriultural and industrial tools,offices are cleaned and
decorated and pooja is offered to goddess and sweets are
distributed to all everybody.

Schools and Colleges will have atleast 10-15 days holidays
and in Mysore( which was the earlier capital of Karnataka)
there will be a Royale processsion and group of elephant
will be carrying a golden howdah(throne) weighing 650 Kgs
in Gold with an Idol of goddess Chamundi,the procession
will be having police band,armed police,horsemounted policemen,cultural performances and dancing by different
dance troupes.

This procession is a grand finale to the 10 day long
cultural festival which is held in 4 to 5 locations in Mysore, in these cultural festivals everything from
Indipop,Karnatic,Hindusthani Music,Indian style wrestling,
Sports,this year Usha Uthup,Sonu Nigam,Hemamalini to name
a few famous personalities gave their best performances
in Mysore Dasara.

Other than Mysore Mini Dasara festivals and processions
are held in Madikeri,Mangalore,Davangere in Karnataka.

Durga Puja ... Maddox .. the special Adda ... Cant forget that dear!!!

Durga puja is up!! but still ruminating things up!!! anyways SUbho Bijaya ... another festival is here!! Dewali .. the festival of lights!!

happy dewali anyways!!