Will and I went to Kolkata India for Durga Puja. This is a festival in honor of the goddess Durga and is a huge event in Kolkata and the surrounding area of Bengal. Literally millions of people attend. (One web site said there were 30 million visitors in 2022). Durga Puja is a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage event. The festival lasts for many days with each day having different meanings. We went for 2 ½ days
Describing the scene is difficult and even photos and videos do not do it justice. There are thousands of displays which are called pandals. Some are massive, multistory buildings. Most are modest with each neighborhood or apartment complex creating their own pandal each year.
Pandals
The pandals are temporary and all have basically the same format: The Goddess Durga with 10 arms is in the center with a trident and blood on her hands and riding on a lion. Beneath her is Mahishahura, a demon that is part buffalo and part human. Durga has or is killing the demon. Then to Durga’s left (our right), you see Saraswati the goddess of knowledge and music who rides on a swan and to her left (our far right) Karthik the god of war who rideps on a peacock. On Durga’s right (our left) is Lakshmi goddess of wealth who rides on an owl and then Ganesha god of good beginnings and the remover of obstacles who rides on a mouse.
As I understand it, Durga was created by the three main gods, Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma, to kill the demon Mahishahura. Mahishahura cannot be killed by gods or man. But that meant he could be killed by a woman. So, Durga kills him.
Another tradition is to have a Durga Puja Bhog meal which means it is free for all. We were invited to share one with friends. It consisted of several dishes, a tasty chutney and a sweet dessert.
The festival goes on 24 hours a day for many days with amazing lights during the dark hours, plus lots of drumming and incense at various times. It was crowded and noisy and smoky and very hot. But worth seeing.
We went out the afternoon and into the evening the first day we were there. Some of the large pandals which I am told cost millions of dollars were extremely crowded with lines to get in to see them. There was security which kept everyone moving but it was hard to see things. Most of the large pandals have themes such as water, connecting with mother earth, or peace. They also have exhibits leading up to the actual display which were impressive.
Because the evening was so crowded, we decided the next day (which was the last day of the festival) to get up early at 4 am and go out while it was still dark so we could see the lights but with fewer crowds. We took an Uber to a place with many pandals and then wondered around.
As we were walking around — we saw a tight rope walker, bottle recycling, and some colonial houses.
Videos
Immersing the Pandals
As I said, the pandals are temporary. The statues are mostly made of clay. So, at the end of the festival, they prepare the gods and goddesses and then bring them – over the course of several days – to immerse them in the river Hooghly which is a distributary of the Ganges. First the small, local pandals are brought. Then the large ones – they use cranes to lift the large ones into the river. Will went out at night to watch them immerse the pandals.
Other Sites in Kolkata and Wandering
On our last day, we toured some Kolkata sites, but also took in a about 10 additional pandals that had not yet been dismantled. We visited a lovely Jain Temple and took a boat ride under the Howrah bridge. We also went to the Marble Palace, the Indian Museum, and a local market.
Boat Trip on the Hooghly
Jain Temple and Area
Wandering
On the day we got up early, we got a little lost along the way so we walked through a low-income neighborhood at dawn. Two white people looking lost clearly amused the locals. We saw very very few western tourists during our entire trip — even at our hotel. I did not get many photos because I try to be discrete.
Poolinger Family Site 