PUJO IN A DISTANT LAND

This pujo,  I am getting to see a lot of  great photographs of my friends in India, wearing colourful salwars, sarees and dresses , hanging out with their friends and enjoying the different pujos- including the craze of Deshapriyo Park. Here, in Manchester there is no such craze. Everyone on the roads maintain an unspoken discipline, every night people relax after toiling for the day in college or workspace. While Kolkata comes to a standstill during the five days of Pujo, Manchester works just as hard like any other day, save for a small Community Centre in Stockport which invites Indians and non-Indians to be a part of this rich traditional festival. 

For the first time in my life, I went to celebrate Pujo in a community hall where my celebration and enjoyment was confined to the parameters of a community hall. Nevertheless, it is indeed commendable and one should be appreciative of the fact that despite everyone's busy careers and schedules they got together and pulled off the Pujo for almost more than a hundred people. 

I attended the Pujo / Aarti and the Cultural Programme on the first day of the festival.  The aarti took almost thirty minutes and thereafter the programme started . Little children performed in the tune of a traditional song. There was also a duet dance performance followed by a musical programme.

Though the Pujo this year was a different one; the absence of  the colour, the noise, the dhaak, the warmth, the ambience haunted me to the core ; and yet the ability of the Members of this Community trying to bring Indians under one roof in a foreign country, year after year during this time is commendable. 

Leaving you with some photographs from the programme.

BANNER OF THE JAIN COMMUNITY HOSTING THE DURGA PUJA

MAA DURGA 

GETTING READY TO START THE PUJO 

A CLOSE -UP 

KOLA BOU BODHON

GIRLS DANCING TO A BANGLA FESTIVE TUNE

A MUSICAL PRESENTATION BY THE CHILDREN

A RABINDRA SANGEET IN PROGRESS

FROM THE AUDIENCE'S VIEW

CLICKING THE GODDESS

REFLECTIONS OF A FESTIVE MIND

While everybody is busy immersing themselves in the slokas of Birendra Krishna Bhadra, I happen to be planning about editing my assignments and submitting them on time. For the last 15 years Pujo has been an essential part of my life. Every year, whether it be in school or in college Pujo for me used to start a month earlier than it was actually scheduled to take place. Right from going to Pujo shopping with my mother and excitedly discussing what my friends and I bought and from where to which place had great outfits in reasonable price or which brand was giving heavy discounts, none of these talks ever evaded us in Kolkata. 

All three years of my college life, there was a specific date reserved for lunch with my school friends. Ashtami was always earmarked for the yearly get together of a crazy trio (including me). 
In fact as the days of the Pujo came nearer, news always reached me which pandal was being made of what and we started planning with our friends to visit those pandals. One day was of course reserved for pandal hopping with my family.

Instant plans were also made when we were out of plans.I still remember a friend (as adventurous as me) calling me up in the morning saying that there is still one day of the pujo left and we had no plans. So it was decided we cant let this happen and met in an hour to enjoy the one day left before bhashaan.

Residing in an area which is the hotspot of Durga Puja in South Calcutta it is impossible to not miss it. In Bengali people say 'Ashche Bochor Abar Hobe' to reiterate that there would be double the fun next year. But I would say 'Ashche Bochor Hotei Hobe' to console myself by saying that next year I will have to make it for the Pujas. 

Here in Manchester there are a few places that host Pujas. But I would call it a silent festival as there are no Dhaakis to announce the onset of the Festival; there are no children playing the drums constantly near your ears; babies in the laps of their parents do not take to the blowing whistles , the noise of which starts blowing your mind after a certain while; there are no colourful balloons in the air and neither are there bubbles reflecting the colourful environment.Hardly do even a hundred people gather around for the celebrations.

But nevertheless, probably it would turn out that staying away from home and the festival for a year will make me enjoy it in a grand scale next year. So, I leave you guys with best wishes for this Pujo and a very advance Subho Bijoya . Hope you guys enjoy this year and some of you are kind enough to send some photographs (Wink). The photographs used in this post are from my archives of previous year's Pujo.