CALL OF DHAAKI's DHAAK...

The way often used by me to invigorate myself when I am bogged down is, dreaming of anything joyful which is imminent to happen in the time to come.Being a Bengali or more stylishly a Bong,the occasion of Durga Puja can be the perfect nominee for such a craving.With less than a month left, the thoughts of merriment have already started flirting the mind.The wide blue sky, the wisp of autumn freshness and the enchanting vibrancy of dhaaks mingling with daily chores of life symbolizes the homecoming of Maa Durga. Preparations have begun and this preparative engagement is fun in itself. Flashing pujo sales,overcrowded malls, people enthusiastically shopping and coming out with bags full of new bought dresses are scenes which mark the liveliness of the festive season. Durga Puja preparation calls for the latest trends in fashion wear,designer clothes and the trendiest footwear.The atmosphere remains surcharged with fun and gaiety.

While moving through the city, the site of numerous pandals being raised up by skilled workers catches attention and a spark of joy creeps into one's heart. Happiness fills the body and one patiently awaits the arrival of Durga Puja.    

Sarat sakal, Himer hawa

Anmone tai hariye jawa,

Kashful r Dhaker tale

Siuli nache dale dale,

Maa Eseche bachor ghure...!

Pujor hawa jagat jure... 

Durga Puja commences with Mahalaya.Bengalis traditionally wake up before dawn on Mahalaya morning to listen to enchanting and captivating voices reciting hymns from the scriptures of the Devi Mahatmyam or Chandi. The day is usually a holiday and so are the other important days of the Puja. In case it isn't, then a true Bengali does his best to budge anyone in bid to get holidays for those few priceless days. The festivity and its atmosphere is worth holidaying for everyone.

As the countdown (be it in one's mind or that shown on Bengali channels) approaches an end, Bengalis gear themselves up for the much awaited 4 days- Sashti, Saptami, Ashtami and Nabami. Be it special supplementary magazines showcasing Durga Puja or be it those gentle touches of Pujo on news channels and TVserials; all are good enough to gently remind of the approaching gaiety.

With all shopping done and plans chalked out finally Durga Puja arrives. Sashti is the day when Goddess Durga arrives. The day starts early with a morning bath followed by prayers called Pushpanjali at the local pandal. Sitting at the pandal and seeing others offer their prayers and gossiping with friends is one thing which everyone rejoices. And at the same time one cannot resist his/her own eyes from frequently getting attracted by the glittering,beautiful idol of Maa Durga and ask for her blessings from deep inside the heart.

The city takes a different look during the Pujo days, especially at night. Millions of people come to the city and line up before the pandals. Pandal-hopping is the essence of the festival. The city is gorgeously lighted. Beautiful formations of jhalar, tuni lights are laid, some of which present well thought of depictions. These catch the attention of the populace and make the city glitter ostentatiously. Pandals are countless and many like me spend the whole night hopping pandals. This obviously is in accordance to one's stamina. Many opt for a vehicle but my experience says that it’s easier to cover any distance on the overcrowded streets by walking (like thousand others).

Food has always been close to a Bengali's heart and Puja days are best to explore the luring street food of Calcutta. Normal restaurants are packed and also the numerous temporary food stalls opened by locals around pandals are also a hit, providing the owners a good, quick income. Puchkaas, chowmein, egg roll, ohh its already watering my mouth!!

The most catching site after Maa Durga is her creations. That means us. On occasion of Puja everyone daubs his/her new bought clothes. Sparing a minute and keenly observing the colorful, intricately designed sarees, kurtas, pyajamas and other trendy dresses worn by people can be good fun. Attire of most look beautiful but there are always some whom you can find too garish or exhibiting a peculiar, funny dressing style. Both in either case it’s the vigor and liveliness of the person which needs to be acknowledged. Isn't it??

               

Special trains, buses are available 24 hours to provide scores of people comfortable conveyance. Underground metro rail runs beyond regular schedule.

The overall scene of the city is-people roaming, traffic flowing, streets wrapped in decorations and crowd flocking the beautiful pandals!! All these make the city buoyant and vibrant to one's delight. The overflowing happiness is evident and one only draws more of it from the divinity of the occasion and the atmosphere around.To say the city doesn't sleep for a moment on those Pujo days wouldn't be incorrect.

Durga Puja and not talking about pandals will be a big injustice. The pandal is the adobe of Maa Durga. While some of them are simple structures, others are often elaborate works of art with themes that rely heavily on history, current affairs and sometimes on pure imagination. The pandals are of diverse kinds. Some are made of simple made from attractive cloths while some are made of match sticks, hay, bottles, etc., which are results of great imagination and hard work. Various prizes sponsored by channels and different organizations for best pandal decorations are also at stake. This inspires and motivates the Puja committees to come up with something different and beautiful every year! These pandals clamour for admiration and praise of the populace. Goddess Durga's idol is what draws reverence and prayers from all. Intricately sculpted idols made by hardworking, talented craftsmen bring life to the idol and are worth appreciation and piousness.

Time flies when one sits at his local('paara's) pandal. Dancing on dhaak beats, gupshuping, seeing kids play(sometimes funnily with the mic), offering prayers or be it enjoying fun activities like quiz, singing, dhonuchi naach...There is no dull moment out there. On Ashtami we embrace Goddesses’ bhog. Khichidi deliciously made is incomparable to any other spicy food and is out of the world to eat. Anyways whatever is the menu it is Maa Durga's bhog and most importantly is food to eat.

In all the happiness and fun one doesn't realize when the three days pass by. Dashmi, the last day is when Goddess leaves us. Although being saddening, people dance to the tunes of dhaak while their procession reaches the place of immersion. With shouting voices of 'Asche bochor abar asbe'(meaning Goddess will again come next year) the wait for next year's Durga Puja starts.

Maa Durga is the Goddess of divine power against all evils. Not just worshipping but also reflecting the same respect to all women in real life is what is required.This is the true and ultimate form of reverence to Goddess Durga!!  

A HERO WHICH THE SOCIETY NEEDS

A few days back while skimming through the Calcutta Times (the daily entertainment dose of Times Of India) my eyes stopped on something which was more than just entertainment. The section was basically aligned with an upcoming Bengali movie of Parambrata Chatterjee, but the person on whom the film was based is what interested me. 

It’s more than a year that BARUN BISWAS was killed. But undoubtedly his flame lives on. Not only is he an inspiration for the movie but is also the same for millions who are supporting and striving for a better society. Barun Biswas’s life is worth knowing and revering. Following it to an extent which one can is the next great thing. Surely, being someone like Barun Biswas requires extreme selflessness and sacrifices.  He was a true hero, a hero which the Indian society truly needs.

Barun Biswas, the youngest son of a farmer was a dauntless social crusader who feared none. As rightly described by his father, Barun had nerves of steel!! He had almost single-handedly raised voice against atrocities which the local goons had unleashed in his town –Sutia in North 24 Parganas. Rape had become an everyday thing in the town until he strengthened the people to take a brave stand against it.  Not only this, Barun also ensured the social rehabilitation of the rape victims by fixing their marriages and helping them financially. He taught poor children, bought medicines for sick, coached job seekers and arranged money for many needy families. He even campaigned and prepared a blueprint for the dredging of a canal to prevent flooding in Sutia and nearby areas. This was later accepted by the Government. In his early life he had cracked the West Bengal Civil Service Examination but he eventually made up his mind to dedicate his life for service of the society. 

Whatever he would earn at the end of the month, he would give it to poor families. He spent the least on himself and saved the maximum for the needy. He would even ask his family members to do the same. Barun would happily give his bed for someone to sleep and he would himself sleep on plastic sheets. Like any other unsung hero of our society Barun Biswas too, didn’t believe in advertising what he did. 

But today’s dark society ruled by politics, money and muscle power had already marked Barun for death. But still, as his mother says, Barun never went to back foot despite knowing the threats lingering around him.

July 5^th 2012- Barun Biswas was murdered by sanctioned goons of local MLAs who were badly affected by Barun’s work. A year later Barun’s family is still waiting for justice.

Who killed Barun Biswas?? – the title of the article in Calcutta Times looms in front of us.

Till the day Pratibadi Mancha (a social organization set up by Barun) raises its voice against all atrocities.Agreeing with what Barun Biswas’s mother said, I would quote her words -“Barun chilo, Barun ache, Barun thakbe”.

Can people like Barun Biswas blossom in our Indian society?? 

Surely, if political terror and its aided hooliganism is not stopped then one will be just left revering such great men rather than following them.

A JOURNEY TO SUFFER

“Make hay while the sun shines.” This saying had been reiterated to me many times in my childhood. But very sorry to say this doesn’t click with me anymore at least figuratively. Waking up early morning with torturing thoughts of monotonicity has been the worst deal of my life. But battling all these with a hollow inner voice of ‘COMEON’ I go through my daily morning routine to get myself ready to face the outer world. But wait, before leaving sweet home a look at the wallet is very very important as the contents inside it tend to play a villainous role in one’s journey.

Being a resident of Kolkata (the City of Joy) I am highly indebted to its public transportation. Speeding buses with their conductors hollering for passengers is a common site on Kolkata roads. But as a passenger the ride in these buses is not that joyous. Interior of buses ensure that one gets the minimum comfort in his/her journey. Courtesy to our ever growing Indian population, you find yourself stuffed with so many others, much much more than the bus can actually accommodate. Packed inside the ill ventilated bus and cooked by the hot, sultry weather the inevitable starts – you break into sweat and drops of it start trickling from your till now immaculate face. At the same time, you can’t really complain about coming in contact with a sweat drenched co-passenger around you. The passenger seat ratio at peak time even reaches a fatal 4 is to 1, implying presence of 100 odd passengers in an average sized bus.

Very soon you find the conductor asking in his loud, rugged voice for the bhara (Bengali version of fare). That is when the pre check of your wallet comes into play. Doesn’t matter how rich you are and how much cash you are actually carrying, what is by default expected from you by the conductor is chutta (Indian version for change) or the exact fare if possible. But beware, before you hand over the chutta please ensure you have enough for rest of the day. You see it’s because every Indian wants change!! And in case if you are handing a 50 or a 100 rupees note then be ready to be on the receiving side for both the change as well as the taunting. Same is the case when you dare to board the bus with any type of baggage. Once you are greeted with rebuke from the conductor and other passengers balancing and finding space becomes the next big thing. 

Surely the conductor is the most happening person in a bus. Stopping the bus frequently for more passengers and stuffing them in the already packed bus or beating the bus and setting up the tone to encourage the driver catch speed are trademark acts of a conductor. Hence the bus is either crawling or moving dangerously at high speed. In both cases the conductor ends up becoming a punching bag on which passengers vent out their anger. Threatening and banging the bus is a very common thing done by commuters to get the bus moving smoothly. Some of the comments hurled by passengers at the conductor are worth enjoying. If you get a seat then its fortunate enough given that the seat is comfortable and you share it with an average sized person and most importantly that you have the confidence of making your way through the crowded bus by the time it reaches your desired stoppage. But hold on. If you see an old person standing beside you then it’s surely charity knocking your door. Like it or not go ahead and do the good deed.

Like any other journey in life the bus journey too provides you with some good people and some not so good people. You can frequently find yourself among short tempered persons who are now and then getting angry on slightest of the pushes or constantly grumbling about how others are standing. Surely the only remedy for tackling such petulant people and conductors are temporary blindness and deafness on your part. It’s always best to put up a stern body language, making it difficult to be dominated by the people around you especially in a public bus. Often it’s the poor people who are maltreated by the conductor. Aren’t they paying the same fare as a good looking lady or a well dressed gentleman?? Isn’t the bus meant for the public?? So why the difference?? 

The bus journey surely takes you through various mood swings. Doesn’t it? At times you feel philosophical (like why am I here? What is the purpose of life?) or sometimes dreamy (like becoming someone like Ranbir Kapoor or SRK or driving a BMW) but the very next moment you feel a bit angry and frustrated when reality bites you. Surely you can’t restrain yourself at times hurling some bad slang at people around you if not openly then at least in your mind. 

But after being transported like animals (as if gadhas)  and going through all those traffic jams, irritating stoppages, pushing, shouting and fighting one finally reaches his destination. Getting down like boarding requires quickness of mind and as it’s difficult to predict where the bus would stop; you can easily find yourself in a precarious situation in the middle of a busy road.

Surely “survival of the fittest” at its best- only understood by people who don’t own a private vehicle.  

 -PRASENJIT CHAUDHURI