Lights, gold, glitter, colour, gifts, crackers, holiday! This is how Bangaloreans would be ideally celebrating their Diwali.
But the Bengalis in the city are gearing up for their next prime festival 'Kali puja', just weeks after the city witnessed the gaiety of Durga puja.
A multiple number of associations are going to perform this puja where Goddess Kali (another form of Ma Durga) would be worshipped on the night of Diwali. Although only one or two associations started celebrating this festival in the city, now a handful of others have joined this league of celebration.
“Earlier all the Bengalis of this city had to travel all the way to Ulsoor for Kali puja. So, we decided to conduct a puja in Koramangala itself. We formed an association, 'Sarathi Socio Cultural Trust' and started celebrating Kali puja besides the usual Durga puja,” said Sudipto Das, member of Sarathi socio-cultural Trust of Koramangala.
Nowadays, even the non-bengalis have joined in this celebration. Says Saurav Mathur, a resident of Sarjapur road, “I was associated with a group which used to organise Durga puja. Since then, I have been heavily influenced with all these pujas.”
An interesting fact about this festival is that it is carried according to tantrik rituals and hence, the puja takes place in the night.
Although in Kolkata, animal sacrifices are done on this occasion, the associations in Bangalore stay away from animal-slaughtering rituals. This year the puja would start roughly around 8:00 pm on Tuesday when the devotees offer pushpanjali followed by bhog distribution, in some places.