NEW DELHI: The Navratri days have begun and people have started making itinerary for pandal hopping. Thanks to Bengali associations, the city witnesses glimpses of Kolkata during Navratri while the Bengalis relive the nostalgia of the festival celebrated back home.
The major attraction of pandal hopping is the theme. Every year, pandals adopt interesting themes. However, only a handful of associations have earned a reputation of creating attractive theme-based pandals. One of them is Matri Mandir Samity which is among the oldest Durga Puja organizers. This year, the Samity has decided to decorate its pandal with the theme of Disney Land.
The Samity members said caricatures of popular toon characters will be on display in the pandal while arrangements have been made wherein artists will wear costumes of cartoon characters to entertain the people.
“We decided to make the children feel special and extra happy while also revisiting our nostalgic moments when our childhood revolved around Disney toons,” said Anindo Ghosh, additional general secretary of the Samity.
Parimal Bhattacharya, president of the Samity said that the aesthetics of the puja pandal will double the delight of pandal hoppers with the culinary experience and cultural programme it would offer. “We have a concept called Anondo Mela where people bring home-cooked delicacies and sell them in the pandal for a day. It’s open to all. Anyone can participate and showcase their culinary skills. Besides, a variety of food joints will have their outlets during the festival. We even have a dedicated space for a food court,” he said.
Speaking about the cultural programmes, Ghosh said prominent figures from the Bengal entertainment industry will perform for the audience. “Our performers’ portfolio is a mix of local talent as well as Bengal’s popular artists. Playback singers Shovan Ganguly and Mandira Karamkar will perform on the cultural evening. Famous saxophone player Shaukat Khan will set up an orchestra. We have also roped in Mohua Mukherjee for her performance in Gaudiya Nritya (a Bengali classic dance form in Bengal),” he said.
While organising a large-scale event that witnesses tens of thousands of visitors is a daunting task and people tend to get anxious, the Samity members seemed quite relaxed and the atmosphere was quite calm. Ghosh attributed it to people making a positive contribution after the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I believe the difficult time of Covid-19 has brought more value of togetherness in the lives of people. I can see that the community members are willingly coming forward and volunteering for Pujo preparations in all manners they can. I think the disaster we all witnessed has made people respect their culture more than ever,” he said. Ghosh said the guest house of the Samity was booked two months in advance by the members who have settled in other parts of the country to take part in the celebration. “The advance bookings show their sheer enthusiasm,” he said.