Pujo is in the air!
As Game of Thrones called it a wrap
for Season 7, a majority of the mortals on planet Earth (including me) are once
again troubled with an innocently relevant question: “What is the purpose of
life?” It seems that for the next one or may be two years until Season 8 goes
on air, self-discovery is of utmost importance, especially since the last few
months were spent primarily on speculation. Now that we are on our own, what do we look
forward to?
Thankfully, for Bengali folks (again,
including me) across the globe, this is not a problem. Something bigger awaits
us in less than a week’s time – The Durga Puja. Yes, a lot has been written and
spoken of about Durga Puja and by now, we all know that it is a grand carnival,
bringing together the best of Bengal’s creativity, fashion, grandeur, colour,
art, food, literature and music in one big potboiler. It is the homecoming
celebration of our Ma Durga, and everyone, from beggar to Banerjee, participates
in the festivities making the 10 days of her stay a truly memorable one. Therefore,
from discussing puja pandal themes, to planning just the right combination of clothes
and accessories for each day, the Bengali mind is currently at work. Funnily
enough, some of the ineffectual Non-Bengali minds (the world is but divided
into two categories – Bengalis and Non-Bengalis), are also at work on social
media, raising hue and cry about what must not be. From trying to teach us how
not to make fun of our Gods and Goddesses, to telling us not to eat egg rolls
during Durga Puja, they might have stretched it a bit too far. Hence, I have a
feeling that this year, we are going to be bigger, just to prove a point. I
mean, no egg rolls? “Blistering barnacles!”
But hateful things aside, I can’t help
but dip myself in nostalgia, every time someone utters the word ‘Pujo’, as we
call it. This year, the feeling is even more magnified, especially since I’m
not being able to be there on the streets of Calcutta to witness the grand
festival. So this, I write to spread some festive cheer and to share with some
of you lovely people, the happy realizations and life lessons, which Pujo has
taught me since my teenage years. Here goes, in no order of preference:
1. Love
thy Neighbour:
The
neighbourhood Pujo remains the closest to the heart of any Bengali and there is
always an unexplained excitement surrounding it. But what makes it extra special
is the fact that there is always scope of finding romance in the neighbourhood,
to add a splash of colour to the already majestic festival arrangements. The
boys of the neighbourhood, lovingly referred to as the para‘r chhele,
are the most active and attractive during the run up to Pujo. While all year
round, they are idling their time away around the common carom board put up at
the community hall, they suddenly begin to be viewed as responsible young
gentlemen during the festive season. The neighbourhood girl or the para’r
meye is anyway the most desirable all year round, leaving no room for
contest on that and hence, if, during Pujo, you have not been able to hook up
with a para’r chhele or meye, you are missing out on something
very crucial.
2. The
Marauder’s map:
With
the recent spurt in the number of Pujo pandals across the city, it is likely
that one will find at least two pandals in a narrow dingy lane. In fact, when I
had been a novice to this, I would invariably find a ‘No Entry’ board on either
side of the lane, thanks to the pandals blocking the way, making it absolutely
impossible to reach my destination. Hence, it is essential to discover
shortcuts or alternative routes beforehand, to make your travel easy. Remember
Marauder’s map in the Harry Potter series? I had one designed for my own reference all
these years, which read something like this –
“To
avoid crowd on the main road, take Lane A”;
“Lane
B has unwanted Aunties, who are likely to mob you with irritating questions
like, “What are you studying?”, “Who are you dating?”, etc. Better take Lane C”;
“If
you’re holding hands with ahem, someone special, take Lane D”;
“The
pandal in lane E has that snooty girl from college and your ex. Divert to Lane
W, T, or F.”
Trust
me, it has been extremely handy. If not anything else, it successfully ensures
that mischief is managed!
3. Jaa Simran, jee le apni zindagi:
Now,
Simran might have heard this phrase only once in her life from Bauji in DDLJ, but the Bengali daughters
hear these golden words every year during Pujo. While on other days, you are
sworn to come home by a modestly set deadline, there are no such things during
Pujo. On other days, you might be asked to wear a shrug over your spaghetti
top, but on days of Pujo, Ma will insist that the halter sleeve blouse looks
hot as hell with the saree she bought for you! From pandal hopping all night,
to enjoying unending conversations or adda
with friends in the most ‘happening’ pujo pandals of town - the boys and girls
are denied absolutely nothing. Add to that, some extra pocket money generously received
from parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles and the whole package, is pure
bliss. In short, you rule the 7 Kingdoms for those 10 days.
4. The
Backstreet Boys
While
the entrance and the front side of a pujo pandal boasts of all the glamorous
activities such as photo sessions, bumping into old acquaintances, exchanging
pleasantries etc., the back side of the pandal is where the shady, yet utterly
interesting activities happen. From Old Monk to super sandwiches (as Marshall
from ‘How I Met Your Mother’ calls it), you can grab it all, while catching up
with some extraordinary people, whom I call ‘The Backstreet Boys’. Needless to
say, you will meet your highness at the back of the pandal and engage in some enriching
conversations about art, history and politics, while partially cutting yourself
off from the brouhaha of the crowd outside. Of course, you can repeat the ritual
at someone’s house or on the terrace, but getting high secretly behind the pujo
pandal, with the sound of the dhaak
filling your ears, is a different feeling altogether.
5. Keep
walking, keep eating
The real delight
of Pujo lies in leisurely experiencing the art and food trail set up across the
city, which, in my opinion, is best explored on foot. The large canvas sized
lights on the road, depicting characters and quotes from Bengali children’s stories,
will guide you to the next Pujo pandal. On the way will be stalls of egg roll,
chicken roll, fish fry, chicken cutlet, chicken momos and chowmein, all of
which are by the way, non-vegetarian dishes. It will be served with salad and
sauce, as per choice, and will consummate your Pujo experience with the
requisite foodgasm. Of course, there will also be phuchka, paapri chaat, jhaal muri, ghoogni and the likes, which too will unfailingly jazz up your
taste buds. So yes, contrary to popular belief, we do enjoy vegetarian food
also! If you feel thirsty from all the walking, you can stop at the masala Thums-
up stall and drink something chilled. If, on the other hand, you’re a tea
person, you can try the local lemon tea, spiced with some rock salt, which will
refresh your tired self nonetheless. As regards the variety of pandals which
you will witness, there is no end to it. While at one pandal, you will be mesmerised
by the magnificence of the idol, in the other you will be awed by the ornate
craft displayed by the artisans. Thus, one must keep walking and keep eating.
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