Kumortuli: The Abode of Goddess Durga in Kolkata

Sayanti Poddar & Swati Mallik It was the morning of Mahalaya. People gathered along riverside Ganga for ‘Pitru Tarpan’, a ritual to offer prayers for their ancestors.  However in the adjacent lanes and bylanes, people thronged to mark the start of the greatest festival of the Bengalis- Durga Puja. But, not for all. “Our season…

HOLI Days of Colours

Swati Mallik & Sayanti Poddar — I never enjoyed Holi in almost all my childhood. When I was a child, I was severely afraid of those water colors that stayed on my skin for long and my mother tried her best to scrub them away off my skin. I hated that the most. It hurt…

Durga Puja at the ‘Bonedi’ Houses of Kolkata

Swati Mallik & Sayanti Poddar Every year in Bengal autumn brings a special message with it – the time for celebration has come once again! In Bengal, especially in Kolkata, there is a certain exuberance in the air… big hoardings obstructing almost every sight, huge pandels blocking roads and lanes, thematic lights along the city…

LAKESIDE STORY: WINTRY MORNING @ RABINDRA SAROBAR

SAYANTI PODDAR Winter, now-days, keeps eluding the Calcuttans giving them very limited opportunity to slip into their colourful woollen collections. Also the lack of expansive green spaces within the city further prevents them from enjoying nature’s beauty during this time of the year. Nonetheless, the Rabindra Sarobar Lake is one of the very few spaces…