Maa
"Bolo Durga Mai ki Joy. Aashte Bochor Aabar hobe."
Shidur Khela is in full swing. The deep red of it against the cheeks and brows of women, young and old, paints a colorful picture. Everywhere you look, you can see women draped in white sarees with the perpetual red borders, adorned with jewels, a red bindi on their forehead and patches of the deep red Shidur on their face. There is laughter in the air, but underlining that, there is melancholy at the end of another year of festivities and a return back to the life as we know it.
Yes, Bijoya is in full swing. Maa is returning back. Durga pujo for this year has culminated. everyone is wishing each other with a Shubo Bijoya on their lips. And I don't want to go back home just yet. I don't want to get back to everything I've kept on hold for the last 5 days. I do not want to go back to the everyday mundane existence i share with the rest of the world. Because I loved being the "Quintessential Bengali Girl" for the last 5 days, and if I leave now, I'll miss it.
Pujo has never been a simple festival for me. And I think it's not wrong to say that every bengali anywhere in the world is very attached to Durga Pujo. When I was a kid, Pujo came with a lot of benefits. I could buy several new pairs of shoes, new clothes, and anything else I had on my mind. I could take a leave from school without it resulting in a huge fight with my mother. I would go around Mumbai looking at all the different pandals in and around. I could play as long as I want with my friends and most of all I could eat all the junk I wanted for 5 full days without a long lecture from my parents. So yes, I waited for the month of October with bated breath. But as I grew up, I changed, and with me, changed the things that tied me to Pujo.
Now, it's not about the clothes anymore. It's not about taking a leave either. It's still about the food, but that's not a primary reason anymore. And as much as these pictures would say, it's not about meeting a guy and the elusive "chokha chokhi" in the pandal. That, by the way is what we call the meeting of eyes for the first time. For a lot of people, including me, Pujo is synonymous with a simpler time. A time to deep devotion and connection. A time to come back and wonder about he awe inspiring goddess who triumphed over evil. A break from the chaos of the everyday life, sitting down to enjoy a simpler meal with my family, connecting back with the faces I used to play with years back, getting to know those people all over again. It means waking up on the morning of Mahalaya and listening to it on the radio(sorry, online).It means waiting for the pushpanjali before eating something. It means dancing to the tunes of Dhak and with a Dhunuchi. It means adda throughout the night. But more than anything, it means immersing myself in being a BANGALI all over again.
From the durga pujo happening far away in Washington DC to the one happening in Japan, there lies a difference in the rituals, people, and many other small things. But what binds it all together is the feeling of coming back home, the familiar faces of Maa Durga and her entire entourage together. I've never been able to miss Durga Pujo back home. And I could be at the end of the world, but I know that when Durga Pujo arrives, I'll yearn to be home. Because there can never be a place better than home to welcome Maa back to her home.
Yes, I'm going to miss sitting and sharing stories with all my friends. Yes, I'm going to miss the anticipation of getting to the pandal and making sure that I spend as much time as I can there. Yes, I'm going to miss everyone I reconnected to because we don't see each other often, neither do we keep in touch. Yes, I'm going to miss the pomp and the fervor. But most of all, I'm going to miss becoming a child all over again. I'm going miss the celebration and the devotion I see in the eyes of every person while they come to see the incarnation of purity, divinity, strength and serenity. I'm going to miss the wonder in every kid and adult alike while they sit in the Sandhi pujo, looking up to the goddess who vanquished the demon from earth and saved the people as 108 diyas were lighted in her honor and she was worshiped with as many lotuses.
So yes, I'm waiting for Maa to come again next year. Because, when it come down to brass tacks, Pujo is a way for all the Bengali clan(or as they're lovingly nicknamed "Bong") to feel right back at home.
Durga Pujo is all about celebrating life.
Yes, Bijoya is in full swing. Maa is returning back. Durga pujo for this year has culminated. everyone is wishing each other with a Shubo Bijoya on their lips. And I don't want to go back home just yet. I don't want to get back to everything I've kept on hold for the last 5 days. I do not want to go back to the everyday mundane existence i share with the rest of the world. Because I loved being the "Quintessential Bengali Girl" for the last 5 days, and if I leave now, I'll miss it.
Pujo has never been a simple festival for me. And I think it's not wrong to say that every bengali anywhere in the world is very attached to Durga Pujo. When I was a kid, Pujo came with a lot of benefits. I could buy several new pairs of shoes, new clothes, and anything else I had on my mind. I could take a leave from school without it resulting in a huge fight with my mother. I would go around Mumbai looking at all the different pandals in and around. I could play as long as I want with my friends and most of all I could eat all the junk I wanted for 5 full days without a long lecture from my parents. So yes, I waited for the month of October with bated breath. But as I grew up, I changed, and with me, changed the things that tied me to Pujo.
Now, it's not about the clothes anymore. It's not about taking a leave either. It's still about the food, but that's not a primary reason anymore. And as much as these pictures would say, it's not about meeting a guy and the elusive "chokha chokhi" in the pandal. That, by the way is what we call the meeting of eyes for the first time. For a lot of people, including me, Pujo is synonymous with a simpler time. A time to deep devotion and connection. A time to come back and wonder about he awe inspiring goddess who triumphed over evil. A break from the chaos of the everyday life, sitting down to enjoy a simpler meal with my family, connecting back with the faces I used to play with years back, getting to know those people all over again. It means waking up on the morning of Mahalaya and listening to it on the radio(sorry, online).It means waiting for the pushpanjali before eating something. It means dancing to the tunes of Dhak and with a Dhunuchi. It means adda throughout the night. But more than anything, it means immersing myself in being a BANGALI all over again.
From the durga pujo happening far away in Washington DC to the one happening in Japan, there lies a difference in the rituals, people, and many other small things. But what binds it all together is the feeling of coming back home, the familiar faces of Maa Durga and her entire entourage together. I've never been able to miss Durga Pujo back home. And I could be at the end of the world, but I know that when Durga Pujo arrives, I'll yearn to be home. Because there can never be a place better than home to welcome Maa back to her home.
Yes, I'm going to miss sitting and sharing stories with all my friends. Yes, I'm going to miss the anticipation of getting to the pandal and making sure that I spend as much time as I can there. Yes, I'm going to miss everyone I reconnected to because we don't see each other often, neither do we keep in touch. Yes, I'm going to miss the pomp and the fervor. But most of all, I'm going to miss becoming a child all over again. I'm going miss the celebration and the devotion I see in the eyes of every person while they come to see the incarnation of purity, divinity, strength and serenity. I'm going to miss the wonder in every kid and adult alike while they sit in the Sandhi pujo, looking up to the goddess who vanquished the demon from earth and saved the people as 108 diyas were lighted in her honor and she was worshiped with as many lotuses.
So yes, I'm waiting for Maa to come again next year. Because, when it come down to brass tacks, Pujo is a way for all the Bengali clan(or as they're lovingly nicknamed "Bong") to feel right back at home.
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