Durga puja is a time of celebration, of happiness, joy, and a general sense of belongingness. It is what brings us together. A Bengali feels a strong spiritual connection with the festival, but the days preceding the puja, are all about nostalgia. The festival countdown
While making Kolkata Cocktail, I kept on remembering that famous quote of legendary film-maker Kurosawa. He had said: “I make films because it is the only form of art where every type of art is mingled together.” For me poetry is that new art form,
Come Mahalaya and every year at the break of dawn, hundreds of people head to the ghats of the Hooghly. And what for? To stand in that waist deep water paying obeisance to the departed souls of ancestors. But why is the custom of tarpan
Our colonisers have left the country long back, but India’s colonial hangover remains as strong as ever, and is a discourse in itself. However, that is not the case with the Durga idol worshipped by the De family of Bhowanipore. How? Well, their Mahishasura just
Compounding issues around the world have led to millions of people displaced abroad or within their own borders. In India, infiltration from Bangladesh has been a cause of socio-ethnic tensions in the bordering states, primarily in the north-east, as the locals are apprehensive of being
Remember that palm leaf sepoy that you played with in your childhood? Yes, in absence of electronic gadgets, children once played with indigenous toys, like the Talpatar Shepai. Chalchitra Academy is trying to revive and popularise this dying crafts form of rural Bengal. They are
Durga Puja is here! You’ve already decided on your outfits (bought months ago, of course), which pandals you’ll visit with your friends on the days of the puja, and of course, celebrate Calcutta by gorging on street food! However, will all of us spend Durga Puja
With artists scratching heads to come up with original and revolutionary themes to inspire and attract the masses, it's no wonder that one or two pandals are sure to be jaw-dropping every year. This year, however, one Puja association has decided to cherish memories and
Bengalis may claim to be the Proust, Foucault, or Wilde of their generations, the more intellectually inclined culture, but come Durga Puja, one of the most important aspects is not visiting pandals or shopping with family and friends -- it's pampering our weak tummies that
Here is a fabulously shot and designed calendar with a tremendously powerful message to address one of India’s most potent present-day issues – the impasse at Kashmir. And that too coming from two of Kolkata’s best creative minds --- travel aficionado Deboshree Ganguly and world-renowned