19 Oct,2023
The festival begins with Mahalaya, a special day when devotees offer prayers to their ancestors and invoke Goddess Durga to descend to Earth.
The preparations for Durga Puja start months in advance. Artisans create elaborate clay idols of Goddess Durga and her children, Saraswati, Lakshmi, Ganesha, and Kartik.
Temporary structures, known as pandals, are constructed to house the idols. These pandals are often designed with creative and intricate decorations.
The main days of celebration are Saptami, Ashtami, and Navami. Devotees offer prayers, visit pandals, and partake in cultural programs during these days.
Many people wear traditional Bengali attire, such as sarees and dhotis, during these days. It's also common for women and children to wear new clothes.
Artisans and decorators create artistic displays, lighting arrangements, and thematic decorations inside the pandals, often with social, cultural, or contemporary themes.
Cultural programs, including music, dance, and drama, are organized in many pandals. Famous artists and performers often participate.
Food is an integral part of Durga Puja celebrations. Street food stalls offer a wide variety of delicious Bengali dishes, and people indulge in festive feasting.
On Dashami, married women participate in a ritual called "Sindoor Khela," where they apply sindoor (vermillion) to each other and the idols of Goddess Durga.
On the final day, Vijaya Dashami, devotees bid farewell to the Goddess as she returns to her heavenly abode. The idols are immersed in rivers or water bodies, symbolizing the departure of Goddess Durga.