Both Bengalis and non-Bengalis of Pune came in droves to join the festivities at the Congress Bhavan in Shivajinagar for Mahapanchami, the first day of the Durga Puja, the Bengali festival where goddess Durga is worshipped with pomp and devotion.
Both Bengalis and non-Bengalis of Pune came in droves to join the festivities at the Congress Bhavan in Shivajinagar for Mahapanchami, the first day of the Durga Puja, the Bengali festival where goddess Durga is worshipped with pomp and devotion.
Since the past 72 years, Durga Puja is celebrated by the Bengali association Bangiya Sanskruti Samsad in the city.
“The initial venue for the puja was near Rahul Theatre and then near Modern College. Since last 28 years, the puja is celebrated in Congress Bhavan,” Samsad general secretary Rajesh Burman told DNA.
The celebrations formally started with ‘murthi pratisthan’ and ‘devi bodhon’, a ritual to propitiate and welcome goddess Durga and her four children, at 7 pm on Saturday, While the idols of the goddess were a huge attraction, so was the craftsmanship of the numerous marquees under which they were housed.
“Though in West Bengal, the festival is celebrated on a much larger scale, for people like us who stay here for professional purpose, this puja provides a common platform for people cutting across religious lines to immerse themselves in cultural activities,” said Abhidipto Som, a Wipro employee who visited the pandal with his friends.
The atmosphere in Congress Bhavan was energetic with Bengali songs playing in the air and the stalls of Bengali cuisines available in plenty.
“Today we have organised a quiz contest, Rabindra Sangeet by Kolkata artist Maya Chaterjee and Anandamela (Bengali food festival). Similar programmes will follow in the next five days,” Burman said.
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