In West Bengal, it is common for Durga Puja organizers to use their pandals, idols, and decorations as a platform to address social concerns.
In West Bengal, it is common for Durga Puja organizers to use their pandals as a platform to address social concerns.
This year’s Durga Puja 2024 in Kolkata will present a variety of themes, including historical and modern-day issues. One of the most attractive themes includes the depiction of “Sati-daha,” the now-outlawed practice of immolating widows on their husband’s funeral pyres, alongside the renowned Ajanta Cave artworks. The festival will also show the current societal issues, importantly the recent tragedy at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, where a doctor was raped and murdered.
In West Bengal, it is common for Durga Puja organizers to use their pandals, idols, and decorations as a platform to address social concerns. However, the tragic incident has given rise to a debate over whether the joyful festival should coexist with the ongoing protests for justice. While some organizers aim to keep the festivities separate, the Naktala Nabapally Durga Puja committee will prominently feature graffiti and posters around their marquee, demanding justice for the victim, referred to as “Tilottoma” to protect her identity by a Supreme Court order.
The Naktala Nabapally pandal will also advocate for women’s rights, with art students creating murals to end violence against women. Graffiti reading “Justice for R G Kar” and “We Want Justice” will highlight the need for women’s safety, with bold red and black designs showing a woman resisting abuse.
Meanwhile, another prominent pandal at Kasi Bose Lane in north Kolkata will aim on honoring 19th-century reformers such as Rammohan Roy and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar. These reformers played crucial roles in abolishing the Sati practice and promoting widow remarriage. The theme, “Ratnagarbha” (meaning “women who give birth to gem-like children”), celebrates their work and the lives of countless women they helped save. At the entrance of the pandal, a towering 20-foot image of Rammohan Roy will stand alongside displays of women once forced to die on their husbands’ funeral pyres, symbolizing the transformative reforms that reshaped women’s rights in Bengal.
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