With Durga Puja barely 10 days away, the idol makers from West Bengal are busy wrapping up their orders. There is not a minute to spare for Binay Pal as he negotiates with customers to close the final deals on idols at his workshop at One Town.
Although things are looking up this festive season, several factors are throwing a spanner in the works of the idol makers. Price rise is one of their biggest hurdles even as the orders increase. “This year, the markets are buoyant again. But though raw material costs have gone up, the price of idols has remained the same,” says Binay, who has been coming to the city since 2001 with a group of artisans from West Bengal. This year, his makeshift workshop has rows of over 100 Durga idols in different sizes.
At Kancharapalem, Malay Haldar shares a similar story. The demand is better compared to the last two years. “In 2019, I had made 150 Durga idols. In 2020, we did not come here and in 2021, I made hardly 50 with a lot of trepidation. This year, I have made 100 and have received some advance orders as well,” Malay says. The artisans complain of a steep rise in prices of materials like clay, nails, jute rope and wood, amongst other things. “A lorry load of clay now costs ₹13,000. It was ₹9,000 last year,” says Binay.
An artist from West Bengal working on a Durga idol ahead of Dussehra | Photo Credit: KR Deepak
The process of making the idols is laborious and one that has been mastered over generations by these men. Hard soil is turned into wet clay, then beaten and kneaded with hands and feet over several stages to make it smooth and into the right consistency and texture. After this, the artisans shape it into gods and goddesses.
First puja
Visakhapatnam’s first Durga Puja was said to have started by a group of Bengali families in the Shipyard. Though the puja is no longer held there, old timers say that it set the tone for formation of more Bengali associations across the city. This year, the city will come alive after a gap of two years to the sound of conch shells with six to seven Durga Puja celebrations being planned across the city.
An artist from West Bengal working on a Durga idol ahead of Dussehra | Photo Credit: KR Deepak
At the 39th Sharodiya Durgotsav celebration by Ukkunagaram Durga Puja Committee, the buzz of addas and stalls will be back. The celebration hosts over 200 Bengali families every year.
“Our festivities have already started. The first event was a story-writing competition for school children. After a gap of two years, there was a good response. We are gearing up for an in-house cultural programme to be held in Mahalaya on September 25,” says Anindo Pal, a member of the committee. The celebrations will start from October 1 and continue till October 5. “This year, cultural programmes will be held in the evenings where local talent as well as professionals from Bhubaneswar and Kolkata will perform,” Anindo adds.
The Ukkunagaram Durga Puja Committee also comes out with a Bengali literary magazine called Katha every year. In its 32nd edition this time, the magazine, which is the only one of its kind in Visakhapatnam, will feature 16 poems, an essay, three reminiscences and six stories along with various other sections.
Other celebrations in Visakhapatnam include the one at Waltair Kalibari and One Town. “This year, Durga Puja will be extra special for us and deeply emotional. We will be getting together with friends after two years and will be fondly remembering dear committee members who passed away during the pandemic. The festival brings us together as one family where we share days and nights bonding over food and conversation,” says Indraneel Majumdar, a resident of Visakhapatnam.
Utsab Cultural Association, which missed hosting the celebration over the last two years is back this season. The festivities are held at AMCOSA Hall at Maharanipeta with rituals and cultural activities. One of the oldest Durga Puja celebrations in the city is the Eco Railway Sarbojanin Durga Puja at Waltair Kali Bari, near the Railway Station. Here, more than 1,500 Bengali families in the city get-together and participate in the five-day revelry. But the highlight of Waltair Kali Bari’s puja is that it draws hundreds of visitors from other non-Bengali communities in the city. In its 62nd year, the Waltair Kalibari Durga Puja will kickstart the festivities on September 30 with a cultural programme.
Every puja committee in the city makes an attempt to replicate the charm of Kolkata’s Durga Puja. The dhanuchi naach and dhaak are an intrinsic part of the euphoria, which is all set to begin in the coming days.
