Monday, October 29, 2018

Beautiful & Unique Durga puja pandals from North Kolkata 2018

Ahiritola Durga idol
I am sharing some more unique Durga puja pandals from north Kolkata. The first one is from Ahiritola. I try to see this one every year, and this time when i went there..I saw an old palatial house, and I was wondering how did I miss it last time...and well...guess what...this  old house was the "Ahiritola durga puja pandal"I. I was spellbound!!! It was so well done...starting from the plasters on the walls, the pillars, the old furniture, ceiling lamps, the chipped floors...so so very well done...It had the exact same looks of durga puja that is celebrated in various beautiful old houses in Kolkata.

 I have included a video of this pandal at the end of this post, it is a brief video, and I don't know why I hurried through it...sorry about that...but it will give you an idea.

Ahiritola Durga puja pandal 2018
Entrance to the pandal


The chipped floor effect

So well made...it looks so authentic!
This following pictures are from the Kumartuli Sarbojonin durga puja where the theme was Matti (soil). Very beautifully done with reusable material; I especially liked the idols because of the unique treatment.
Durga idol, Kumartuli Sarbojonin 

Kumartuli Sarbojonin durga puja
Pandal decorations, innovative and unique!

nice!

Paintings

Ceilng is beautifully decorated

I like the different portrayal of he idols

Monday, October 22, 2018

Happy Dussehra and Subho Bijoya from the city of joy

Durga idol Ahiritola Jubakbrinda
Kolkata comes alive during Durga pujas. Every year, I think, they will run out of ideas and themes this year, but every year there is a fresh new theme. It is just too awesome!

Durga puja is a not just celebrated by  Bengalis, the entire city celebrates this festival. People from all walks of life celebrate this joyous festival about the victory of good over evil. It is one of the most inclusive festivals I have ever seen, and which is why it is so unique and has to be experienced at least once!

The Durga pandals have different themes with social messages. The innovative, artistic, and creative pandals leaves you in a dream like state….

I am sharing some of the Durga puja pandals that I loved. I could only see a fraction of the Durga puja pandals this year but even that is enough to give you an idea of the  love, joy, and inclusiveness this festival is all about!

I will start with a pandal which left a deep impact on me.

The one thing that really makes durga puja so very unique and inclusive is...the soil that is used in making the Durga idols. The soil, which is one of the key elements in the mix, is sourced from Sonagachi, and Sonagachi  happens to be Asia's largest red light area!

This year, the Durga pandal of Ahiritola Jubakbrinda in north Kolkata depicted the struggles and  challenges faced by sex workers who have been forced to enter this profession.Through poems, graffiti, and powerful messages this durga pandal made sure that they spread awareness about the difficult life that prostitutes live. The message was clear "sex workers have the right to live in the society with respect and dignity".

It is humane things like this that restores my hope in mankind, and makes me optimistic about a world where all is not lost, and that humanity in human beings still exists.


Entrance to the pandal


The write -up on the top right, is from the perspective of  man, addressing the prostitute as "Mother". I will try to get the essence of this message across, not certain though if I will be able to capture it that well...but let me give it a try:

Who calls you a prostitute
who asks after you or
who wants to know your story
That's why one more time I address you as mother
though I know you are forced to exist on the margins of the society
so many helpless women like you wait in the dark dressed to attract
If you are a prostitute what sort of gentleman am I
My uncle and father they too desire you if they find you alone in the dark
You are like Ganges carrying the sins of others on you
You bear the responsibility of your family, taking the last train home
and returning to your children and ailing husband.
Today it is not your dignity but looking after your family is priority for you hence today
you are not a prostitute but a worker, whose workplace is Sonagachi
We are not men but demons....

Imprisoned by unfair means


Very powerfully depicted

This message is a request to stop trafficking of people

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Chamba and Khajjiar in Himachal Pradesh are breathtakingly beautiful

Chamba, Himachal Pradesh
Chamba is a quaint little beautiful hill station in Himachal Pradesh, India.

We stopped by Chamba because Dalhousie happened to be so misty that we could barely see anything there:( We were expecting bad weather in August....but this was disappointing!  The misty weather is beautiful but when combined with rains...you pretty much can't do any sightseeing!

However, Chamba was such a lovely surprise! When we reached Chamba…the sun was shining brightly... what a marked contrast from Dalhousie! I wish we had more time scheduled for Chamba….we only had a few hours.

Our first stop was a 10th century Lakshmi Narayan temple: The architecture of this temple is very different from other ancient temples. The wooden entrance is quite unique. The temple walls have some beautiful carvings.

Bhuri Singh museum: We wanted to get to know about Chamba's history, culture, and heritage.This museum has a lot of paintings, sculptures, artefacts, coins....they have a very good collection. However, there wasn’t any literature that we could refer to. They did not have any pamphlets or books …so it was bit difficult to navigate.

By the time we completed our tour of the museum the weather started to get bad… and we had to rush. We knew that we would be up against unpredictable weather…however now that we were here, we were going to make the most of it, and see as much as possible. On the positive side...because of monsoons the hills were beautiful, magical, and dreamlike!

We had heard of Khajjiar (which is known as the Switzerland of India) and since it was about an hour away from Chamba, we wanted to fit that in as well.

And Khajjiar did not disappoint, it was beautiful…you come upon this area that is so completely different…the wide expanse of the green meadows really hits you…you are transformed to another world!

Our journey back to Pathankot was quite an adventurous one…it started raining heavily and it was getting dark….and we were still in the hills…we had a four hour journey to Pathankot through hilly and winding roads. It was a ride I will never forget…we reached Pathankot at almost 9 pm.

The next day we heard of flash floods in various places, and of a landslide on the Chamba-Pathankot road, all roads were blocked! We got away just in time!


View of Chamba
View of Chamba

Lakshmi Narayan Temple, Chamba
Lakshmi Narayan temple


Carvings on the walls of the temple


Bhuri Singh Museum art work
Miniature painting
Khajjiar, Himachal Pradesh
Khajjiar, the Switzerland of India


Sunday, September 9, 2018

Palampur in Himachal Pradesh is a beautiful hill station with interesting things to see

Palampur in Himachal Pradesh may not be one of the most popular tourist destinations but this quaint hill station has quite a few interesting things to see.If you are in Dharamshala and have a day to spare, Palampur would be a great one day getaway. Palampur is well connected by Air, railways, and roads. The closest airport is in Dharamshala (which is well connected from Delhi), Amritsar airport is the next best
option. Palampur is well connected to all the major cities in Himachal Pradesh by train. Traveling by road is a good option as well…there are several state run buses that ply from all the major cities in Himachal Pradesh to Palampur. Hiring a car is also an option.

Some of the places that you may consider visiting in Palampur:

Andretta village, known as the artist's village, is around 13 km from Palampur town and is known for theatre, art, and pottery. This village came into being around the 1920s when Norah Richards who was a dramatist shifted from Lahore to Palampur. She started a drama school and played a major role in modern Punjabi theatre by staging a lot of plays with Punjabi themes. Her house is beautiful and was built using mud, bamboo, and slate and is still in good condition. Andretta was also home to artists like Sobha Singh and B.C Sanyal.  Sobha Singh's house has been partly converted into a museum and you can see some of his beautiful works displayed. Mansimran and his wife Mary Singh started the Andretta Pottery and Craft Society in 1983.

Tea Estates: Well know for various tea gardens, Palampur happens to be the tea capital of North India. Bundla tea etsate is about 200 years old and one of the most renowned tea estates of Palampur.

Baijnath temple: Is an ancient functional Shiva temple dating back to 1204 AD, it is around 17 km from Palampur. The architecture is beautiful and there are interesting sculptures on the walls of the temple. We could not get very get pictures because there was some festival going on and the temple was covered with bulbs.

Neugal Cafe: If you want to enjoy the view and take a coffee or snack break, Neugal cafe is just the place. It is in Palampur, you will require to pay a nominal entrance fee.

We managed to sight some birds but as such could not see many birds because we went to Palampur during monsoons. It is best to avoid Himachal Pradesh during July and August because of monsoons and landslides. But I must add that monsoons add a magic to the hills...the hills are so green and breathtakingly beautiful during monsoons.
Norah Richard's house in Andretta village

Artist Sobha Singh's house

Pottery studio Andretta

Tea estate in Palampur

Baijnath Temple Palampur
Work on the walls on the temple

Neugal cafe
View from Neugal cafe

Alexandrine-Parakeet
Great-Barbet

Himalayan Bulbul
Yellow-billed-blue-Magpie