Kolkata: A week after devastating floods brought Kolkata to a standstill, the city has rebounded with remarkable resilience, immersing itself in the grandeur of Sharad Utsav. Overcoming the crisis that left citizens and Puja organisers reeling, the city has now transformed into a sprawling gallery of artistry, where themes of social justice and solidarity are decisively outshining overt political campaigns.

The political undertones of the festival are unmistakable this year. The themes have ranged from robust nationalist narratives and critiques of international politics to introspective social commentaries on historical and contemporary issues.

Among the most discussed installations are those highlighting the plight of Bengali-speaking migrant workers. At least two Pujas have focused on the harassment and discrimination faced by these workers in other Indian states.

The Jayasree Sangha puja in Dumdum’s Japur area has captured the city’s attention by directly confronting the harassment faced by Bengali-speaking workers in other states. The organisers have brought several migrant workers to stay at the pandal itself.

“Speaking Bengali has created a horror that the government has sent to Bangladesh. Migrant labourers are forced to live in panic. It is becoming a terror for Bengalis living outside West Bengal. This issue has now become our theme,” shared Sanjay Das, one of the officials of the Dumdum Japur Jayashree Sangha, the organiser of the Puja.

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee visited this pandal on September 30 and interacted with workers.

Garnering accolades as the “best Puja” in Kolkata, the Behala Friends’ theme, 'Nabanna: Wounds, War and Hunger,' has become the festival’s soul. The pandal reimagines Durga and her companions not as deities with weapons but as ordinary humans surrounded by scenes of suffering and solidarity. 

One side of the pandal uses linocut sketches in the style of Bengal’s great artists, Chittoprasad, Zainul Abedin, and Somnath Hore, to evoke the horrors of famines. The other side is a bold protest against the aggression in Palestine. Upon entering, visitors are confronted with the word “genocide” scrawled inside a blood-stained loaf of bread. 

Visitors are greeted by the poem Face to Face, written by Naama Hassan, a Palestinian poet based in Gaza. The atmosphere is intensified by a haunting voiceover from Raeda Ghazaleh, a Palestinian theatre director, who speaks of the devastating reality facing famine-hit Palestinians. These powerful auditory elements, combined with visual art, create an immersive and deeply moving experience.

Artist Pradip Das shared his vision with The Wire: “We have to protect secularism in the heart of Bengal. I wanted to remind people of the days of war and famine and what the consequences of this conflict-ridden situation could be.” 

The response has been overwhelming.

“A renowned organisation has already declared it the best Puja, and I have also received calls from poets and writers from Palestine. They have congratulated us for highlighting their protest here,” he added.

Beyond nationalist and international themes, Durga Puja in Kolkata has also served as a space for reflecting on social and historical injustices. South Kolkata’s Samaj Sebi Sangha, for example, revisited the 1946 Great Calcutta Killings, using its own history of non-sectarian relief work during the riots to advocate for a secular Bengal. With no finger-pointing or even an ‘us versus them’ narrative, it presents a mature understanding that violence instigated by a few cannot define the majority. 

Yet, this new direction has sparked a quiet debate. Purists argue that such themes risk overshadowing the religious and spiritual essence of the festival, turning it into a public art fair rather than a sacred celebration. Its proponents, on the other hand, see this as its greatest strength. “Durgotsav”, West Bengal’s biggest festival, has become a canvas for social commentary, representing the spirit of a community that uses art to question, remember, and resist.

Translated from the Bengali original by Aparna Bhattacharya. All photos are by arrangement.

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