Durga Puja clubs start their preparations early

For Bengalis, the month of April is important not only because it is the month of Poila Baishakh, but also because from this month, the preparation of Durga Puja starts. A number of big clubs in Kolkata have announced the artist and also conducted Khuti Puja.
Thakurpukur SB Park, for instance, have done their Khuti Puja. The club also announced that like previous years, artist Partha Dasgupta will decorate their pandal.Behala Notun Sangha is another big club that is celebrating 60 years of their puja. They announced that celebrated artist Sanatan Dinda will decorate their Puja. Khidirpur 25 Pally, the club that is completing 75 years, has also hired Sanatan Dinda for their Puja.
The clubs, however, kept mum when asked about their Puja theme. “We have finalised the theme, but it is too early to make it public. There is a high chance that other Pujas will copy the idea,” said a Puja organiser.
Choosing an artist, however, is a crucial job. According to Puja organisers, all the awards are declared by Shashti. And by Saptami the next day, the organisers start looking for artists for the next year’s Puja. The artist plays a crucial role in a puja. It is he who generates an idea and after discussing that with the club members, a budget is fixed. Then the clubs then start preparing for collecting money for the Puja. “This is why we fix the artist so early,” said the organiser.