Kolkatans savour puja ‘aftertaste’ as Red Road carnival swings to Bengal’s festive rhythm

KOLKATA: The ninth edition of the Red Road Durga Puja carnival, where Kolkata's most spectacular festive art rolled down the kilometre-long stretch between Fort William and Akashvani Bhavan, wowed audiences and won hearts on Tuesday evening.
The pageantry started at 4.30pm and lasted nearly five hours. It was attended by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, her cabinet colleagues, members of consular corps, several foreign delegates, viewers from abroad and over 30,000 Durga Puja enthusiasts from the city and beyond.
The evening was interspersed with short dance performances, dandia moves, songs and skits. Giant screens were installed for people to get a good view of the proceedings.
Banerjee stood up and acknowledged almost every tableau passing by the main pavilion. She even joined a group of guests, which included some of her cabinet colleagues, in tapping her feet to a song and played dandia on stage, to the delight of the audience. She arrived at 4.10pm and walked down Red Road, greeting guests seated on both sides.
Badamtala Asar Sangha set the ball rolling with their portrayal of ‘Utsab-er-Chalchitra', celebrating the contribution of the working class. Women, dressed in red, yellow and gold saris, presented a two-minute dance sequence.
Up next was Dum Dum Tarun Dal, with their theme ‘Blue and White', which was also reflected in the attire of the committee members, decoration of the tableaux and deity.
Several other pujas, such as Ballygunge Cultural Association, Sreebhumi Sporting, Ahiritola Sarbojanin, Talla Pratyay, Hatibagan Sarbojanin, Tridhara, Chaltabagan and Mohammad Ali Park, enthralled the audience with their artistic installations and entertaining performances.
Thousands of spectators craned their necks to catch a last glimpse of Durga before the idols proceeded towards Babughat for immersion.
Tollywood actresses Rachana Banerjee, Nusrat Jahan and others matched steps with each puja committee's dancers.
Amidst the crowd was Avantika Sen, a Mumbai-based architect who was on a visit to her hometown for puja. "The carnival has become one of the biggest roadshows in the world now, transforming the city into an art exhibition. The festival has evolved into a spectacular celebration of art and culture," she said.
In 2021, Durga Puja was inscribed on Unesco's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, an honour that catapulted the state's biggest festival on to the global stage.
As dusk descended, the lights at the venue turned the entire road into a giant pandal, with vloggers, social media influencers and users making short videos to share.
Some of the pujas, including Sreebhumi Sporting, Chetla Agrani, Hatibagan Sarbojanin and Arjunpur, attracted thunderous applause.