Last year, Sreebhumi Sporting Club Durga Puja was inaugurated by then CM Mamata Banerjee. This puja, her successor Suvendu Adhikari was invited to cut the ribbon.At Ahiritola Sarbojanin Durgotsab, the ‘chokhhudan’ (ceremonial painting of the goddess’s eyes) ritual was performed by the BJP MLA from Shyampukur, Purnima Chakraborty, who is also chairperson of the 2026 organising committee. Till last year, the role was reserved for former MLA Shashi Panja, who was a senior minister in the erstwhile Mamata cabinet.The Mohammad Ali Park puja used to be inaugurated by Kolkata North MP Sudip Bandopadhyay every year. This puja, minister Tapas Roy, chairperson of the organising committee, will don the mantle.A quiet colour revolution — from blue-and-white to saffron — has swept across Kolkata’s autumn festival landscape following Trinamool’s defeat and BJP’s victory in the April assembly elections. The goddess may have returned with the same fervour, but the faces surrounding her have changed. Invitations, committee appointments and guest lists are reflecting a new political reality, even as organisers insist that the festival transcends party lines.Adhikari inaugurated a string of pujas on Sunday and Monday. “The CM spent 45 minutes in our pandal on Sunday. He performed arati and lit a lamp at the rangoli,” said Debajit Chatterjee, general secretary of Sreebhumi Sporting Club, which will open its pandal to visitors on Tuesday evening.For years, Mamata and other Trinamool seniors were prominent guests at major Kolkata pujas. Many of them held influential positions in organising committees, too. However, soon after the election results were announced in May, several committees appointed BJP functionaries as chairpersons or advisers.Pujas across the city, which were once synonymous with Trinamool netas, have put in requests to Adhikari for inauguration. On Monday evening, he inaugurated the Chetla Agrani puja, which is known as Firhad Hakim’s puja.Among the other pujas that have invited the CM are Tridhara Sammilani, steered by former Trinamool MLA Debashis Kumar; Suruchi Sangha, which had former sports minister Aroop Biswas as its face; Hindustan Club in Gariahat, which was associated with former junior minister Chandrima Bhattacharya; and Kasba Naboday Sangha, where former Trinamool councillor Sushanta Ghosh was a key figure.Each of the pujas used to be inaugurated by Mamata before the change of guard.At Mohammad Ali Park, where MP and former Mamata loyalist Sudip Bandopadhyay was a leading light, minister Tapas Roy is scheduled to inaugurate the puja on Wednesday. “We are lucky to have Tapas-da as our chairperson. He has been a guiding force for us,” said Surender Sharma, secretary of Youth Association, which organises the puja.Not every organiser, however, sees the change through a partisan lens. “We used to invite Mamata Banerjee because she was our CM. We are inviting Suvendu Adhikari now because he is the current CM. We invite the head of the state govt. There is no politics here,” said Anjan Ukil, president of Ballygunge Cultural Association.The calendar of BJP seniors is full of invitations for inaugurations and ‘chokhhudan’. Jorasanko MLA Vijay Ojha is expected to inaugurate at least 15 pujas in his constituency. “I am looking forward to being part of pujas in my area and beyond,” said Shyampukur MLA Chakraborty.
