KOLKATA: Allen Park, one of Kolkata’s most recognisable Christmas destinations, is set to take on a very different festive identity this year as the Park Street landmark hosts a Durga Puja for the first time in centuries.Known for its Christmas and New Year celebrations, Allen Park will host the new puja organised by Kolkata Sanatani Sangha, a group headed by several BJP functionaries.The organisers say they want to create a grand celebration rooted in Bengali traditions and Sanatani rituals, with cultural programmes, aarti and prasad distribution planned through the festival.The puja committee includes BJP general secretary Navin Mishra as secretary and BJP spokesperson Shankudeb Panda as president. Mishra, a resident of Park Street, said the idea of bringing a Durga Puja to the locality had been on his mind since he first contested the 2015 civic elections.
Allen Park will host a Durga Puja for the first time this year, organized by Kolkata Sanatani Sangha.
“Park Street has not traditionally been a venue for Durga Puja. There used to be a small puja here more than 200 years ago, but it happened only once or twice. After that, there has been no Durga Puja in Park Street. We are creating history,” he said.The organisers plan to give the puja a distinctly Bengali character, with performances showcasing Baul music and traditions from Purulia, Bankura, North Bengal and other parts of Bengal.A grand evening aarti from Chaturthi to Dashami, modelled on the Ganga aarti in Varanasi, is also planned, along with prasad distribution during the main days of the festival.
“We want people to come to Park Street specifically to see the grand evening aarti from Chaturthi to Dashami just as people visit the Varanasi ghats to see the Ganga aarti. Families from neighbouring districts can come here, enjoy the cultural programmes, have prasad and watch the aarti. We want this puja to be a spectacle while following traditional norms,” Mishra said.The organisers are considering starting the cultural programmes on Mahalaya, although the formal puja rituals will begin from Chaturthi. Pandal construction has already started and the Sanatani Sangha is scheduled to conduct a bhoomi pujan next week. Mishra said that unlike the more commonly used khuti puja, the organisers would follow the bhoomi pujan ritual as part of their stated Sanatani traditions.
An artisan prepares the idol of Goddess Durga ahead of the Durga Puja festival at Kumartuli, in Kolkata on Sunday
The committee is also reaching out to prominent citizens, businessmen, academics and retired professionals from the locality to serve as patrons. Mishra said the organisers wanted the puja to remain free of political pressure and not inconvenience residents or other visitors.“We have no objection to anyone celebrating their festival. Christmas should be celebrated beautifully. Park Street has its own charm during Christmas. We want everyone to follow their traditions, while ensuring that our Bengali and Sanatani culture is also represented,” he said.Allen Park’s association with public celebrations stretches back to the Park Street Carnival, which began at the venue in 2007. The carnival was later taken over by the Bengal government after 2011 and rechristened the Christmas Festival, becoming a major part of Kolkata’s year-end celebrations.The new Durga Puja is therefore also set to add a new chapter to a venue better known for Christmas lights, carols and year-end festivities. Police have already flagged the first puja at Allen Park as a major crowd-management challenge, with the venue expected to become a new attraction during the festive season.Kolkata Traffic Police is planning restrictions on Camac Street during the cultural programmes. The stretch between Park Street and Middleton Street is likely to be closed to vehicular traffic, while Park Street itself will remain open. Traffic officials are also considering diversions through Little Russell Street, Russell Street and Ho Chi Minh Sarani, with Middleton Row likely to be converted into a two-way street during the closures.The police expect large crowds at the venue, particularly because the celebrations are planned to include major cultural programmes. Allen Park has already emerged on Lalbazar’s list of new crowd-pullers that will require special traffic and pedestrian-management arrangements during Durga Puja.
