West Bengal is an Indian state in the eastern part of the country, and the only one in India with an incumbent woman Chief Minister — Mamata Banerjee.
The region, which was the political heart of the Bengal Presidency during British Rule, was divided into East and West Bengal in 1947. Bengal was a hotbed of the Indian Independence movement and has remained one of the country’s great artistic and intellectual centres, being home to Nobel laureates Rabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa, Amartya Sen and Abhijit Banerjee as well as freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose and Oscar winner Satyajit Ray.
Geographically, the state is happily situated with the Himalayas in the north and the Sundarbans in the south. It shares a roughly 2,200-sqkm border with Bangladesh (East Bengal at the time of Partition).
For the first 30 years, the Congress ruled Bengal, but made way for Left domination for the next 34 years. In 2011, Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress — a breakaway from the Congress — came to power.
hinduism needs rescuing, in bengal and all over
Why cant we worship ” LIVE DURGA ” in our community /society?? ” BEING DuRGA” in the need of the hour .Imbibing values of ” GODDESSES DURGA” will lead to development of Human Race.
@Saumadeep. I was told by my friends from Nagpur that Muslims hate Hindus. Thanks to you, now I know that even Hindus hate fellow Hindus.
A lady can have the qulaties of maa durga and she may possess all those qualities like love sacrifice , power n agrression against all wrong doings but maa Durga is supreme power she should not be potrait in any single image as she is above all these things . Goddess of the universe nd mother of all :*
Nowadaus the Bengalis of Kolkata even don’t know regarding the Bengali culture and value system , they are just like zombies ….very bad and disgraceful. They are propagating their stupidity under the cover of Religion….
So now Bengalis have to learn the nuances of Bengali culture fron the rif rafs from the cowbelt. Truly bad times for Bengalis.
Ma’am, is your point that Durga belongs to Bengalis alone? Can followers of Sanatan Dharm of other states and countries not express their opinion? Or is it that giving opinions on all matters is the perrogative of only luddite liberals and selective secularists?
In fact Durga Puja is purely a Bengali ritual. Durga Puja first appeared in the version of Ramayan penned by Krittibas in Bengali, it has no mention in Valmiki Ramayan. Off course people other than Bengali Hindus can offer their respect to Maa Durga in which ever way they deem fit and proper. But they will be at a stretch to appreciate the nuances of the average Bengali Hindus’ connect with Maa Durga. Firstly Maa Durga is seen as a family member in the form of a mother and/or a daughter, not as some distant deity from the heavens. She is intrinsically connected with the trials and tribulations, sorrows and joys, pains and pleasures of average Bengalis’ daily life. There is a whole repertoire of Agamani (welcoming) and Vijaya (Immersion) songs in Bengali literature that’s a testimony of this connection. Moreover for most Bengali Hindus Durga Puja is as much religious as it is a socio-cultural festival. It has got its imprint on Pujo special dress, food, music and art. It will be a stretch for the less evolved to appreciate such nuances wearing a puritanical lenses.
Dear Miss Dey, the matter has already been settled.
On social media the artist is congratulated for showing Hindu women fleeing from Noahkhali massacre of Hindus by Muslims.
So everyone chill!
North Indians should know that Durga Puja is traditionally a Bengali festival and since the past 500 years when Goddess Durga became a community festival in Bengali, she has become a part of the Bengali culture and psyche.
Bengalis don’t see her just as a goddess but as a daughter who comes to her parents’ house with her children each year during the holidays.
North Indians should stick to their Bhavanis and Jai mata di and let Bengalis celebrate their Durga Puja the way they have been celebrating since the past 500 years.
Succinct and incisive. Two thumbs up, Sir.
Is the point of the article that people are not supposed to express their opinions if it disagrees with a certain point of view? Yeah you may have an opinion so please speak it. Why brand folks that disagree with your world view as Hindutva vaadi in a derogatory sense….. Come on now,. It jus shows you as intolerant and in poor light.
Totally trash. Only a pervert can demean and defang the religious sanctity of Durga Puja .
Only a pervert will think that Maa Durga is not within everyone.
India sure is becoming a Hindu Pakistan. Being a Bengali, born and brought up in Calcutta, I am used to the idea of Durga as a ‘Ma’ rather than a ‘Devi’. Most Bengali Hindus share the same view. Hinduism not a monolithic religion, and female goddesses like Kali, Saraswati, Durga, Santoshi Maa, Laxmi and many others have been always more popipop here in Bengal. And most often than not, they are worshipped either as ‘Maa’ or ‘Meye’ (daughter). These Hindutva radicals should stop feeling victimised by how we worship our idols. More than that, they should focus on the treatment of women and women empowerment in States like UP, Haryana, Bihar, MP etc where Hindutva is more prevalent. Otherwise, they can always go to Pakistan.
@Shovan Dutta Couldn’t say it any better. Bravo.
A school TEACHER was beheaded in FRANCE.
DIDI herself quotes from religious text of a community who votes for her lock stock and barrel.
So there is only one religion to abuse to prove you are SECULAR ie Hinduism .
And if you criticise proselytizers you might just end up ….
Migrant Durga idol is just fine. It is so innovative, and conveys the contemporary realities prevailing in our country. Kudos to the concept conceiver and its executor. The critics of it should be thankful that those at the helm of affairs have not been depicted as “Mahishasuras”.
Brilliant. The ‘Mahishasuras’ analogy is so perfect that even Bhakts, who are intellectually handicapped will instantly identify the object.
Murtada, How about migrating Ayesha or Hagar’s Picture? Bhaumk would hide in Bhumi[ land] if that timid Bengali dare to do it. he knows he can get away with insulting Hindu. Bhumik, that timid chicken, knows what happened to that teacher in France.
The statue is more a comment on Bengali culture, if such a thing exists. A culture that exults in following failed foreign ideologies like Marxism, Communism etc. A culture that had failed to provide a decent livelihood to millions of it’s denizens whose only hope lies in escaping the hell that is West Bengal.
As of today roughly 50% of Calcutta residents are non Bengali, that includes a sizable population from relatively prosperous states like Gujarat, Punjab, Tamilnadu etc. Pray, tell me why they are living in the state you call a hell?
She is a migrant because successive state governments of West Bengal have failed to provide employment to it’s natives.
If the writer of this article is honest to her core values let her seek the same for other peaceful religion and see what happens. Here Hindus are generally docile and dont respond assertively. That emboldens people like the author of this article to go on lecturing Hindus on Hinduism. No one needs these lectures and rank bad hypocricy. For too long the Hindus who were dormant have woken up. Better late than never. They will reply in the language which pseudos like you understand. Dont fan religious and bigoted fires under the garb of liberal journalism. This is third grade, tasteless.
We do not care what some bihari or upwala thinks about our religion. Jay Maa Durgaa!
Saha a scheduled caste is lecturing about pujas … what a joke😂😂
Neither you have an understanding of Bengali culture nor can you come out of countless perversions which are so deeply entrenched into your value system. Don’t market them with a religious packaging.