The Kumartuli photo walk has turned into an annual ritual among many. Such has been its popularity over the past years that the Kumartuli Artisans’ Association has started charging a fee of Rs 300 from shutterbugs in exchange for a pass.
Social media platforms are full of jaw-dropping shots from Kumartuli at this time of the year. My Kolkata made a visit to the potters’ den and met a few visitors. The conversation turned out to be a mix of nostalgia and festive fervour.
Subhanil Roy Chowdhury aims his camera at Durgas in the making at Kumartuli. Ritagnik Bhattacharya/My Kolkata
Subhanil Roy Chowdhury, Behala
Subhanil Roy Chowdhury is a BA LLB student and a photographer by profession. We spotted him near artist China Pal’s studio, clicking an old man putting the finishing touches to the face of a Durga idol. When approached and asked what brings him to Kumartuli, he said, “There is a nostalgia involved that gives you the old pujo vibes.”
An idol clicked by Subhanil on his Canon 750D. Subhanil Roy Chowdhury
“This place has an emotion. Here, you can watch the goddess coming to form step by step. The entire art of making the idol that will be grandly worshipped in a few days is fascinating. There is immense scope for photographers like us who narrate through our frames. I think that’s why it is important for us to come here,” said Subhanil, who has been visiting Kumartuli for the past two to three years.
Check out more pics by Subhanil here.
Sabyasachi Basu at Kumartuli. Jaismita Alexander
Sabyasachi Basu, Birati
An engineer with Amazon, Sabyasachi Basu said he has made several visits to Kumartuli this year. Photography is a passion for Basu and he does a photo walk at Kumartuli every year at various times.
“Durga Puja is a grand affair in Kolkata and whenever we think of it, the first thing that comes to our mind is Kumartuli. Here, the idol that is worshipped with great pomp takes shape slowly,” said Sabyasachi, who first visited Kumartuli in 2018.
People keep going back to Kumartuli drawn by nostalgia, Sabyasachi said. “This place will tell you stories of different people. The young students, lovers, photographers and so many other people visit here for a click. It is like feeling the Pujo vibes even before Puja is here,” said Sabyasachi, who uses a Sony Alpha 6000.
Sabyasachi Basu’s photographs from the photo walk. Sabyasachi Basu
A passionate photographer, Sabyasachi was expecting some clicks of painted Durga idols. “Today, I have got some really nice photographs but it is still a little early so the eyes (chokkhu daan porbo) are not yet painted,” he said, showing us a few shots. Although Basu looks for aesthetic frames, he is against causing chaos or disrupting the work of the artists. Expressing concern over the increasing crowd, he said, “We all try not to disturb anyone at the studios and workshops when we click photographs. The artists should work at their pace. Also, I know many people wish to take that one photograph for their profile picture across social media, but we should try to respect the sanctity of the place.”
About Chokkhu daan porbo
There is a special ritual associated with the painting of the eyes of the goddess. On Mahalaya, artisans carry out their final touch of drawing the eyes of Durga. Usually, a senior member from the artisan community is allowed to draw and paint the eyes.
Check out more pictures by Sabyasachi here.
Jhulan Saha poses in front of a colourfully painted door in Kumartuli. Ritagnik Bhattacharya/My Kolkata
Jhulan Saha, Ganguly Bagan
We spotted a lady in a pink kurti capturing frames around Kumartuli on her phone camera. During a short conversation, Jhulan Saha introduced herself as a homemaker. After a tiring morning of running errands, Jhulan had ventured out to shoot videos for her recently launched YouTube channel, where she uploads vlogs daily. “I have come here today to take my viewers around Kumartuli. I am focusing more on the aspect of how the business has been affected after Covid. I have spoken to a few artists too,” she said.
Saha also feels a walk through Kumartuli makes for interesting content as people are in a festive mood already. “Durga Puja is the epicentre of all things now. You can see pandals coming up, puja-related advertisements, shopping malls and markets are decked up for the purpose and shoppers are making a beeline. Viewers love to watch such videos. It builds up the excitement. Also, the hard work put in to make these massive idols is just incredible.”
(L-R) Sanchari Ganguly, Debolina Das, Soujanya Mukherjee, Madhurima Basak and Aparahna Sen. Ritagnik Bhattacharya/My Kolkata
Madhurima Basak and her friends
A group of friends chatting in one of the lanes of Kumartuli caught our attention. We asked if they were on a college assignment. They said they had accompanied their friend Madhurima Basak, who is from Malda but has been in Kolkata for some months now.
Madhurima had never visited Kumartuli and her friends Sanchari Ganguly, Debolina Das, Soujanya Mukherjee and Aparahna Sen decided to bring her.
“I am from Malda, but I am now staying in Kolkata for my graduation. They (friends) keep telling me that Kumartuli is a very aesthetic place. And being a Media Science student, I was extremely interested to explore the place. It has definitely met my expectations,” Madhurima said.
Soujanya from St. Paul’s Cathedral Mission College, is a frequent visitor. He said, “I am still searching for something unique and something exciting to click. Everything seems to be the same as last year.”
Pictures taken by Madhurima on her first visit to Kumartuli.
Debolina’s excitement made her eyes gleam. She said, “We got very good photographs today. We have also clicked pictures of ourselves for social media. It was a fun day.”
Madhurima, Debolina and Sanchari are third year students pursuing graduation in Media Science from The Heritage Academy. Aparahna is a 2nd year student pursuing graduation in Mass Communication from Netaji Satabarshiki Mahavidyalaya and Soujanya Mukherjee, also in second year, is a student of St Paul’s Cathedral Mission College.