What: Seagram’s Imperial Blue Packaged Drinking Water presents The Telegraph Puja Premier League 2023 powered by Indian Institute of Hotel Management
Where: Hatibagan Sarbojanin
Ishaa Saha was felicitated by the club’s secretary Saswata Basu
Theme: Hatibagan Sarbojanin is celebrating its 89th year of Durgotsav. This year, it pays homage to the universal power of maternal love with the theme ‘doshor’. The theme symbolises an intricate relationship that unknowingly weaves its complex pattern into the fabric of humanity. It illustrates how everything and everyone in the world can be connected as a doshor. The pandal’s framework is built with a combination of bamboo, iron rods, iron sheets, canvas, parachute material and jute, each serving as a doshor to the other. Artist Tapas Dutta began constructing the pandal with a team of artisans in the beginning of September and completed the work in one-and-a-half months. “It’s a traditional murti (idol). All the materials used in the pandal are recyclable,” said Dutta. The Maa Durga idol stood tall at an impressive height of 45 feet.
Organiser speak: “The theme of our pandal is ‘doshor’, which means companion. Who is a doshor? We are doshor to ourselves. But who is the real doshor, the real companion? The real companionship is between a mother and her child. This relationship is like the thread of a river — a thread that’s timeless and infinite,” said the secretary of Hatibagan Sarbojanin, Saswata Basu.
(l-r) The Karnasubarner Guptodhon actress said that the atmosphere at Hatibagan Sarbojonin made her feel at home, Hatibagan Sarbojonin paid homage to the eternal and ubiquitous bond of maternal love with a theme symbolised by a giant umbilical cord at the entrance to its pandal
“As you can see, our pandal has a symbolic umbilical cord or a thread that is going into both our old and new buildings. It indicates transformation, where ordinary things become extraordinary, like turning a makeshift shelter into a comfortable home or finding light in the darkness. Tradition merges with modernity, and one becomes the doshor of the other. Like the buses, the autos, and the trams — they become the doshor of the streets. Earth becomes the doshor of water, water of boats, the world of the moon, and the moon of starlight. Everyone is the doshor of someone,” he added.
Rooting for the club is: Ishaa Saha, who was elegantly turned out in a pink silk sari paired with minimal jewellery. Carrying a soft, vintage look, she wore subtle rose-coloured makeup, which added to her graceful appearance. “I have been attending Durga Puja programmes for The Telegraph Puja Premier League every year. To be honest, I now feel like a senior member of the PPL. I have been coming here for almost four or five years now. My association with t2 is also for the same period. For me, during Durga Puja, saris are a must,” said the beautiful actress.
Ishaa interacted with young girls of the para and was happy to click selfies with them
Expressing her joy at being at the Hatibagan Sarbojonin pandal, Ishaa said, “As I am a north Calcutta girl, I am very happy to be supporting a Puja in this part of the city. Ever since I reached here, I began to feel that I have arrived at my own locality, where I grew up. The old houses and the friendliness and simplicity of the people are all so familiar to me. I love the para vibe, the pandal and feel as though I belong here,” an emotional Isha commented at the end of the show.
Activities: The evening kicked off with a young girl reciting poetry, which was followed by a performance of Rabindrasangeet by a group of women from the neighbourhood. The event wrapped up with an engaging session featuring Ishaa. During the session, the Puja committee members participated in a discussion which centred around the behaviour of men, both within and outside the house.
Shaina Ahmed
(t2 intern)
Pictures: B Halder