Come Puja and it’s time to clean and deck up the house to usher in the festival. Include some on-trend decor items from crochets and block prints to handpainted artworks, indoor plants, clayware and terracotta items from various homegrown brands on your Puja shopping list this year. After all, your home deserves some gifts of love, too!
Here are My Kolkata’s picks…
Block Prints from The Charkha
The Charkha is an initiative by the Transcendent Knowledge Society spearheaded by Amrita Datta Roy Chowdhury. Started in April 2021, the brand offers decor items and linens for the bedroom, living room, kitchen and dining area. Their block-printed fabric curtains and bed covers are among their best-selling products. They also customise some of their products on request.
“The products are 100 per cent cotton, hand block printed and stitched with love and care,” says Roy Chowdhury. “The Charkha is a safe, inclusive, co-working space for home decor and accessories. Through our work we look after the rehabilitation of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, trans people, marginalised women and sexual abuse survivors,” she adds.
Style Tip by Amrita: Colour coordinate your kitchen and dining room decor. Not only is it a great aesthetic, food is something which binds a family together with love and happiness.
Starting price: Rs 150
‘Bangaliana’ goodies from aLOMmerch
Want to include some Bangaliana in your home decor? aLOMmerch by Debika Banerji might have what you’re looking for. Started in 2019, the brand offers hand-designed cushion covers, coasters, framed artworks, fridge magnets and coffee mugs. “Our products are handcrafted based on our travel experiences. They capture the cultural essence of a place through our sketches. The pieces are affordable and ideal for gifting,” says Banerji. Currently, they have a wide range of products featuring Kolkata, capturing its daily nuances such as adda, rickshaws, trams, gramophone, hathpakha (hand fan) or cha.
Those already hunting for the perfect calendars, wait for their 2023 edition, which is based on their travels through various Indian cities. They also customise or adapt designs on request.
Style Tip by Debika: Our framed artwork can light up any blank wall, especially the Kolkata themed icons that can be clubbed together as a vibrant wall face. We even sell our original sketches and paintings which would make any dull corner of the house interesting.
Starting Price: Rs 100
Handpainted accent pieces from Meraki of Ankita
Ankita Banerjee, a full-time artist, started her brand, Meraki of Ankita, in 2021. Her range of exclusive handpainted coasters, kettles, calendars, bookmarks, magnets and newly introduced wall hangings will light up your home.
She has also launched a Puja-themed range “It’s a new range of wall hangings, especially for the festive season, and they will give you the perfect festive vibe with the quintessentially Puja elements like dhunuchi naach, an artisan working on the idols, and of course, the dhaak!” says the artist.
Style Tip by Ankita: Almost all my products are for home decor that can be styled whichever way you want. But I would say my hand painted coasters, which are of pure wood, are the most versatile. It can be used as a coaster as well as a wall hanging. They are pretty, bright and colourful.
Starting price: Rs 250
Colourful crochet pieces from Threads of Crochet
Crochet has remained a trending aesthetic for a few years now, so why limit experimenting with crochet on for your apparels? Zhuzh up your sofas and tables with these handspun crochet table runners, mats, cushion covers, curtain bands and more from Threads of Crochet. Tasneem Ayub Johar, who started the brand in 2021, says that the USP of her brand is that not many people know how to incorporate crochet into their aesthetic. “This is an artform not many people practice anymore, so often people don’t realise how it can be incorporated into so many items. Crochet is not just restricted to clothing or bags; sky's the limit. It adds a unique touch to any product and even your home,” she adds. You can also get products customised according to choice of colour and size.
Style Tip by Tasneem: For any festive season, you can use the table mats and decorate your dinner table.
Starting price: Rs 300
Clay cuts from BakeClay
Clay is not only elegant and timeless but also utilitarian, making it a favourite for the ages. Accent your home with tableware and decor pieces from Srijoni Roy’s BakeClay. Roy began her venture in 2021 and her products range from dinnerware like mugs, plates and crockery to bookends and vases.
“My products offer a blend of art and utility. Diyas, bud vases, leaf-shaped plates, nut bowls and cocktail plates will be added to the inventory soon. I do get a lot of orders for custom made products as well,” said Roy. A ceramic designer, the entrepreneur put her artistic sense into her work translating into elegant, classy alternatives to glass, plastics and steel.
Style Tip by Srijoni: If you want to style up the racks in your rooms, place bud vases on them. It breaks the monotony, and can brighten up a book rack, kitchen rack, bathroom rack and even shoe rack. You can also keep them in a corner of the rack in a cluster.
Starting price: Rs 250
Green therapy with Mughal Road
Manmeet Kaur came up with the idea of ‘green therapy’ with her brand Mughal Road in 2021. From cute miniature characters you can place in your indoor flower pots or racks, painted stones and jute mats to ceramic pots and planters, and plants, you will find all you need to create a green corner in your home. Kaur also has some Puja specials.
“This Durga Puja, we have lucky bamboo in water as well as soil, that can be given as plant gifts. Apart from that, we have tray arrangements with pots and plants of your choice decorated with miniatures and stones. You can also add jars of cookies and chocolates,” she said.
Mughal road offers premium quality environmentally friendly products, at affordable rates and they also customise hampers according to budgets and requirements.
Style Tip by Manmeet: Keep a few snake plants in your home. Having plants in your vicinity is a proven way to beat stress and my favourite indoor plant, the Snake Plant, is not only an excellent air purifier but according to Vaastu it is also a source of positive energy also. They come in various sizes and are low maintenance so you can choose what suits you best and use it to accent any room.
Starting price: Rs 10
Terracotta treasures from Petrikor
Sinta Sengupta, Nilanjana Mitra, and Paulami Das founded Petrikor - Essence of Earth in 2021 to provide eco-friendly and sustainable terracotta alternatives to decorate your house. Their product inventory includes a variety of homeware, wellness items, serve wear and more.
“We present the age-old terracotta with a magic of modernism so that our products can match up with urban spaces. We have an exclusive range of handpainted kulhads and coffee mugs, which can be washed and used. Our huge range of earthenware not only heals the environment, but will also help you to lead a healthier life,” said Nilanjana.
For Puja, they have an exclusive new selection of signature lamps and earthen lamps. “Don’t forget to check our Mushroom lamps, Saanjhbaati, Lotus and Conch diyas,” she added. Petrikor also customises as per your requirement, if possible.
Style Tip by Nilanjana: Create a wellbeing corner with our Buddha aroma diffuser and also don’t forget to place our cute elephant or peacock-shaped small earthen lamp named Saanjhbaati beside it.
Starting Price Range: Rs 150
A curated collection from Puja edit pop-ups
For all those who are shopping for your home and other Durga Puja goodies, here are a range of pop-ups coming up in the city:
- Utsav Hall Exhibition, September 24-26
- MOB events present Agomoni Edit at Four Coins Café, September 24-25
- Thakurbarir Anandamela on September 25
- Safaraa at Kanoria Hall , Southern Avenue, on September 25
- Kalakaar Project presents The Puja Haat at Academy of Fine Arts Ground, September 27-30
