Brother-sister bond, check. Gifts, check. Sumptuous food, check.
A bunch of street children celebrated bhai phonta in style at a south Calcutta café on Friday evening.
The children live under the Park Street flyover. A stretch opposite the Metro Rail headquarters, lined with tarpaulin sheets, is what they call home. Most of their parents have had their already-minuscule income robbed by the pandemic.
On Friday, they spent close to two hours at the café in Baghajatin. A mini-van picked them up from Park Street and took them to the eatery. The sisters gave phonta to the brothers — many not related by blood but bound by love. Gifts were exchanged. A round of quick bites was followed by a dinner of biryani.
“Fourteen children were brought from Park Street, along with their family members. There were 11 girls and three boys. To match up the bhai count, sons of our volunteers and well-wishers also took part in the celebrations,” said Subhadeep Adhikari of We — Together We Can Foundation, the organisers of the programme.
The festival transcended religious lines.
The children exchange gifts at the Baghajatin cafe
Mary Clifpon, 14, is the eldest of three sisters. “I heard of bhai phonta from my friends but this is the first time that I am taking part in it,” said Mary, who studies in Class VIII at Loreto Convent Entally.
Mary’s mother, Manju, had accompanied her to the café. She used to wash dishes at a makeshift food stall on the pavement along JL Nehru Road before the pandemic. She lost her income last year. Her husband sells balloons in Park Street during festivals.
His income has also taken a sharp hit during the pandemic.
Fatima Khatoon, 11, gave phonta to Suvam Dasgupta, also 11, the son of one of the members of the foundation. She got a new kurti from him.
The foundation came in contact with these underprivileged families during the pandemic last year.
“For more than a year now, we have been providing dry ration to around 30 families in the Park Street-Park Circus area. Many of them are still without income.
We are trying to arrange for jobs for at least one member of a family. Talks are on with a security agency for jobs at apartment buildings,” said Adhikari.
The foundation has also provided tabs to the children of these families for attending online classes.
On Friday, the bhai phonta was followed by a hearty meal of sandwiches, French fries and mocktails. A packet of chicken biryani was provided to each participant before the mini-van dropped them back home, to the stretch under the flyover.