Themes for pandals there were many, but when it came to cultural programmes on the Durga puja stage, there was a single stream of thought overshadowing all else this year — the RG Kar incident.
The rape and murder of the lady doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August has had such an impact on the general psyche that even during the Pujas, many blocks chose not to stage cultural programmes. Among those that did, many decided to lodge their protest through one or more programmes.
Most blocks did not restrict the shows to simply that incident, choosing instead to broadbase it to include oppression and empowerment of women. Here are some events that The Telegraph Salt Lake witnessed —AA Block
If Chandramukhi from Devdas were alive today, she would have refused to give the handful of blessed soil needed from a prostitute’s doorstep to sculpt the Durga idol. “We refuse to give soil to make your goddess if you cannot respect the living goddesses among you,” she would have said.
This thought-provoking sentiment was presented on AA Block’s stage on Panchami, during a show that borrowed characters from Bengali literature to comment on the current state of women in Bengal.
Residents perform on the theme of women's empowerment at AA Block. Brinda Sarkar.
The script was written and directed by Urmy Palchauduri, who portrayed both Chandramukhi and Dopdi from Mahasweta Devi’s Draupadi, a character who urges women to rise, even in the face of death.
Saswati Nundy played Bimala from Tagore’s Ghare Baire, Kamal from Shesh Proshno, and Satyabati from Ashapurna Devi’s Prothom Protisruti. “Women of earlier generations tolerated much, but ekhon ar lokkhi meye hoye thaka jabe na (we can no longer remain obedient, good girls). All my characters speak of taking agency,” said Nundy, a Bengali teacher well-versed in all the texts featured in the piece.
She also felt women needed to do more than just perform on stage; they must challenge societal norms that discriminate against them. “Why don’t we have more women priests?” she questioned. “I perform Jagannath puja in my house because no one knows my lord like I do. So why call an outsider to worship him?”
Kajari Chakraborty, who portrayed Mrinal from Streer Patra and Parvati from Devdas, echoed her views. “My Parvati declares that she is done getting insulted by Devdas. She walks into the sunset to find her own path. Women need to move on,” said Chakraborty, who works in the transport department. She also spoke about breaking misogynistic taboos.
“The first time I missed anjali during Puja was in Class VIII when I got my period. I knew it was unfair but didn’t have the voice to challenge those who said I was ‘unclean’. It took me a Master’s degree in physiology to gain the conviction that menstruation is nothing unclean. Now I can’t be shunned to a corner,” she asserted.
The show also featured a male voice – that of Arup Chatterjee, who played Mahim from Sarat Chandra’s Grihadaha and Ratan from Atmaprakash. “My characters say that for a healthy society, women need to be safe and respected. This isn’t just a women’s fight. I know many men who have been deeply affected by the RG Kar incident. I, myself, couldn’t sleep peacefully for nights,” said Chatterjee, a lawyer, actor, and an empanelled elocutionist at Rabindra Sadan.
BH Block residents hold up placards and form a human chain on Mahalaya Sourced by The Telegraph
The monologues were interspersed with songs by Gouri Chatterjee and Swagata Sen, who performed pieces such as Ei akashe amar mukti and Amar haath bandhibi. A child, Ishani Saha, danced as Chitrangada while Palchauduri sang Puja kori morey from Tagore’s eponymous dance drama.
Nundy recited a self-composed poem whose punchline left much food for thought: Bishwojoneen mayer shantir jole, manush aar shudhumatro sukho-shanti chai na, chai bichar (In the peaceful waters of the universal mother, people seek not just peace and happiness, but justice). The performance concluded with Aguner proshmoni, during which the audience joined in by switching on their phone torches and swaying them overhead.
“We didn’t mention any specific incident, but the audience can easily grasp the context of a show like this. One needn’t declare war to take a stand, and we wanted to use literature as it is easily relatable for Bengalis,” said Palchauduri. “I used characters well-known in print and cinema to create mass awareness.”
BL Block
BL Block presented a dance drama called Aar Kobe during the pujas but the performers weren’t seasoned actors. They were aged six to 11.
The show was conceived by Munmun Chakraborty, co-owner of the BL Block-based dance school Nrityanurag. Inspired by the widespread protests that swept across the city, she had decided to use art as a tool for social change.
The show was named after the Arijit Singh song dedicated to the RG Kar incident and depicted the life of the slain lady doctor in a few scenes. She is shown as a child who then strives hard to become a doctor. Then one day while at work, she is shown receiving her mother’s phone call asking if she has eaten, after which she retires to rest.
The screen then goes dark and her scream fills the air. When the lights return, the doctor is no more and her mother, played by Tania Das, comes to grieve.
No male volunteers could be found to play the negative roles and a single boy made a brief appearance to disperse a crowd of protesters in a later scene.
While many of the participants too young to be understand the details, their involvement was significant. “I’ve seen the news and heard stories from my elders and it’s scary to think that I might grow up in a world where I don’t feel safe,” said Driptaa Chakraborty, a fifth-grader who played the doctor in some scenes. “I want to be free to explore, dream, and be myself. Every woman deserves this freedom. Even though I’m young, I know that I can make a difference.”
Susmita Biswas, the mother of sixth grader Swarnasri Biswas, who played a younger version of the doctor, said she had taken steps to educate the girl about the importance of recognising and reporting inappropriate behaviour.
Pinki Sahoo, another parent of a participant, recalled how her daughter had asked her the purpose of dancing to the song Aar kobe. “I explained the importance of using art to raise awareness and demand justice for victims of violence,” said Sahoo, an assistant professor who has been actively involved in protests advocating for women’s safety. Sahoo has to travel to North Bengal every week and shared the security risks that women like her face across the country.
The audience appreciated the children’s effort.”The drama highlighted the struggles of a mother and the shattered dreams of a young girl, serving as a stark reminder of the trauma endured by victims of such incidents. The performance emphasised the importance of respecting women and creating a safer society for all,” said Debargha Sarkar form the audience.
BA Block, New Town
On the evening of October 10, young members of Gutipokar Dol, the drama group of BA Block cultural and social association in New Town, took the stage to present the play, Amader Kotha.
Aged between five and 14, the actors impressed the audience with their character portrayals in a play that was a pastiche of five situations, each highlighting the pervasive nature of corruption and societal injustices.
The first act portrayed a mother’s struggle as she faced the burden of financial constraints and corrupt practices that hindered her child’s admission to an English medium school. The narrative shed light on the systemic barriers many families face. The second act delved into the harsh reality of female infanticide. A young bride, burdened by the expectation of dowry, found herself cast out by her in-laws for giving birth to a girl child. This served as a reminder of the societal norms that still devalue women, challenging the audience to confront these deep-rooted prejudices. In light of the recent NEET examination scam, next under focus was corruption in competitive examinations, where money muscle often overshadows merit. The plight of a desperate parent whose daughter had gone missing, compounded by police inaction, was the theme of the next act. Land-related corruption was highlighted in the final segment of the play, illustrating how greed and maleficence undermine the basic rights of individuals.
Directed and written by Biswajit Chowdhury, “golpo-dadu” to the cast, each segment was carefully crafted to include a call to action among the viewers. “The idea for Amader Kotha,” Chowdhury said, “came from what we see around us every day”. “We all read the news and hear stories of families struggling, children facing injustices, and women being marginalised. I wanted the children to express these realities through this play. During rehearsals, I encouraged them to connect with the characters personally. This wasn’t just a performance; it was a reflection of society. I often reminded them: ‘You are the voice of your society, and your stories matter.’ It was incredibly moving to witness their dedication and passion. Each rehearsal was a step toward not just performing a play, but drawing attention to important issues that affect us all. I am proud of what we achieved together, and I hope it inspires change,” he added.
Reflecting on her experience of playing a girl who fails the NEET examination, Urmisha Khara, a resident of BA Block and a student of Class VIII at Delhi Public School Newtown, said: “When I first learnt about my role, I felt a mix of excitement and nervousness. During rehearsals, I tried to connect with my character’s feelings of disappointment and frustration, imagining how it would feel to face such a setback. While going on stage, there were butterflies in my stomach, but I reminded myself of the importance of the story we were telling. It wasn’t just about acting; it was about shedding light on an issue that affects so many students. Once I stepped onto the stage, the nervousness transformed into a determination to portray my character’s struggles authentically.”
In between these narratives, young Adhyansh Ghosh, dressed as a baul, performed protest songs like Jodi tor dak shune keu and Karar oi louhokopat, acting as a conduit between scenes.
As the play ended, Srestha Hazra presented a powerful dance rendition of Shiv tandav. In the end, the entire cast of the play bowed before Ma Durga with a plea for justice. The audience broke into rapturous applause, recognising the talent of the young children and the urgency of the themes they presented.
BH Block
In BH Block, teenagers registered their protest without uttering a single word. They presented a ramp walk of sorts, dressed as women in different professions — teacher, chef, corporate officer, lawyer and, of course, doctor.
Boys then appear and torment the women in various ways — they make sexual advances, humiliate and discriminate against them etc. “An actress then appears dressed as Durga, as if implying that the devi within awakens and empowers women to protect themselves,” said Tannistha Mukherjee, who along with Madhurima Banerjee directed the show. The girls then tear up placards showing the words violence, humiliation, abuse, discrimination and oppression.
In the final act, the women walk again but give it back to the tormentors. The last scene has men trying to attack the doctor but all the girls gang up to turn on them, thereby signifying victory over evil.
“Down the ages women have displayed great strength be it at home, society or battlefield but the laywoman may not be aware of her potential. We wanted to show them how strong they can be,” said Mukherjee.
CK-CL Block
Residents of CK-CL Block presented a collage of different items to protest the current situation in a show titled Achena agomoni. Priyanka Sharma Paul recited a self-composed Hindi poem called Nirbhaya ho ya Abhaya, Mousumi Dutta danced to Bhupen Hazarika’s Bistirna dupare, Sonali Das recited Tagore’s Proshno and then a chorus of 14 women sang Aar kobe, the Arijit Singh song that has become an anthem of sorts for the RG Kar protest.
“We named this show Achena agomoni as never before have we welcomed the goddess with such mixed emotions. We are celebrating a festival but are all depressed about the state of women in our society,” said Sonali, who co-ordinated the twin blocks’ cultural programmes. “Most of our shows in our block were on protests and prayers this time.”
CJ Block
The stage next to the CJ Block puja pandal rocked to the chorus of “We want justice” on Ashtami when the FD Block-based group Moromia staged its production Ekti Alik Bhorer Khoje.
It was a stark play that held up a mirror to the current situation — an ambience of threat accentuated by the rant of a tyrant, embodied in the figure of Hirak Raja surrounded by sycophants, in a nod to Satyajit Ray’s allegorical film.
Ekti Alik Bhorer Khoje started with an act of violence against a woman. The play proceeded to show how the physical act of rape gets perpetuated by those in authority (a leering nogor kotal asking intrusive questions at the police station), in her family (the father blaming her for the clothes she wears) and society, both people in her neighbourhood, who come to watch her like an exhibit in a circus, and at large, passing comments on her character for being out late at night.
The play however ends in hope, with the narrator predicting a new dawn when the perpetrators would not be sentenced to institutional punishment but be treated as social outcasts, making them die a slow death.
In the final scene at CJ Block, when women bring their violators to their feet almost in a Durga-defeating-demon tableau, holding up their demands on placards, several members of the audience spontaneously broke into chants for justice.
The members got off the stage, mingling with the crowd, distributing pamphlets with the 10-point demands of the agitating junior doctors. Founder-director Sagnik Chatterjee then addressed the audience. “Our office is in FD Block. Come and arrest us for raising our voice against injustice if you have the guts,” he said, throwing a challenge to the powers-that-be, in the aftermath of some youngsters getting arrested for raising the justice slogan in a few south Calcutta pandals.
The play was the first production of Moromia when it was founded in 2013. Sagnik said he had written the play in the context of successive incidents of violence against women in Kamduni, Katwa, Park Street and Delhi. “We have staged the play in three formats — proscenium theatre, street theatre and intimate theatre, in small room. It is a 90-minute play but we adjust the length according to the context.”
The production has been revived in the context of the RG Kar incident. “We have cancelled all proscenium theatre shows of other plays and are taking this production everywhere. Mancha theke amra pothe nemechhi. In Salt Lake, we have staged this earlier in BD Block, at Karunamoyee in front of the Central Park gate and at the reunion of Bidhannagar Government High School. This is our 14th show in this phase,” said the FD Block director-playwright, who plays the drums live during the performance.
Audience members like Radhika Sarkar and Sibani Chakrabarty came up to meet the cast after the show. “We were spellbound by everyone’s acting. Hats off for your courage,” said Dipa Mitra, a teacher.
They had special words for Hirak Raja. Chinar Park resident Tarit Byabarta. “Women and elderly men react the most and we feel their emotion when they meet us. They seem to find strength when they hear what they want to say articulated by us in another form,” said Tarit, whose role is played on some nights by EE Block resident Swagata Mallik.
Sagnik pointed out that they were staging the play free of cost as their contribution to the RG Kar agitation. “Contact us on our Facebook page and we will reach anywhere in the city at any time. We have put this up even at the break of dawn on Mahalaya at the Jadavpur 8B bus stand. Just give us some space and a receptive audience,” he said.
BF Block
Women aged six to 60 put up a show at BF Block that punched together poetry like Amar Durga and Ami shei meye and songs like Nibhanta ei chullite and Chitkar koro meye.
“Durga has two sides to her — matri and shakti. The time has come now for women to deploy the shakti roop and fight anything that stands in their way,” said Shanoli Majumder, who conceptualised, directed and performed in the act. “It is us, the aware population, that must take charge and not let anyone silence our voice.”
Majumder’s daughter Sanchayita Mondal, flew down from Gurgaon a week before the show to help choreograph and rehearse for the dance.
“We did not mention any incident as we didn’t want to politicise a neighbourhood platform but this theme was the most relevant this year,” said Majumdar, who directs such shows every year on the most topical social issue.
Off-stage protests
Some blocks chose to take a silent stand on the RG Kar issue off-stage.
Right outside the AE (Part 2) pandal was a stall dedicated to the victim of the incident. The kiosk featured posters and two electric lamps that remained lit non-stop from Saptami to Ekadashi.
“We had initially installed a diya, but the wind posed a challenge, and it was also a fire hazard since we wanted it to burn round the clock, even when none of us would be present,” said Tapas Sengupta, secretary of the AE Block Samaj Kalyan Sangha, that organised the puja. So they replaced the diya with an electric mashal (torch), but it wasn’t bright enough, so added another electric diya on the table in the stall.
“Many visitors appreciated the gesture, remarking that this was the only puja where they had seen something like this,” said Sengupta. “Some residents had wanted to drastically scale down the celebrations, but that would have affected labourers, cooks, and artisans who depend on the festival. We have held two protest marches in the block before, and now celebrated puja, without forgetting Tilottoma.”
CG Block had also planned to keep a diya burning throughout the festival. “We even built a stand for it next to the idol, but some residents complained that it would be a mark of ashouch (inauspicious) to do so at a puja, so we had to abandon the idea,” said vice-president of the block and puja Sankar Prosad Deb. The block, however, declined the Rs 85,000 puja grant from the government.
Jal Vayu Vihar was another puja that refused the grant. And on Spatami before cultural programmes, they turned off the lights and observed a moment of silence, with residents switching on their phone torches in solidarity with the movement.
While some blocks used light to make a statement, others used darkness. On Ashtami, CJ Block switched off all decorative lights and paused stage performances for 15 minutes after the sandhya arati. “This decision was taken jointly by the puja and block committees, and residents were informed beforehand. Our lanes weren’t lit with festive lights this year, but the park was illuminated, so we turned off those lights. Since the pandal housed the idols, we kept those lights on,” said an association member requesting anonymity.
BH Block residents not only staged performances on women’s empowerment but also united for a related poster-making session on Mahalaya morning. “In the evening, we formed a human chain in the block, holding up the banners we had created,” said Tannistha Mukherjee, who organised the events.
“We did this because not everyone can attend the performances during the Pujas, but everyone could come out of their homes to join the human chain. Silence is the hardest argument to refute, and we needed no weapons to make our stand.”
