Kali Puja in Kolkata: 9 Things Every Bengali Will Relate To !
The rest of the country is in the throes of frantic last-minute shopping before Diwali but in some places around the country, the pace is slow. In Kolkata, for example, the people are quietly sipping their chai and waiting for Kali Puja. Diwali is for the rest of the country, but Bengalis, they keep calm and wait for Kali Puja – the end of the festivities of autumn, the herald of winter, and the night that goes out with a bang – literally. If you are Bengali, you will probably relate to all the following – and if you are not, it’s time you learned how Kali Puja in Kolkata is celebrated.
1. Drying Firecrackers in the Sun
The days before Kali Puja show the same scene across the city – rows of fireworks laid out neatly on the terrace, or balcony, or even the footpath before homes – all in an attempt to dry them of their dampness so they burn brighter – and louder. And it’s not the old firecrackers from last year – the ones bought this year from the makeshift stalls in the neighbourhood or even the massive baajir bajaar (firecrackers market) at the vast Maidan are also dried likewise, because you know, they need to burn better and louder and the sun will dry them enough to do that.
It is never as grand an affair as Durga Puja, but getting the Kali idol is still quite the affair! Little trucks, with the idol stowed away at the back, face covered with a newspaper, and held in place by young boys from the neighbourhood are a common sight. Smaller idols for home are brought by the man of the family on a rickshaw, and mid-size idols get carted from the shop to a glittery pandal waiting somewhere. There are blue idols and black idols – the more common being the blue Raksha Kali idols. In some places, there’s an entire convoy bringing home the idol, complete with her companions – yakshas, and other scary figures.
While the non-Bengali communities of Kolkata celebrate Dhanteras like the rest of the country, Bengalis celebrate Bhoot Chaturdashi instead – on the night before Kali Puja. This is the night when Bengali households light 14 candles around the house in a belief it’ll ward off the evil spirits that descend on earth on the night before the idol is worshipped. Some say that these candles represent the previous 14 generations of the family, all of who visit earth on this night. These days there’s a profusion of dancing fairy lights, but where there is a mother in the house, there’s going to be these 14 candles.
Yeah, you read that right – Bengalis eat their greens at Kali Puja. This is a predominantly fish-eating population that will cringe when you mention leafy veggies any other time of the year, but come Kali Pujo and every family will cook Choddo Shaak – 14 leafy greens sold in a bundle by the neighbourhood sabziwala. There are several legends associated with why Bengalis eat 14 different kinds of leafy vegetables on this day, but let’s just say it’s yet another way of warding off evil.
A sneaky suspicion tells us that Bengalis agree to eat 14 leafy greens only because there is the promise of mutton later. Yeah, on Kali puja, mutton is one of the offerings, and it is cooked without onion or garlic but tastes just as amazing as the regular Bengali kosha mangsho. Known as Prasadi Mangsho, the mutton used to come from the sacrificial goat earlier, but now it’s just store-bought. Whatever the source, few pujas around the country are going to give you succulent mutton cooked in a fiery curry and if you are Bengali, you’d agree that this is one of the best parts of Kali Puja!
What’s Kali Pujo without the crackers? In spite of a ban on bursting crackers that make over 60 decibel noise, Kali Pujo in Kolkata is one night when the air is heavy with the sound and smell of crackers that make window panes shake. Innovatively named as Chocolate bomb, Kali potka and Dodoma, these crackers are what most people look forward to at Kali pujo. Children make do with “tarabati” (phooljhharis) and “electric wire” while the adults nick some for themselves or use incense to light the big-boy crackers. People find newer ways of lighting these crackers every year – apparently, an inverted clay pot over the chocolate bomb gives excellent impact!
Bengalis are a creative lot. You have to be in Kolkata for any festivity to see the way celebrations vary from place to place. No two Durga Pujas are the same, and likewise, no two Kali Pujas are the same. You have Raksha Kali, Shamshan Kali, Chamundi, Nava Kali, and a few other variants of the same form of Shakti. Before or after the crackers come on, it’s about pandal hopping around the city – checking out the girls, the guys, and of course the variant of Ma Kali in the pandals. Some would even brave going to the crematoriums – shamshan Kali is intriguing. As is the Chinese Kalibari where on this night, the offerings made to the idol are Chowmein and Momos. Then there are the temples – the sublime Kalighat, Thanthaniya and Dakshineshwar, to name a few.
Land up at any pandal past the midnight rituals, and be invited for a plate of hot ‘khichuri’, ‘labra’, ‘bhaja’ and chutney. While you’d be lucky to be drawn in for some kosha mangsho, people are usually quite generous with the khichdi bhog, and for all you know, the ‘roshogollas’. So whenever your para pujo or neighbourhood pandal is done with the worship, hop into a vehicle with a few buddies and check out the community pandals past midnight, in time for the bhog. And yeah – no two khichuri bhogs are the same either – and they are all very, very good!
9. The Pujo Itself
Even as the crackers and the food are a huge attraction, there’s something about Kali pujo itself. Preparations begin while you were busy lighting crackers – your mother was probably there with the other aunties from the neighbourhood, cutting up the fruit, getting the hibiscus garlands ready. When it’s time, you sit in the pandal with the rest of your friends from the neighbourhood, and the sounds of the purohit’s chants fill the air – heavy with smoke as it is because elsewhere firecrackers are still going off, and a thousand candles and diyas burn on every balcony and window. Athiest or not, it will give you goosebumps – the mantras, the atmosphere.
Diwali and Kali Pujo are very different, and if you have only ever seen Diwali, you have no idea what you are missing. Kali Pujo is big in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam – so plan your trip to one of the places – try to be in Kolkata if you can – to see the magic of the regional festival that originally began as a worship of Shakti, and became a fun-filled experience that you have to see to believe!
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