Stories
Kolkata Poster Sparks Debate Over Dussehra And Durga Puja Blend
- •A Hindi-language poster for a Salt Lake Durga Puja event featuring Ramayana imagery and Ravan Dahan sparked controversy on X.
- •Social media users questioned the absence of Goddess Durga and the use of Hindi in a Bengali-majority state.
- •Organised by Salt Lake Sanskritik Sansad, the event blended North Indian Dussehra traditions with Bengal's Durga Puja.
- •The controversy highlights cultural tensions regarding language, identity, and the mixing of distinct regional festival rituals.
Key Questions Answered
The controversy arose because a Hindi-language poster advertising a grand Durga Puja event in Salt Lake featured promotional imagery for the movie Ramayana and announced a Ravan Dahan ceremony without mentioning or showing Maa Durga's idol, reigniting debates on language, identity, and festival blending in Bengal.
The event is organized by the Salt Lake Sanskritik Sansad, which has traditionally hosted Dussehra programs in the township and is organizing its first-ever Durga Puja this year.
In North India, Dussehra centers on burning towering effigies of Ravana to symbolize the destruction of ego and evil. Conversely, Bengal's Dashami focuses on reunion and farewell through traditions like sindoor khela, sandesh, and the visarjan where the deity is immersed in water.
