HYDERABAD: It’s that time of the year when Bengalis across the twin cities meet up to renew acquaintances, bond with one another and rejoice together in the auspicious presence of the Divine Mother much like native Hyderabadis. Announcements for programs and funny story-telling competition compete for attention alongside mantras being recited to propitiate Goddess Durga.The get-togethers called the Sarvajanin Durgotsob are, as the name suggests, open to all.Bengalis of Hyderabad usher in the festivities dressed in colorful attire and trademark cotton sarees in all colours of the rainbow. “It is a home away from home,” sums up Amitava Chakravorty, who relocated to Hyderabad 11 years ago. “The puja celebrations in Kolkata are commercialized and it is difficult to feel part of it. The celebrations in Hyderabad provide an opportunity for families to bond and to meet up friends,” he says.Of the 4 lakh-odd Bengalis in Hyderabad, close to 20,000 visit the major puja celebrations at Lower Tank Bund and Secunderabad everyday from Saptami till Vijayadashami.The Bengali cuisine and various cultural programs draw large crowds in the evenings. The mornings are dedicated to the worship of the Goddess after which devotees make a beeline for the khichudi bhog prasad which is characteristic of all pujas.“We never cook during puja,” explains Leena Chakraborty, who is a part of the resident Bengali community for the past 20 years. She and her friends Ratna Bannerjee and Shikha Mitra make sure they enjoy the celebrations to the maximum. "The atmosphere here is congenial to bonding with friends and acquaintances. We miss that in Kolkata. Hyderabad is home and we enjoy every cultural event on offer,” chips in Ratna Bannerjee.For the young Bengalis, tradition goes hand in hand with fun, which provides the perfect excuse to dress up and try out mouthwatering street-food.“Hyderabad has always been home and this is the only way to celebrate puja I have known,” says Alokparna Sengupta who works in Delhi and is home to celebrate with her family.Seconding her was, Debpurna Das, a student of engineering, who looks forward to new clothes and her quota of ‘pocket-money’.
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