Durga Puja celebrations in Canada
Bengali diaspora, both from India and Bangladesh, has certain things in common: Durga Puja, love for Bangla language and Rabindrasangeet. The Bengali community in Windsor celebrates almost every festival of Hindustani tradition, though their dates will generally never coincide with those real festival dates in India. It is a general practice here in North America to celebrate every festival on Saturday when families of all and sundry can devote one full day to the festivities. Sunday is spared to relax and recuperate from the hangover of festival celebrations.
Durga Puja celebrations in Canada vary in scale and duration depending upon the financial strength of a community and other factors. Toronto has more than one cultural group of Bengalis (both of Indian and Bangladesh origin) and organizes Durga Puja and almost all Indian cultural events. Other metropolitan cities in Canada also have their own Bengali cultural groupings. Some of them are: Indian Bengali Association in Montreal, Amra Sabai of Calgary, Bengali Association of Calgary (Hindu Bengalis from East and West Bengal) and Deshantri of Ottawa. All these groups celebrate Durga Puja in their own way.
However, the Bengali community in Windsor is miniscule in comparison to larger cities of Canada; still they congregate each year to celebrate Durga Puja without fail. The membership of SPONDON, as the congregation prefers to be known, is loosely comprised of Hindu Bengalis from India and Bangladesh. Interestingly, the Durga idol was brought some ten years back and is used every year by SPONDON. Dr Subir Bandopadhyay, a professor of Computer Science in the University here, acts as a priest regularly for this puja as far as my memory goes. Windsor population of Bengali people is ever-changing and currently it comprises 50-60 families, including many students and immigrants whose numbers fluctuates each year. "Many families have moved out to Alberta or elsewhere in search of greener pastures," says Bhola Nath Roy, a veteran of almost 30 years in Windsor. When asked why Durga Puja in Windsor when Detroit city is just a stone's throw away and where it is a big celebration, Pulak Saha, a native of Bangla Desh and a devout volunteer, quips: "Windsor Puja is small but very homely for every one of us. Detroit puja is big but feeling of home is missing among large and strange crowd."
Windsor Bengali community provides complete lunch and dinner to each attendee of puja. Volunteers cook vegetarian Bengali fare for the occasion with sweets and chutney. "Cooking is divided amongst us where individual dishes are cooked by volunteers at home and brought to the pandal," informs Nupur Pathak.
"It is the greatness of culture which binds us together with an affinity to the common language," observes Arun Ghosh, a retired senior industrial executive. Bengali community here relives the dreams of the Bengal greats like Tagore and Vidyasagar each year through these celebrations. Durga puja symbolically keeps them united with their motherland. The present lots of volunteers are first generation migrants and they show a high level of enthusiasm in organizing cultural festivals whether it is Diwali or Durga puja. They make every effort to imbibe Bengali values of music, dance, and literature to young ones. It is visible in the cultural show during puja. We are yet to see if second generation Bengalis will remain active enough or this cultural homily will disappear forever in the cacophony of the Wild West.
Durga Puja celebrations in Canada vary in scale and duration depending upon the financial strength of a community and other factors. Toronto has more than one cultural group of Bengalis (both of Indian and Bangladesh origin) and organizes Durga Puja and almost all Indian cultural events. Other metropolitan cities in Canada also have their own Bengali cultural groupings. Some of them are: Indian Bengali Association in Montreal, Amra Sabai of Calgary, Bengali Association of Calgary (Hindu Bengalis from East and West Bengal) and Deshantri of Ottawa. All these groups celebrate Durga Puja in their own way.
However, the Bengali community in Windsor is miniscule in comparison to larger cities of Canada; still they congregate each year to celebrate Durga Puja without fail. The membership of SPONDON, as the congregation prefers to be known, is loosely comprised of Hindu Bengalis from India and Bangladesh. Interestingly, the Durga idol was brought some ten years back and is used every year by SPONDON. Dr Subir Bandopadhyay, a professor of Computer Science in the University here, acts as a priest regularly for this puja as far as my memory goes. Windsor population of Bengali people is ever-changing and currently it comprises 50-60 families, including many students and immigrants whose numbers fluctuates each year. "Many families have moved out to Alberta or elsewhere in search of greener pastures," says Bhola Nath Roy, a veteran of almost 30 years in Windsor. When asked why Durga Puja in Windsor when Detroit city is just a stone's throw away and where it is a big celebration, Pulak Saha, a native of Bangla Desh and a devout volunteer, quips: "Windsor Puja is small but very homely for every one of us. Detroit puja is big but feeling of home is missing among large and strange crowd."
Bengali ladies join puja by volunteering to cook food for community lunch and dinner and to organize cultural show. "Kids are taught Bengali language, music, and history from the childhood so that cultural continuum remains intact" reveal cultural programme volunteers Bharati Bandopadhyay and Aradhana Mukhopadhyay. Volunteers sing Rabindrasangeet and children perform skits, dance drama, and even poetry recitations during the cultural show. Puja begins in the morning and symbolic "visarjan" takes place in the evening. "It is made to be symbolic because same idols will have to be stored for the next year's puja," clarifies Dr Narayan Kar, a volunteer and native of Bangladesh.
Windsor Bengali community provides complete lunch and dinner to each attendee of puja. Volunteers cook vegetarian Bengali fare for the occasion with sweets and chutney. "Cooking is divided amongst us where individual dishes are cooked by volunteers at home and brought to the pandal," informs Nupur Pathak.
"It is the greatness of culture which binds us together with an affinity to the common language," observes Arun Ghosh, a retired senior industrial executive. Bengali community here relives the dreams of the Bengal greats like Tagore and Vidyasagar each year through these celebrations. Durga puja symbolically keeps them united with their motherland. The present lots of volunteers are first generation migrants and they show a high level of enthusiasm in organizing cultural festivals whether it is Diwali or Durga puja. They make every effort to imbibe Bengali values of music, dance, and literature to young ones. It is visible in the cultural show during puja. We are yet to see if second generation Bengalis will remain active enough or this cultural homily will disappear forever in the cacophony of the Wild West.