Fat and rotund, the pandal of Sector 50 draws its inspiration from one of the most important aspects of Durga puja celebrations: The dhak or the traditional drums. "Durga puja is not complete without the sounds of dhak and so we dedicate this puja to the dhakis (players)," says Niladri Sarkar, head of publicity in Saptarshi Sangh Trust, the organiser behind this puja.
Of course, this year's puja, being held at E 5 Ground, behind Community Centre, celebrates its 12th anniversary and the organises are pulling all stops to make it a grand affair. Besides the puja, there are also cultural programmes, competitions for the neighbourhood kids, special programmes for the women of the area, food stalls and exhibitions displaying traditional wear and crafts. In fact, singers like Dipan Mitra and Sairaj have been flown in from Kolkata and a renowned singer has been flown in from Bangladesh to render Rabindra Sangeet.
With a budget of Rs 45 lakh (funds come in from individual donors and in form of sponsorships from companies like LG), preparations and planning happened from July onwards. With a likely footfall of 15,000 per day security and emergency services are all in place. Fire-truck are on standby; there is an ambulance provided by Neo hospital, just a stone's throw away from the pandal; and CCTVs and 20 private security guards are keeping a close eye on the crowd.
Tomorrow (Oct. 8) Minister of State for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Mahesh Sharma will come in as a chief guest.
With all the biggies throwing in their weight, this Puja indeed has a lot to drum about.
