he went to Daksha’s house, lifted Uma’s body on his shoulders and began dancing in a frenzied manner. With the supreme power dancing like this, the world was on the verge of destruction. At this point, Narayana played the role of the saviour, using his chakra to cut Uma’s body into several pieces. These pieces began falling off from Shiva’s shoulder onto different parts of the world. Shiva was finally pacified when the last piece fell off. Narayana then revived Uma to a new life. Now extremely sorry for his misdeeds, Daksha prayed for mercy and was forgiven. The places where the pieces of Uma’s body fell came to be known as shakti piths – shakti meaning ‘power’ and pith meaning ‘location’. Kalighat in Kolkata and Kamakshya near Guwahati are among these shakti piths.

Ever since peace was restored, Uma, accompanied by her four children – Ganesh, Kartick, Saraswati and Laxmi – and two sakhis – Jaya and Bijaya – comes to visit her parent’s home each year during the season of Sharat or autumn when Durga Puja is celebrated.

But whereas, the earliest autumnal celebrations of the goddess Durga took place in the homes of noblemen, zamindars, and wealthy merchants, the festivities soon moved to the sarbajanin realm. ‘Sarbajanin’ literally means ‘involving all’ and refers to community pujas. The first sarbajanin puja took place at Guptipara. Today, most neighbourhoods across the city have their own sarbajanin puja.

Such pujas are organised by a local committee representing the people of a neighbourhood. Funds or chandaa are mostly collected by going door-to-door, though some committees organise concerts and lotteries to raise money. After the expenses for pandal construction, idol, ceremonies and other sundries have been met, the amount remaining is usually donated to a charitable organisation.

The funding model, however, has been changing over the last few years. Durga puja being the melting pot of numerous people from all cross sections, has been attracting corporate sponsors for some time now. In 2008, this trend has taken an expected turn. One puja in South Kolkata is going the pure event management way: a Mumbai-based company is funding the puja after purchasing the necessary rights from the puja committee, and will have the whole revenue pie that the event generates from sponsorships and otherwise.

The city wears a festive look as elaborate pandals come up and Kolkatans don brand new clothes for the festive season. A pandal is typically a temporary structure of bamboo and cloth which houses the goddess Durga during the puja days. The increasing commercialisation of Durga puja has ensured that many organising committees go out of their way to build a pandal that will be an attention-grabber. Thus, themes of history and current affairs abound.

Within the pandals, Durga and her companions stand on a platform awaiting worship and admiration from visitors. From the sixth to the ninth days of the puja, devotees gather to offer pushpanjali or flower worship in the mornings. Dhakis, traditional ritual drummers, provide the rhythm and perform while the puja ceremony is in progress.

On the tenth day, Dashami, Durga returns to her husband Shiva in the Himalayas. On this day, she is symbolically immersed in the river – a ritual called Bisorjon or Bhaashan. Durga puja also involves the victory of Ma Durga over the demon Mahishasura, of good over evil. And after the immersion of the goddess, it is time for families to get together and celebrate Bijoya Dashami – Bijoy meaning ‘victory’.