2023 Puja Pandals in Kolkata: Melding the divine and the contemporary
Inscribed on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, Durga Puja in Kolkata is a marvellous meld of the divine and the contemporary, bringing together traditional craftspeople, designers, artists and organisers, who artfully engage with events around us that are of immediate concern, wrapped around a reimagining of the deity. Here are a few pandals that struck us for their immediacy and scale
An inventive reimagining of the deity Durga on the dome of a puja pandal draws crowds in Kolkata.
A circular form and a carefully built-up colour palette make this Durga shimmer at a puja pandal in Kolkata.
A Durga puja pandal T Kashi Bose lane in Kolkata displays a theme of female trafficking and violence on girl children.
A Durga idol inspired—and styled—by folklores of south India at a puja pandal.
A Durga Puja pandal depicts disasters in nature and hills caused by human intervention at 33 Pally, Kolkata.
People install artwork on the theme of menstrual hygiene at a pandal in Kolkata.
A pandal with a theme based on our digital life and its consequences at Beleghata Sandhani in Kolkata
Kolkata’s colonial architecture takes a delicate hue in artist Sushanta Pal’s hands at Tala Prottoy Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata.
Earthy fibres, coconut husks and cow dung frame the Durga deity at the puja pandal in 66 Pally Club, Kolkata.
Ayodhya Ram temple-themed puja pandal at Santosh Mitra Square, Kolkata.
Devotees gaze at a pandal with a Disneyland in Paris theme.
A large-scale installation dwarfs the Durga idol at the pandal at Rajdanga Naba Uday Sangha Club, Kolkata, India.