Paoli makes a point at Mudiali Club

Five judges went around the city on Ashtami to identify the pujas that have upheld the True Spirit ideals the best. Team Metro tracked Sanjay Wadvani, the British deputy high commissioner of eastern India, veteran actor Barun Chanda, actress Paoli Dam, fashion designer Agnimitra Paul and Dilip Samajpati of CESC, all the way:

Olabibitola Sarbojanin Durgotsav Committee

The Howrah puja was the first stop on the judgement day of CESC The Telegraph True Spirit Puja.

A crowd of organisers and residents had gathered by the time the judges reached the pandal. But before the organisers could be quizzed it was time for the Ashtami anjali.

Paoli Dam and Agnimitra Paul offered anjali and were joined by special guests Maya Banerjee and Keya Banerjee, wife and daughter of actor Victor Banerjee.

The 62-year-old puja showcased patachitra and its uses over the years. The pata artists were present in the mud huts built to give the area the feel of a village.

Spread out on Olabibitola Maidan, the puja engendered community feeling. “What is important is that there is a lot of local pride and even though it’s not a very wealthy neighbourhood. I liked how open the puja was to everyone,” said Sanjay Wadvani.

“Considering it’s a small-budget puja, I thought it was quite good. Though the entry and exit points should have been further apart. I love the way it is decorated,” said Paoli.

The muddy mess caused by the rain went against the puja. “Maybe they should have done something about the wet ground,” said Agnimitra, who approved of the spacious pandal.

Yuvak Goshti

The judges were welcomed with a shower of petals to this quaint pandal near Kadamtala bus stop, decorated with dolls and figurines from Joynagar known as ahladi putul.

The 34-year-old puja won points for being eco-friendly and listing the emergency numbers. “I like the fact that the area is lined with trees,” said Paoli.

Wheelchairs for the physically challenged and a separate entrance for the old and infirm also got the organisers points.

The club, which had won Four Star status in 2007 too, donates about 10 per cent of its Puja budget to charity. The organisers also contributed to Aila relief.

Dilip Samajpati, the senior manager (customer relations) of CESC, wanted to know why the emergency gate was not properly marked.

Chanda checked out the medical enclosure by getting his blood pressure measured.

The blaring loudspeaker upset Wadvani on the way out.

41 Pally Club

The third stop was 41 Pally Club on MG Road in Haridevpur. The Five Star puja had taken every care to ensure that they impressed the judges and pandal-hoppers this year too.

From a medical facility to a separate entrance for the elderly, proper emergency exits and a packed social activity calendar, including medical and blood donation camps and support to an orphanage, the puja scored on many counts.

Chanda asked for a demonstration on the use of the fire-extinguishers and was satisfied with the organisers’ preparedness. But he pointed at jute ropes hanging at the entrance. “Why do you have ropes hanging here? This could be a fire hazard,” he warned.

With the dhakis beating up a storm, Agnimitra and Paoli couldn’t help but join in with an impromptu dance, much to the delight of the visitors.

Sanjay was impressed with the pandal fashioned as a beehive and built with discarded lids of paint tins and cables. “There was great detailing and a lot of creativity. They used things that don’t come to any other use,” he smiled.

The theme for the puja was unity, depicted through the co-ordination of insects like ants and bees as they work together. At the centre of the pandal, which took over four months to complete, stood a pyramid of human figures made of tin. Each level was painted in one of the seven primary colours, culminating in white at the top. The message: if one works in harmony with others, one can touch the sky.

“We wanted to represent unity. If we work together, anything is possible,” said one of the organisers.

True to the spirit of the event, the organisers have planned to upgrade their social work projects and arrange for scholarships for needy and meritorious students.

Mudiali Club

Next, the judges trooped into one of the oldest and most popular pujas, Mudiali Club, near Rabindra Sarovar Metro station in south Calcutta.

The 75-year-old puja had three entrances — one 14ft wide and the others about 7ft wide. The spacious pandal interior was a relief from the sweltering heat outside.

The judges liked the plaster of Paris structure but not the marble floor. The stunning idol of the goddess decked in daaker saj impressed special guest Maya Banerjee and she said: “It’s very beautiful.”

The judges were impressed with the pandal’s fire-fighting preparedness. Apart from extinguishers and sand buckets, there were smoke detectors on the premises.

The stained glass and white mirror décor inside the pandal scored low with Sanjay Wadvani. It had “too much bling”, he said. It didn’t sit right in the time of recession, added Chanda.

“It is politically incorrect to be so ostentatious and spend so much on celebrations in these times. The money used on the marble floor could have been put to better use, perhaps to help the needy. Rs 20 lakh is a massive budget,” Chanda said.

Paoli, though impressed with the concept, had other complaints: “The work, the stained glass paintings, the marble flooring and the idol are all very nice. But it’s very contemporary. I prefer traditional pandals. Besides it’s too gaudy,” she said.

The idol decoration and interiors scored zero on aesthetics for Agnimitra too. “It was like any other para puja, it didn’t have any aesthetics,” said the designer.

The puja scored in terms of its community feeling and its spirit of inclusion. A community meal is organised on Ashtami, where around 4,500 people, including residents, visitors and the underprivileged, sit and eat together.

Tridhara Sammilani

Last year’s Model Puja Tridhara Sammilani, near Deshapriya Park, impressed this time as well and even improved in a few areas.

Modelled on Yaksheswar Mahadev temple in Nepal, the grand pandal houses a three-headed deity wearing a garland of human heads. The replica of a Buddhist temple stands beside the pandal to recreate Nepal’s Durbar Square.

But safety mattered more than aesthetics. Samajpati, in particular, was impressed that the entrances and exits were better than last year’s.

“The organisers get points for erecting four gates so that more people can leave quickly in an emergency. Though it is commendable for them to build a ramp for the physically challenged, they should not have made the exit ramp so steep,” he said.

The theme moved Paoli the most. “They have captured the Nepali ambience fantastically. Plus, there’s a Buddhist mandap side by side. I liked the idol too. It’s a very interesting concept and very different too. A lot of research has gone into creating the mandap.”

Agnimitra echoed her. “I felt I am in Nepal. The golden structure beside the main mandap, where two Nepali priests were worshipping weapons as symbols of Shakti, was fascinating. They were chanting Nepali slokas and tied red and zari threads on our wrists. That was innovative and interesting. The only complaint is that the paintings inside the main mandap weren’t really good. The finishing touch was missing.”

Chanda enjoyed watching Gorkha dance. “Someone even mistook me for a Nepali,” he laughed.

Agnimitra Paul at Model Puja Mitali, in Kankurgachhi

Mitali

The small puja at Ghoshbagan in Kankurgachhi was a favourite with the judges from the word go. The openness of the pandal, the simplicity of the materials used and the civic concern that the organisers showed went down well with all the judges.

“This the best puja we’ve seen so far. The decorations are clear and very intricate. The ambience is good. The pandal is also very well-lit,” said Paoli.

Dokra art of Chhattisgarh is the theme of the puja. The pandal as well as the idol is made in the dokra style, using clothes, coir and paint. A container of water at the centre of the mandap catches the reflection of the idol.

“It’s a marriage of aesthetics and tradition. They have balanced both ably. I love their concept,” said Agnimitra.

“Though made of simple things, the look of the pandal is very rich. And I love the fact that it is not cramped,” said Chanda.

The vibes the puja exuded pleased Wadvani. He lauded the organisers for paying attention to safety, space and security. “After all the bling, it was good to get back to the religious base,” said Wadvani.

The puja, which has never made it to the top six, has not ignored social responsibilities either. The organisers have held medical and blood donation camps and distributed clothes to the needy.

“We are supporting the education of a boy from the Sunderbans, who has lost everything in Aila. He is studying botany honours in Vidyasagar College,” said one of the organisers.

Inputs from Chandreyee Chatterjee and Malini Banerjee