Two centuries on, puja at Jalpaiguri’s Niyogi Bari still follows rituals like ‘Shotruboli’ and ‘Durga Doi’

Started in Patgram, a village in Bikrampur (now in Bangladesh), the Durga Puja of the Niyogi family has weathered many storms of history — Partition, famine, the Emergency, demonetisation and even the COVID-19 pandemic. Through upheavals that reshaped Bengal, and the world, the rituals have remained unchanged. Held at Jalpaiguri’s Kamarpara now, the 218-year-old celebration may have lost the grandeur of the past, but adherence to traditions remains intact.

The Niyogis were once zamindars of Patgram, where the worship of Durga was first initiated in 1808. Over time, family branches shifted — some to Bhowanipore in Kolkata in 1912, where the Puja moved after Partition. Finally, in 1967, the Puja found its new home in Jalpaiguri.

The idol of the goddess is painted in the shade of atashi phool — a pale, delicate hue of yellow, the family’s member Semanti Niyogi tells My Kolkata. Unlike conventional idols, Saraswati and Ganesh sit on Durga’s right and to her left Lakshmi and Kartik. The Nabapatrika or kola bou is placed next to Kartik.

While the idol was constructed at home earlier, now it is brought from an idolmaker’s workshop. The booking of the idol, or bayna, is done on Rath Yatra, keeping intact the timeline passed down generations.

“Unlike most Pujas that begin on Sasthi, ours starts on Pratipada — the day after Mahalaya — with the ceremonial establishment of the Mangal Ghat,” says Semanti. “From that day, the Chandi Path continues for 10 days. On Panchami, we perform Manasa Puja in the mandap, and on Shasthi, the idol finally arrives.”

Over the years, some practices have adapted with the times. Animal sacrifices were once held on Saptami, Ashtami, and Navami, but those have been replaced with symbolic offerings of pumpkins.

A unique sacrifice called the ‘Shatruboli’ is held on Navami. “An effigy of a demon is constructed on the stem of an arum with rice paste. It is smeared with lime on one cheek and soot on the other, and is symbolically sacrificed. The parts are then flung outside the premises of our household by a male member of the family. It’s meant to destroy negative forces,” Semanti explains.

The women of the household shoulder much of the responsibility of the Puja preparations, from arranging floral garlands to adorning the goddess with gold ornaments or preparing prasad.

Food is central to the celebrations. Because shalgram shilas are worshipped in the family, no anna bhog is offered to the deity. Instead, sweets are offered on Ashtami as mishtanna bhog. Naru, payesh, luchi, murki, batasha, nokuldana are among the regular offerings.

A unique feature is the preparation of Durga Doi, a special curd-based ghol made only on Navami and Dashami. “This has been part of our Puja for as long as anyone can remember,” Semanti smiles. Although cooked food is not offered to the goddess, uncooked rice, shapla and kochur shaak is offered to Maa Durga on Bijoya Dashami as a parting prasad.

In the past, the idol was immersed in water after placing it between two boats. However, after the reduction in water levels of river Karala in Jalpaiguri, that practice has been abolished. However, following the immersion, members of the family gather at the Durga mandap for Prastar Bandhan Puja. Typical Bijoya sweets — mihidana, nimki, naru, tokti (coconut sondesh) — are offered as prasad.

The family also takes pride in another enduring tradition: their Puja magazine. Back in Patgram, two handwritten journals — Kheyali and Oloto Palto — were once published, with contributions even from luminaries like Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Today, the magazine survives under the title Jyoti, with the younger generation now considering a digital edition to keep pace with changing times.

“Durga Puja for us is not just about rituals,” Semanti reflects. “It’s about holding on to who we are, as a family and a celebration of togetherness”. Two centuries may have passed, but in Jalpaiguri’s Kamarpara, the Niyogi Bari Puja still stands as a bridge between the past and the present.