Sreebhumi
Sreebhumi’s pandal this year will be modelled on the BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham temple in New Jersey.
The crowd-pulling puja, patronised by Sreebhumi Sporting Club president Sujit Bose, held its khuti puja on Sunday morning when the fire and emergency services minister made the announcement about the year’s theme.
The temple was eight years in the making and was inaugurated in October 2023. It is among the largest Hindu temples in the world.
The man in charge of the pandal has not seen the original temple but has sourced photographs. “Officials from the community, who are associated with the Swaminarayan temple in Joka, have met me and provided some video footage as well,” said Romio Hazra, who has been in charge of the Sreebhumi pandal for nine years now.
Romio estimates the structure to rise about 100ft high. “I had been to their temple at Gandhinagar and also worked at the Delhi temple. Though it is milk white, he is considering the use of some warm lights. “Last year, too, it was a white edifice that was modelled on the Balaji temple in Tirupati. A bit of colour will make it different,” Hazra reasoned.
“Crows were a menace and damaged our work on thermocol. So, we shifted to sponge. Sponge has a grainy effect, which suits the tone of old structures,” said Hazra.
Illumination will play a major role at the pandal. “All temples of Bengal will be displayed in lighting, from Kalighat to the new Jagannath temple in Digha, crafted by illumination artistes of Chandernagore,” said Bose, who also urged the jewellery sponsors of the puja to use diamonds for the Devi’s décor this year, in place of gold.
AK Block
In Ritwik Ghatak’s birth centenary year, artiste Biswanath De has hit upon the theme of Jukti ar Torko, in a nod to the maverick filmmaker’s 1974 film Jukti Takko ar Goppo.
“In most of Ghatak’s film, there is a central woman character who shoulders the yoke. I am seeing these strong, fighting women as Durga,” said De, who is working in Salt Lake for the first time. Research is under way on him and his work to prepare material for the pandal. “He had done only six films and there are some more where he had acted but which he did not direct. Some of his work, like the documentary on Ramkinkar Baij, are lost. But I do not want the pandal to become a documentation-only exhibit. I want the essence of Ghatak to come through as well. Hence the name, which stands for both the straight line of logic and the contrary stance of debate.”
There will be several busts in clay of Ghatak in many moods. Lighting will play an important part as he wants a vintage look.
The deity will be traditional — the sort that could be seen worshipped in the pandals in Ghatak’s time, in the ‘60s and ‘70s.
IB Block
A visit to IB Park this year will be a quick city tour of Dubai.
The theme this time is “Dubai Durge Durga” and is the brainchild of Reyaz Ahmed, the artiste behind some of the most memorable puja pandals in recent years, such as the Las Vegas Sphere and Ram Mandir at Santosh Mitra Square, and the Burj Khalifa at Sreebhumi Sporting Club. With him will be Biltu (Pradipta) Paul, who has worked with Reyaz on some pujas before.
A teaser video of the pandal was unveiled at their khuti puja on Sunday by minister and MLA Sujit Bose. It showed iconic sights of the Middle Eastern city, such as Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper, the Dubai Frame, a colossal picture frame structure with panoramic views through it, the Palm Jumeirah, an artificial palm-shaped archipelago of luxury homes, resorts, and attractions. There is also Burj Al Arab, the sail-shaped luxury hotel, and Museum of the Future, that resembles a sleek, giant elliptical ring with Arabic calligraphy.
The artistes shared no details, but Reyaz said the Burj Khalifa in the park would be 140ft tall. The one at Sreebhumi in 2001 was 145ft. “My specialty is lights, and I promise pandal hoppers a spectacular laser and fireworks show at IB Block this year,” smiled Reyaz, who is heading to China to source materials for the project. “But the tower won’t be all,” added Biltu. “We have the space here to play it up, so we will be creating replicas of many attractions in the city. It will be a city tour of Dubai.”
This will be the block’s 39th year of the puja, but it is since last year that they scaled up and jumped into the big league. In 2024 they had presented a vision of Calcutta in 2050 and, as per Bidhannagar police, IB Block was the fifth highest crowd-pulling puja across Salt Lake and New Town (reported in The Telegraph Salt Lake on October 18, 2024).
Puja committee chairman Ranjan Podder would not divulge the budget but said it was more than last year’s. In 2024, their budget was Rs 2.5 crore. “We made a mark last year and also debuted at the Red Road immersion parade,” said Podder, who is also the local councillor. “Months before Durga puja, pandal-hoppers start asking one another which puja Reyaz is working on this time, so we’re proud to announce his association with IB Block in 2025.”
Newtown Sarbojanin
In its fourth year, Newtown Sarbojanin will welcome people in a shower of flowers. Visitors will walk in through a gigantic flower lying on the ground. “Imagine a flower on a bed of grass. The entry will be through its funnel shape.
The edge of the topmost petal will rise to a height of 45ft,” said Rintu Das, the artist in charge of the theme.
Grass is being woven in the City Square ground for the second chamber where pairs of feet will dot the green carpet, like flowers sprinkled at the base of a tree. “About 500 feet wearing anklets will be created in fibre.
The background music will be the tinkling of anklets, as if the Mother Goddess has arrived on earth,” he said. The third and innermost chamber will be air-conditioned and will be surrounded by mirrors, informed puja secretary Samaresh Das.
Here Durga will stand at the centre. “The experience will be as if there is a shower of sheuli flowers over the goddess. And you will see the Mother on all sides wherever you stand,” said Rintu, promising an immersive pandal.