The rain could not have come at a worse time for Kumartuli artisans.
With two days to Chaturthi, by when most pujas across the city would be inaugurated, the overnight rain damaged rows of idols awaiting delivery.
The ferocity of the rain meant water seeping in from the tarpaulin-covered shades in a steady drizzle around the break of dawn, when most of the artisans and labourers were asleep.
Some of the artisans contacted organisers and requested an extra day for repairs before the idols could be handed over, something that many said had “never happened in many years”.
“Anek gulo maatir singhasan goley gyacchey (Several thrones made of clay have melted away). At least eight idols are damaged,” said idol-maker Kashinath Pal. “I had to engage labourers to drain water out of my studio using buckets,” he said.
At least eight studios adjoining his were also hit.
The city’s largest idol hub, Kumartuli, with around 400 artisans working on Durga idols across 140 studios, is marked by lanes and by-lanes, most of which were spared of inundation this time.
But the water overhead was difficult to keep away because the rain was so heavy.
Most artisans in Kumartuli receive orders in numbers beyond the holding capacity of their studios. To make space for more idols, they encroach on a part of the lane or by-lane ahead of the festive season. The finished idols are kept here. The cover on top of this encroached area is not secure enough to last the kind of rain the city got between Monday night and Tuesday morning.
With demand for space on the rise and the studios crammed for space, many artisans had got together to hire a godown in Gossaipara in Sovabazar, close to Kumartuli, to store finished idols.
“Rows of idols in this godown were damaged by water flowing in from the street,” said China Pal, one of the few women idol-makers in Kumartuli.