As Rath Yatra approaches, the stalls outside south Kolkata’s Lake Market, usually lined with colourful wooden chariots, are a little too quiet this year.
Two days ahead of the festival, shopkeepers complain that the traditional toy raths, once a cherished part of childhood for many, are no longer flying off the shelves.
“The sales last year weren’t great, and this year it is even worse. There was a time when I would have to restock every two days. Now, people stop, look, take photos and videos. But very few actually buy,” said a shopkeeper, who has been selling raths outside Lake Market for over two decades.
The stalls are stacked with raths of all sizes — from simple ones to the ones that are decked with stickers of cartoon characters like Chhota Bheem and Doraemon in a bid to appeal to the younger crowd. “We are trying to keep up. But maybe kids today don’t find it exciting,” he shrugged.
There are six to seven stalls that sell chariots in the Lake Market area every year. From the Puri Rath to Mahabharata chariot — the market has a varied collection but few buyers.
According to many shopkeepers, the customers who buy the chariots take them home and place the gods in them to carry out puja rituals. There are barely any buyers taking them home for the kids. “We have a collection of raths ranging from Rs 250 to 5,000. But the prices are negotiable,” said Bishu Mondal, a shop-owner at Lake Market.
Rath markets can be found in all major parts of the city. From south Kolkata’s Gariahat and Behala to the north’s Dompara, Hatibagan and Keshtopur — the stalls come up around Rath Yatra, selling chariots and statues of Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra, garlands and other decor items.
Rath Yatra, which celebrates Lord Jagannath’s annual journey in a chariot with siblings Balaram and Subhadra, used to be a community affair in Kolkata’s para culture. Children would pull their own toy raths around their neighbourhoods, often joined by friends and elders. The decoration of these raths would begin a day or two ahead.
“My son barely knows what a rath is. We used to pull the rath around the colony in Ballygunge with ten other kids. These days, my son wants to play video games or scroll through YouTube,” said Kabita Mondal from Behala.
Writer Aryani Banerjee, who grew up in the Mudiali area, shared vivid memories of Rath Yatra from her childhood days. “During the early 90s, we south Kolkata kids would go to the local market at Rashbehari Avenue and Lake Market. All the family members would come together to decorate the rath. It was a ritual. Because my mother worked in the media and spent long hours at work, my grandfather took me out in the neighbourhood to pull rath. Children hardly pull their colourful little chariots in the neighbourhoods nowadays. Sad to see small children hooked to screens all the time.”
