Puja organisers Swapan Rooj, Balbir Singh and Saiyad Abusalam Kadri are called “The Three Musketeers” for scripting a trailblazer 28 years ago.

The friends have been organising a puja in Andal’s Ukhra’s, near Durgapur, that is billed as the first such community event of the coal-belt pocket.

Now in their mid-fifties, Swapan, Balbir and Abusalam — called “The Three Musketeers” after the Alexandre Dumas novel — recall the 1990 day when they had the brainwave.

“The three of us were chatting at a tea stall one evening about a month ahead of puja 28 years ago. I suggested whether we could organise a community puja so that the people could enjoy the festival together,” said Abusalam, an Eastern Coalfields miner.

Swapan, a medicine shop owner, and Balbir, a trader, readily agreed. “We approached the villagers for subscription and they happily contributed. We organised the puja in a simple manner as it was the first time. None of us had any experience then,” said Balbir.

At the time, only two other pujas — organised at the homes of two families — were held in Bibibandh, their village in Ukhra. Even today, the trio’s puja is not a high-budget affair, nor can it compete with the bigger events. But it has gradually become popular. The reason is the organisers’ different faiths.

Bibibandh is home to around 50 families, including 10 Muslims and eight Sikhs. “We don’t cook at home during puja and eat the bhog (the offering) at the pandal,” said Swapan.

“Through this puja, in which (organisers from) three religions are involved, we hope to send the message of communal harmony,” said Jasmindar Kaur, another of the organisers.