On Navami morning, BK Block organised an adda, bringing eminent personalities amid residents but rain played spoilsport midway through.

Journalist-turned-film director Ritabrata Bhattacharya got the conversation flowing by pointing out how Durga Puja has changed over the years. “Earlier there were a limited number of pujas which were held mostly in parks but now there are so many pujas taking place on streets which are blocking the roads for pandal construction.”

Actor Pradip Mukherjee shared a childhood memory. “When we were young our life was simple. We didn't have too many clothes. If we got one new dress for Puja, that was enough for us. We were more excited to eat bonde on Dashami. Somewhere down the line we have lost the simplicity.”

Soon with the advent of writer Abul Basar, the chat took a turn towards music and literature. "Earlier the music companies used to release Puja albums. Now we only have copies of original voices. We have also restricted ourselves as listeners to one genre — Rabindrasangeet. But we should also be open to listening to say, Kabir Suman. We had Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen and Ritwik Ghatak making films, each with a style different from the other. Still we appreciated them equally.”

Mukherjee recalled: “When I acted in a Ray film (Jana Aranya), I didn’t even think about getting paid. The joy of working with him seemed enough. At the end, when I received money, it felt like a bonus.”

Then came the rain, causing many in the audience to run helter skelter inside the pandal.

“Nowadays we hardly have time to meet people, so such addas are almost forgotten, but here we had a wonderful time. The best part was the way the discussion drifted from puja to music and literature just like it happens when we sit with our friends,” said Shyamal Bagchi, a block resident.

Shatadipa Bhattacharya