FD Block

Devotion and celebration came together in FD Block on Dol Purnima as the inauguration of a temple dedicated to Lord Jagannath was followed by a colourful Basantotsav that recreated the spirit of Santiniketan’s spring festival.

The second Jagannath temple in the township was inaugurated beside the Administrative Training Institute, diagonally opposite the Kali temple, by Bhabani Prasad Daitapati, the chief priest of the Jagannath temple in Puri. Minister and MLA Sujit Bose was present at the ceremony along with devotees and local residents.

Salt Lake already has another Jagannath temple in CJ Park, which was inaugurated in 2025 on Akshay Tritiya by mayor Krishna Chakraborty.

Soon after the temple opening, the celebrations moved to FD Park, where a grand Basantotsav was organised by former resident Pradeep Sengupta on behalf of the Smriti Sengupta Foundation. The programme, held on March 3, was inaugurated by Bose in the presence of Chakraborty.

Among those felicitated during the event were Bhabani Prasad Daitapati and Brahmachari Mural Bhai, secretary of Adyapith.

The evening began with a speech by Mural Bhai, followed by a musical segment by Swagatalakshmi Dasgupta. Starting with songs celebrating spring, Dasgupta entertained the audience with a rendition of stotras, before concluding with a Jagannath vandana.

After the day’s lunar eclipse ended, Daitapati spoke about the spiritual significance and cultural legacy of Lord Jagannath. Bose highlighted the inclusive spirit of Bengal’s cultural traditions. “The essence of Bengal’s culture lies in moving forward collectively, irrespective of caste and creed,” he said, adding that the state government had taken steps to preserve and develop important places of worship. He referred to the recently inaugurated Jagannath temple in Digha and ongoing development and renovation work at temples such as Kalighat, Dakshineswar and Tarakeswar.

The highlight of the evening was a lively 90-minute cultural programme organised by Bipasha Mitra and her group Khola Hawa, featuring nearly 200 performers. Singers rendered songs from the stage while dancers dressed in bright spring colours performed in the open, creating a visual tableau reminiscent of Basanta Utsav celebrations in Santiniketan.

The performance opened with a Ganesh vandana set to a track from the film Agneepath, followed by the Khola Haoa theme song performed by the entire ensemble. The show concluded with spirited performances to Aaj biraj mein and Rang barse, as dancers and singers from 12 troupes and the neighbourhood joined together, smearing abir in celebration of spring.

“Smriti Sengupta Foundation was formed about 12 years ago in memory of my wife,” said Pradeep Sengupta, who also serves as president of the Bidhannagar Rathyatra Utsav Trust.

Mitra, the driving force behind Khola Hawa, said the group had been organising Santiniketan-style celebrations in Salt Lake since 2012. “We co-ordinated around 200 performers, including singers and dancers from 12 troupes. Final rehearsals were held over three days,” she said.

Sanchari Samaddar of Payel Dance School, who led one of the participating dance groups, said live performances always brought challenges but also provided opportunities for artistic growth. “Continuing such a show for nearly 15 years truly deserves appreciation,” she said.

Though the programme began a little later than scheduled, the colourful performances kept the audience engrossed till around 10.15pm. Prasad from Jagannath dham in Puri and bhog were later distributed among visitors, bringing the evening’s celebrations to a devotional close.

Bhorer Nil Akash

EE Park saw music, dance and colour as members of laughing club Bhorer Nil Akash organised a show for themselves on Dol. Songs like Ore griho basi were sung in chorus by members including Amita Guha, Sutapa Das and Mandira Mukherjee. Group dances were directed by Ranjana Karmakar and performed by college student Bagmita Pradhan and elderly residents like Kalpana Sen Majumdar and Nandinta Basu. Jamuna De recited Tagore while Namita Bose sang solo.

“Our group meets up for yoga, prayers and laughter therapy and did so today too, before the show,” said secretary Ratikanta Dandapath. “Cultural programmes, once in a while, keep us refreshed and give us something to look forward to. They promote bonding and provide a stage to those who like to perform.”

Newtown Sarbojanin

New Town Sarbojanin, which holds the Durga puja at City Square, came forward to fill a void left by Hidco. In place of the Rabindra Tirtha authorities, which used to host the Doljatra programme till 2023, the responsibility was taken up by the residents’ body.

It was a three-and-a-half hour show divided into three segments. In the first, the revellers danced around the waterbody singing Orey grihobasi. After the prabhat pheri, members of guest troupe Gaanghor of Salt Lake put up a show. The third was a free-for-all celebration with dance and play with colours.

“We had kept abir of various shades on the edge of the stage for people to use,” said vice-president Tapas Adhikari.

Aamar Bidhannagar

Not one or two, but 12 dance groups performed in tandem outside BF community hall as part of the spring fest by the social and cultural group Aamar Bidhannagar.

The show was ushered in with a chorus by singers from the host group, led by Saibal Sen and Debajani Sarkar. Along with this music, the dancers entered in procession, following the steps demonstrated by their teachers at the head of the queue.

The format of the event was such that students of each school performed two group songs, while their teachers performed solo, elevating the standard of the show.

The ambience was colourful, cheerful, and the groups complemented one another with their own styles. Each school had its own round table to sit, and as for the audience, even 350 chairs fell short.

Nrityam of DA Block showcased kathak dancers, Ta Thoi of AB Block Odissi and Saltlake Nartyalaya of GC Block Manipuri. Vidyasagar Niketan’s Bharata Nritya, that was perhaps the first dance school to open in the township, had Bharatnatyam dancers. All the songs were Rabindrasangeet, save a classical piece by BD Block’s Calcutta Dance Academy.

The script that wove in the dances was compiled by Urmila Sen and narrated by her and Subhasish Mondal.

“The first and final dance items were by Dancers’ Guild, that practises Manjushree Chaki Sarkar’s Navanritya style in DD Block,” said Saswati Adhikary, who co-ordinated the show with Susmita Nandi Sethia, who teaches the Uday Shankar style of dance at her school Kalapi in AH Block.

Dancers of BD Block’s Malhar Dance Academy looked resplendent in their costumes and EE Block’s Chhandabani drew applause for featuring elderly citizens. “All but one dancer was 50- plus and one was even 70-plus,” said teacher Ranjana Karmakar proudly. “Many were non-dancers but were so excited at being invited to perform at a show like this.

Aamar Bidhannagar was represented by member dancers Shanoli Majumder and Parama Chatterjee.

“Residents of Salt Lake celebrate festivals in their own block, but we wanted to create a platform for people of all blocks to come together, perform and enjoy,” said president Debashis Sen.

Nrityam Odissi Dance Centre

Over 50 dancers of Nrityam Odissi Dance Centre led a probhat pheri in New Town on the morning of Dol. “Our school has branches in New Town BA Block as well as in Gariahat and Kasba, but everyone gathered at New Town bus terminus at 6am for this procession,” said director principal Neeladyuti Chaudhury, who organised the event with her mother, Lipi Chaudhury, the president.

Music played on a speaker and the dancers — aged three up till their 40s — sang along, danced, and walked across Utsa complex and behind Central Mall, before returning to the starting point, while parents walked alongside, sprinkling abir and petals. “We teach Odissi but wanted children to know about the beautiful Dol celebration in Santiniketan too,” said Neeladyuti.

Rail Vihar

Rail Vihar Phase III B celebrated a day-long Basanta Utsav in the Santiniketan mould this year.

Men and women dressed in flaming hues of red, yellow and orange set out for prabhat pheri, and their songs such as Ore grihobasi, Ektuku chhoya laage, Neel digonte, and Ore bhai phagun legechhe bone bone set the mood for the day.

The prabhat pheri was followed by the main event, titled Range Anurage, conceptualised, scripted and directed by Santanu Basu. The musical was a melange of recitation, song and dance, bringing out the divine and eternal love between Radha and Krishna that has defined Holi celebrations for centuries. Little girls and boys dressed as gopis and Kanhas danced to film songs featuring the divine lovers such as Radha kaise na jwale, Hey Krishna and Woh Kisna hain, while the graceful moves of young girls to Gahana kusuma kunja impressed everyone.

The chorus songs (Lagilo dol, Rodono bhora e basanta, Aaji dakhino duwar khola), and recitation held everyone in rapt attention. Noteworthy was the solo rendition of Suno suno saware ki and O palanhare by Devanshi Basu that transported the audience to a world of love, longing and spirituality.

The act by Sanghamitra Roy (Braja gopi khele holi) and Sohini Dutta (Daekho daekho Kanhaiyen) brought out the diverse moods of joy and yearning for Krishna too. The colourful and vibrant stage accentuated the script and mood.

“The flawless presentation you see is the result of hectic rehearsals. Even in an exam season, the enthusiasm of the children was encouraging,” said Jayita Lahiri, one of the dance mentors. The show was executed under the guidance of Santanu Basu, the secretary and convenor of the cultural association.

The celebrations ended with the playing of Holi and rain dance, perhaps the most exciting part of the day. The food, too, was mouth-watering with residents thoroughly enjoying their Radha Ballavi-Alur Dum for breakfast and Pulao-Chicken Kasha for lunch.

AE (Part 2)

Residents of AE Block headed to the parking lot outside their market — not once but — twice on the eve of Dol. In the evening, they burnt the pyre symbolising burir ghor porano. “We also burnt potatoes as that has become a tradition of sorts. Twenty-one kilos were roasted in the pyre this year and served to all gathered, along with cucumbers and tomatoes,” said Tapas Sengupta, secretary of AEBlock Samaj Kalyan Sangha, the residents association of AE (Part 2).

That wasn’t all. Residents returnedto the space after midnight for Holikadahan, that follows the almanac for thespecified time. “A priest came and performed puja. The most auspicious timefor this was after 3.45am and about 300people came over, despite the unearthly hour,” he said.

Little Einsteins

The pre-school and day care centre in CF Block, Little Einsteins, celebrated Holi too. “Every year, we do so in different ways. Last year we used flowers, while this time we used only water. Kids brought water pistols, pichkaris, and had a great time in our backyard,” said Nidhi Kayal, who runs the institute. “Towards the end, however, the older kids wanted to use gulal, so we let them.

About 35 children had come for the party that also included music and food. Many former students had come over, too. “Kids would be celebrating at home with relatives, but playing with friends is a treasured experience and we wanted them to enjoy together.”

GC Block

GC Park welcomed spring withTagore, Nazrul as well as folk musicand dance.

The evening was organised by awomen’s group of the block Urja, inassociation with GC Block WelfareAssociation, and began with a sectionbased on the Santiniketan style of Dolcelebrations. Atrita Mitra sang songslike Dola lagilo and Basante phul ganthlo. Susmita Das directed dancers tosongs like Ore grihobasi and Rangiyediye jao. Folk dances like Legechhematon and Faguner mohona werechoreographed by Debarati Mukherjee Kundu. Guest singer SimonHalder performed folk numbers too.

“Sitting in the city, one barely notices when spring comes and leaves.Plus, everyone is so busy and stressedout with daily lives that a celebrationlike this refreshes us,” said JhumpaGhosh, a member of Urja who anchored the show.

Hridayangam

AL Block-based Hridayangam Institute of Music and Art took out its seventh Dol procession. Students aged between three and 75 years came dressed in yellow and walked around AL and AK Blocks, spreading cheer.

Music students, led by founder -director Ananya Roy, sang songs like Gahana kusuma and Nil digante while dance students, led by dance and art teacher Utsa Roy, performed on the move with dandiya sticks and manjiras. Art students carried posters with paintings and wishes.

“More than colours, we played with flowers and so many parents and even grandparents, who dislike colours, joined us,” said Utsa.