# Bengal

Dhakis face bleak times as Puja nears

The pandemic has apparently affected more than 100 dhaki families in Goghat as they face a bleak future over how to recover from the economic hardship. In Goghat Block-II, nearly 200 families have still adhered to their ancestral tradition of playing dhaks during the festive season.

Hemant Jacob | Hooghly | September 4, 2021 1:29 am

Raj Kumar Rui Das, one of the dhakis from Beldiga, Shyabazar area in Goghat, said the pandemic has plunged his income to half and he works as a daily wager to offset losses.

The income is insufficient to sustain a family. Dhakis have incontrovertibly formed an integral part of Bengal’s biggest festival – Durga Puja. The beats indicate the beginning of the festival and are inextricably tied with it.

The pandemic has apparently affected more than 100 dhaki families in Goghat as they face a bleak future over how to recover from the economic hardship. In Goghat Block-II, nearly 200 families have still adhered to their ancestral tradition of playing dhaks during the festive season.

Das said it is in their blood that during Panchami, the dhakis congregate at the Sealdah station or at Sovabazar, from where the Puja committees hire a group of five to 10 dhakis. They also perform in big-budget Pujas and each dhaki receives remuneration ranging from Rs10,000 to Rs 20,000 and sometimes even earn more.

Moreover, Das pointed out that many Pujas have shifted to automated electrical powered dhaks in many traditional pujas. The popular Dhunuchi Naach at the beat of dhaks is slowly becoming obsolete. Das still believes that the age-old tradition of playing dhaks during the festive season will remain forever.

Das added that chief minister Mamata Banerjee is particular in following and preserving the art, culture and tradition of Bengal and she has extended her help to the Puja committees overcoming many odds so that those associated with it can benefit.

It is our earnest request to the Puja committees to play an important role in saving and upholding the age-old tradition of dhak playing in the Puja pandals by providing a respectable remuneration so that we can also sustain our families and can continue to perform, he said.

He also requests the CM to make available the Silpi Bhata, which is meant for the artists’ community, for the dhakis.