Ghatakbari puja, carrying the legacy of centuries-old Bengali culture and values since the eighteenth century, achieved the milestone of 300 years this year.
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Ghatakbari puja, carrying the legacy of centuries-old Bengali culture and values since the eighteenth century, achieved the milestone of 300 years this year.
Amidst regular incidents of atrocities against women during the past several months, the goddess Durga emerges as Durgatinashini everywhere in the state this year. Ghatakbari Puja is not an exception at the backdrop of ongoing disturbance during festival season.
The descendants of the Ghatakbari, at the Jadavpur residence, have been keeping the rituals of their ancestors by organising the Durga Puja. Prosenjit Ghatak, an engineering professional, said, “Braving different kinds of odds we are determined to continue the Durga Puja. No matter which part of the world the family members live in, each one of us gets together in our ancestral house at Ramgarh every year.”
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“The puja is celebrated for three days maintaining all the rituals like those by our grandfather in Faridpur in Bangladesh. Despite financial strains, the present generation of Ghatakbari celebrates the Sarodutsav with sumptuous meals cooked in Bangladeshi style for three days. Food for around 200 people is cooked by female members of our family everyday,” he added.
The Ghatakbari, some of the members of which were participants of the historic Quit India movement and Sati system in 19th century, has its own roots from Bichhari village, in the erstwhile Faridpur district of Bangladesh.
After settling in Ramgarh area of Jadavpur in the southern fringe of Kolkata, Shrishchandra Ghatak and Bibhushan Ghatak got involved in the freedom movement while continuing their age-old traditions of celebrating Durga Puja.
The delicious meals have luxury with two types of fish including Bengalis’ most coveted hilsa.
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