How Covid-19 has impacted Durga Puja in Chennai?

The Bengal association decided to organised both live-streamed rituals and physical gathering of limited audience as per the government guidelines.

By Sushmita Dey

Durga Puja at Madras Kali Bari

Chennai: With 11 days to go for Durga Puja, this year, the Tamil Nadu government has given relaxation for four days – Sashthi, Saptami, Ashtami and Navami – when people can enter the temple for physical darshans, in Chennai.

Seeking permission from the police commissioner’s office, The Bengal Association, decided to regulate both live-streamed rituals and possibly get around 50 percent of the capacity, says Soumya Guha, the chief organiser.

“For the second time in the row, the traditional bhog (prashadam) will be delivered in a packaged box”, he added to keep the pandal from overcrowding.

Reminiscing the beautiful and emotional sights of immersing the idols before the pandemic, in Palavakkam beach, Golok Ganguly, Madras Kali Bari’s secretary, stated that during Dashami – the immersion day, a maximum of 10 people will be involved considering the weight of the idol.

“The safety of our members and other visitors is our utmost priority”, he said. By following the given guidelines, every cultural association will ensure that all of those involved during immersion should be fully vaccinated, ” Ganguly said.

“We eagerly waited for this puja because we are emotionally attached to it, but at the same time, we will not compromise anything in regards of the safety”, he said

However, last year, the large-scale event, which is known to hold grand celebrations including an array of food stalls, cultural programmes, and musical events, was switched to pre-recorded videos, just to be viewed from home.

But this year, a few puja organisers have decided to go live on their subsequent channels with the artists, performing on the stage as well, in front of a limited audience.

“Apart from the cultural programmes, there will be traditional ‘virtual competitions’ such as Tambola, quizzes and drawing for kids,” says Swagata Chakraborty, cultural secretary, South Madras Cultural Association.