West Bengal: Chandernagore pulls city crowd on Jagaddhatri Puja

KOLKATA/CHANDERNAGORE: On Sunday, Abhishek Ghosh from Tollygunge changed his plans and took a local train to Chandernagore with his family to visit the Jagaddhatri Puja pandals instead of meeting his friends over brunch.
Ghosh is not alone. Thousands of people from Kolkata headed to the Hooghly district on Monday and Tuesday to watch Jagaddhatri Puja after a gap of two years. The pandals in the former French colony have been crowded with revellers from Kolkata. There are as many as 200 pujas held in Chandernagore and its vicinity every year overseen by Chandernagore Central Jagaddhatri Puja Committee.
“I have been visiting Chandernagore every year during Jagaddhatri Puja. Last two years we could not come due to the pandemic so the excitement is higher this time. Some of the pujas here can give the Durga Pujas in Kolkata a tough competition. The entire town is decked up with lights,” said Ghosh.
A puja committee in Chandernagore has made Kolkata its theme, probably after seeing the enthusiasm of people from the city in the past few years. “Once upon a time Chandernagore was referred to as mini Kolkata by the virtue of its architecture and heritage buildings. But that has disappeared gradually. That is why we decided to make Kolkata our theme this year,” said Soumendu Mukherjee, organiser of Burrabazar Sarbojanin in Chandernagore.
For every Jagaddhatri Puja in Chandernagore, the organisers award illumination contracts worth lakhs. The light art is worth watching as the entire town gets illuminated.
The former French colony has been celebrating Jagaddhatri Puja for more than three centuries. The puja was started by Raja Krishnachandra, who was the maharaja of Krishnanagar.
Between Bhadreswar and Bandel, in Hooghly district, there are over 125 artists who design lights that depict important incidents that happened throughout the year. Organisers award artists for their work.
At 188 years, organisers have tried to retain the old world charm at Burrabazar Sarbojanin in Chandernagore. “Every year we receive lakhs of visitors who come here to savour the heritage of the place,” said an organiser.