Imagine yourself walking the narrow lanes of Kolkata during autumn, and it seems the entire city has taken to the streets. Wherever you go, soulful beats of Dhak (traditional Bengali drums) follow you, and the fragrant smoke of dhuno lingers in the air. If you think this is chaos, you could not be more wrong! Because this madness means “Maa Asche” (Mother Goddess is coming).
Durga Puja is the annual festival of West Bengal during the Hindu month of Ashvin (September-October). It begins on the sixth day of Navratri and ends on Dussehra. These five days are marked with celebration and happiness across the city. In every lane, a bamboo installation (pandal) comes up where an idol of Goddess Durga is established for the duration of the festival. Some pandals choose themes for their design, which could vary from a recent event to a social or environmental issue. But the joy of the City of Joy stands on the shoulders of one community, which for centuries has upheld the integrity of this festival. The idol makers of Kumartuli.
Kumartuli derives its name from Bengali words kumar (potter) and tuli (local area), literally meaning ‘Potter’s Lane’. This neighborhood in north Kolkata stands on the banks of the River Ganga and is widely known as the birthplace of idols, especially of Goddess Durga. It supplies handmade idols of Goddess Durga throughout Kolkata and even outside. The artisan community and its legacy have thrived as idol-makers for almost 300 years now.
The history of this neighborhood is linked to the victory of the British East India Company in the Battle of Plassey. At the time, Krishnanagar village in Nadia housed several skilled clay artisans who modelled clay idols. These craftsmen had immigrated from Dacca in large numbers when the practice of idol worship grew under the rule of Maharaja Krishnachandra of Nadia. After the victory, zamindar Raja Nabakrishna Deb of Shobhabazar Rajbari invited a potter from Nadia district to Calcutta to make an idol of Goddess Durga. The idol was used to celebrate the first Durga Puja of the Rajbari and the victory of the British in the Battle of Plassey. Lord Clive, the first British Governor of Bengal Presidency, inaugurated the Puja, and the event was celebrated lavishly with dance and wine.
Since then, many other Rajbaris (aristocratic houses) started celebrating Durga Puja lavishly to demonstrate their wealth. The potters of Nadia were invited to make idols of Goddess Durga for these Bonedi Bari Pujos. Initially, the potters resided at the mansions of the zamindars and created the idol there, as they had to travel to Calcutta only during Durga Puja season. With time, some potters settled in Calcutta, and given their profession, they looked for an area that would be near the banks of the river and a small distance from the houses of zamindars.
An employee of the Company, John Z. Holwell had taken the task of dividing the city into different neighborhoods. He realized the value of this art and marked Coomartolly as a hub for the potter community. This region was near the River Hooghly, which supplied raw materials, like straw and clay, and water for kneading and sculpting the clay, and was located in the heart of North Calcutta (the Black Town).
Initially, they mainly crafted pots and idols only during the Durga Puja season. However, with the beginning of revivalist movements all over India in the late nineteenth century, the celebration of Durga Puja stepped outside the homes of aristocrats and entered the lives of the common people. The first community celebration of the festival in Calcutta was in 1910 at Balaram Basu Ghat Road, organized by Bhowanipore Sanatan Dharmotsahini Sabha. The community pujas were called Barowari Pujas at the time because they traced their origin to the first public puja organized by twelve brahmin friends. Over time, the Barowari became sarbojanin (Bengali word for community), and many local community pujas emerged in Calcutta. Unlike Bonedi Bari Pujos, these were open to everyone and celebrated with a lot of zeal. Gradually, the individual celebration of Durga Puja declined as community initiatives became popular.
As the demand for the Goddess Durga idols increased dramatically, many potter communities migrated from Nadia to settle at Kumartuli. What was a small community of clay-modelling artisans turned into an idol-making industry with the introduction of community celebrations in the twentieth century. At the time of the partition of India, about twenty-five kumar families called Kumartuli their home. After the partition, many Hindu potter families of East Bengal migrated to Calcutta and settled at Kumartuli. They feared the division of Bengal on the basis of religion would bring down the popularity and celebration of Hindu festivals in the newly formed East Bengal. But the existing families viewed them as competitors rather than brothers of the same caste in need of solidarity and compassion. It is said that the artisans of East Bengal resided in the western quarters of the neighborhood, while those of West Bengal in the eastern section.
Today, the idols of Kumartuli grace not only the pandals of Kolkata but are also exported outside of India. Many Bengali families living abroad welcome home the Goddess Durga made at Kumartuli. But while the demand for the idols and the craftsmanship from Kumartuli seems to have increased, the sustenance of the carriers of this living legacy seems difficult. Most community pandals today spend much on the design of the structure and its theme. However, when it comes to paying for the idol that will complete their Durga Puja pandal, the budget falls short.
The artisans initially rate the idols at a price to compensate for their efforts and skills, but they often remain unsold. As a result, as the festival draws close, the artisans have no choice but to lower the prices of the idols below their basic rate to sell the remaining lot. Although the community pujas are a trademark of Durga Puja, the members fail to credit the artisans without whom the festival would remain incomplete. The beauty and design pandals might attract attention, but it is the idol of Durga Maa that completes the Puja. No one visits a pandal until the idol of the deity has been installed.
The current generation of artisans is looking for employment opportunities outside of their family legacy due to the stagnant money and poor conditions. The artisans have to employ people from outside the industry at their workshops. Another challenge for the artisans of Kumartuli is the emergence of professional artists who offer a new take on the designing and making of idols. These idols keep in line with the theme of the pandals, but in the race for modernity, they miss out on the authenticity of Durga Maa.
Even as the city celebrates, it seems essential to remember the very hands that make this magic possible. We might be welcoming Durga Maa in September-October, but these artisans bring her home several months before. I hope, for all our sakes, that we never lose sight of where our celebrations truly begin — among the humble workshops of Kumartuli where Maa herself first takes shape, and where the soul of Kolkata quietly resides.
