Kolkata: For the first time in the history of Baroari (community) Durga Puja in Kolkata, the city of joy will witness the deity being invoked by women.
Four priestesses are set to create history and break into the male bastion by perform the entire puja of a south Kolkata club which is known for churning out innovative themes during Durga Puja.
In a city known for its theme-based pujas where the annual festivities reach a different octave the priestesses are set to celebrate the women empowerment in the true spirit of the Durga Puja.
"It has never happened before that any priestess in the city performed Durga Puja right from the day of Khunti Puja to the day of Bijoya Dashami," Pradyumna Mukherjee of 66 Pally said.
"A team of four priestesses will do so this year for our club. They have their own style of performing pujas – the special attraction being rendition of songs of various genres like Rabindra Sangeet, Rajaniknata, Dwijendrageeti in parity with mantra of the puja," Mukherjee added.
The Kolkata-based collective led by Dr Nandini Bhowmik, Ruma Roy, Semanti Banerjee, and Paulomi Chakraborty, has been presiding over social ceremonies like weddings, memorial services, housewarming rituals, among others, for over a decade now.
But this is the first time when they will be acting as priestesses in idol worship.
"We have been doing exhaustive research to transform priesthood into an art form. We have witnessed that now a days people do not find interest while the puja rituals are performed and are involved in other activities. Our aim is to connect people with the Puja and make them behold the Puja with interest," Nandini said.
The popular Bengali film 'Brahma Janen Gopon Kommoti' that was released in March 2020, some days before the nationwide lockdown was implemented to curb the Coronavirus outbreak had put the spotlight back on the roles of women in religious ceremonies.
The film was inspired by Nandini's life and works, who tries to overcome the challenges that life throws at her after her marriage into a conservative family that does not subscribe to her views on women's roles and participation in religious practices.