It's Autumn and for us Bengalis that translates to a season of festivities with the grandest of them all, Durga Puja. It's been two long years since I last celebrated my Puja at home. I'm an aethist, and so the religious part hardly holds anything for me. It's really the congregation of friends, the contagious smile on everybody's face, the warmth in greeting strangers, the nip in the air, the sound of "Dhaak", which allures me to be a part of the celebration. Even here in Chennai, a few Puja's are there, but it's very nuclear and lacks that general exuberance and genial atmosphere. So I prefer to stay away from them.
I have grown up counting the days for the Puja's. It always used to be the time for the month-long school holidays, the time for getting a lot of dresses and gifts, the time to start bursting crackers, happy times with uninhibited freedom to stay out with friends. I grew up with these anticipations for the whole year until it culminated into those 4 days of pure euphoria. And even before I had time to savor it all, another long wait used to shake me up from my elation. I didn't mind, eagerly waiting for next year while reminiscing the last year. But now times has changed and the uncertainty of the hiatus perplexes me.
The time since I came here, I have felt a general lack of enthusiasm among the people during the festive seasons. Personally I feel that people in the rest of the country share a greater feeling of camaraderie and celebrate with greater fervor and excitement. Maybe this fact along with the knowledge that all my closest friends are having a blast together back home, is acting as an anticatalyst for me this festive season. The days which would have been charged with energy are passing by blandly. But there is always a next time and even before the Puja's are over I'm eagerly waiting for the next Autumn, full of colors and fireworks.
WISH EVERYBODY THE BEST OF TIMES THIS FESTIVE SEASON.:-)
I have grown up counting the days for the Puja's. It always used to be the time for the month-long school holidays, the time for getting a lot of dresses and gifts, the time to start bursting crackers, happy times with uninhibited freedom to stay out with friends. I grew up with these anticipations for the whole year until it culminated into those 4 days of pure euphoria. And even before I had time to savor it all, another long wait used to shake me up from my elation. I didn't mind, eagerly waiting for next year while reminiscing the last year. But now times has changed and the uncertainty of the hiatus perplexes me.
The time since I came here, I have felt a general lack of enthusiasm among the people during the festive seasons. Personally I feel that people in the rest of the country share a greater feeling of camaraderie and celebrate with greater fervor and excitement. Maybe this fact along with the knowledge that all my closest friends are having a blast together back home, is acting as an anticatalyst for me this festive season. The days which would have been charged with energy are passing by blandly. But there is always a next time and even before the Puja's are over I'm eagerly waiting for the next Autumn, full of colors and fireworks.
WISH EVERYBODY THE BEST OF TIMES THIS FESTIVE SEASON.:-)
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