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The potter community of Kolkata, the kumors as they are colloquially known, are more than what the name suggests they are artists. Tangible images of deities that form the crux of Hindu worship, find shape in the hands of these artisans, who, with sheer dedication to the craft, have kept the tradition alive for generations. It is a fascinating experience to observe how clay, straw, bamboo and other ingredients bit by bit transforms into tactile human forms which are then infused with divinity through different rituals.
Durga Puja, on the other hand, is not only the major religious festival of Bengal but has also evolved into a cultural extravaganza. From the point of view of sheer vastness and magnitude of organizational mobilization, it is comparable only to the global impact of Christmas.
Through vivid photographs and absorbing text, the book captures Kolkata's spirit of artistic creativity and spiritual ecstasy, embodied in these ephemeral constructs of clay, straw and bamboo. It also sensitively documents Bengal's unique and most enduring cultural heritage of image worship.
Contents: Introduction; Kumortuli; The Kumors; The Process of Idol-making; Chalchitra, Sholapith and the Changes; The Origin and the History of Durga Puja in Kolkata; Durga Puja; The Pandals; Stories of Durga, Parvati and Uma; The Myth of the Churning of the Ocean Some Aspects of Hindu Worship; The British Museum Durga Puja.
