Taking its adulation for the Trinamool Congress supremo to extreme heights and hoping to attract a bigger crowd, a local club has made an idol of chief minister Mamata Banerjee as Devi Durga in its pandal in Nadia.
This puja is being organised by Prantik Club. Here, the goddess has no weapons in her hands. Rather, she is depicted as showing 10 successful schemes and the achievements of her government in her 10 hands. A national award winning artisan from Krishnagar’s Ghurni, Subir Pal, has made this idol.
Also, on the premises of the pandal, there is another idol of goddess Durga with her four children which will be worshipped during the four-day festival.
When asked about Mamata as Durga, the organisers of Prantik Club said that this idea was born because they wanted to express their respect for the chief minister and to highlight the state government’s 10 major schemes and achievements. Here, Mamata holds in her hands — Darjeeling, the Yuvashree logo, peace in Jangalmahal, Kanyashree, super specialty hospitals and so on. A map of West Bengal is the background behind the idol.
Mamata is shown standing with folded hands and wearing her trademark white sari with a blue border and hawai chappals. The organisers spent Rs 3 lakh on making the idol.
{{/usCountry}}Mamata is shown standing with folded hands and wearing her trademark white sari with a blue border and hawai chappals. The organisers spent Rs 3 lakh on making the idol.
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Subir Pal said, “I worked on the idol for nearly three months. It is five feet and six inches high and it is fixed against 12 x 11 feet ply board. I am happy to have finished the model.”
Sources said immediately after the Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011, the artisans of Krishnagar’s Ghurni had made a model of Mamata Banerjee. That model was made as Mamata in real life. But this time she is being depicted as Devi Durga.
The members of the Prantik Club said Mamata’s government has done a lot of development work in the last five years. Nadia also got an international award for ‘Sabar Souchagar’ (toilets for everyone). That’s why the district conceptualised Mamata as Durga. The club members hope that this Mamata theme will attract visitors.