‘Bengal’s reply’: Across Kolkata, Durga Puja pandals respond to targeting of Bengali speakers

As the Durga Puja festival begins on Monday, the Chaltabagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja in Kolkata’s Machuabazar pays tribute to the mother tongue Bengali: “Ami Banglai Bolchi” – I am speaking in Bengali.

At the entrance of the pandal is a tree of languages depicting the linguistic roots and historical stages of modern Bengali. The artist who has created it, Pradipta Karmakar, said the genealogical representation of the evolution of Bengali shows that all mother tongues, not just Bengali, should be respected.

At the back, a group of actors perform a play inspired by filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s acclaimed movie Hirak Rajar Deshe, The Land of the Diamond King. In conversations between the king and a jester, they underline the importance of the Bengali language.

It is a reminder that Bengal’s Durga Puja pandals have a long history of tapping into the current debates, addressing political and social discussions head-on.

Since May, the targeting and forced expulsion into Bangladesh of Bengali-speaking Muslim migrant workers has put the linguistic and cultural Bengali identity at the forefront of a discussion about Indian citizenship and belonging.

Early in August, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had criticised a letter purportedly issued by the Delhi Police for referring to Bengali as “Bangladeshi language”. On September 2,...

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