Get ready to get bedazzled if you’re in Kolkata this Durga Puja, as the city, amongst its many artisanal creations, is also showcasing a 13-feet tall Durga idol made of – wait for it – 50 kg of gold!
Did we say bedazzled? We meant you’ll feel poor. Very poor.
The Durga idol at the Santosh Mitra Square Durga Puja, in Kolkata’s Sealdah area, has been made of 50 kg gold sheets, which cost an approximate 20 crore rupees. Additionally, the other idols on display – Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesh and Kartik – have been adorned with heavy silver jewellery. They couldn’t be made of gold due to budget constraints. Local artisans were hired to do the gold and silver work and spent an estimated two and a half months to complete the project.
“This area is the ‘area of gold’ or shonar para. One of the premier areas of gold and silver jewellery in India is this Bowbazar area. But since multinational companies entered the business, the value of handcrafted jewellery and artisans is going down. Through this pandal we wanted to put out the message that nothing compares to the handiwork of artisans”, said Sajal Ghosh, an organiser of the Puja.
The interiors of the pandal are based on Jaipur’s Sheesh Mahal, with intricate gold and glass work.
The outside of the pandal, on the other hand, has been modelled on the Chandrodaya temple being built by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in West Bengal’s Mayapur. The temple, scheduled to completed in 2022, is likely to become one of the largest temples in the world.
The gold has been sourced from local jewellers and MNCs and will be returned to them once a token immersion of the idol is done.
Last year, the Santosh Mitra Square Puja draped its idol in a gold saree which was designed by Agnimitra Paul.
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