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Bengalis celebrate Onam in Kochi

— Photo: H. Vibhu

Enthusiastic PARTICIPATION: Members of the Kerala Banga Samskriti Sangha celebrating Onam by lighting the lamp in Kochi on Sunday.

KOCHI: The Kerala Banga Samskriti Sangha (KBSS), an organisation of Bengali community functioning in Kochi since 1960s, celebrated Onam on Sunday with the same passion as Malayalis.

The celebrations, held at the Rabindra Bhavan, started with the lighting of the lamp at 11a.m. The members of the organisation laid ‘pookkalam.’ This was followed by onasadya.

According to Nibit Purkayastha, president of the KBSS, the basic idea behind celebrating Onam is to strengthen the ties with the Malayalis.

The major celebrations of the KBSS are during the Durga Puja period when the festivities reach a crescendo, Mr. Purkayastha said.

He said that all these years, KBSS had been functioning without any financial support from either the State or Union Government and an application for cultural grant from the Central Government is pending.

Durga Puja will be celebrated from October 17 to 21 at Rabindra Bhavan. This year the KBSS proposes to celebrate the Durga Puja in a grand scale for which participation and support of the people of the city is of extreme importance, he said. Artists from West Bengal will come to repare the idols this month and the player of traditional drum of Bengal, called Dhaki, will also be there to make the festival more attractive this time.

All like-minded people interested to recapitulate the essence of eastern India and to enjoy the cultural amalgamation of Kerala and Bengal may contact Dr. Nibit Purkaystha (president) at 9846043704 or the secretary Ajoy Sen at 9447715982.

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