#bangaliana

𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎 , 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚌𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜 𝙱𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚒 𝚌𝚞𝚕𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝙱𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚒'𝚜 𝚊𝚌𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚞𝚖𝚋𝚕𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚌𝚝 …..

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝙱𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚒 𝚌𝚞𝚕𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚆𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝙱𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚘𝚏 𝙱𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚑 ( 𝚊𝚍𝚖𝚒𝚗 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚍 𝚋𝚊𝚝𝚒 ) ….

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚖𝚘𝚘𝚍𝚋𝚘𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚜 , 𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚐 / 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚖 / 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚒…

𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 #𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚊𝚗𝚊 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚏𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎d 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐 <𝟹

-𝚊𝚍𝚖𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚊✨

The city has been cleansed with the after showers of monsoon. Blue sky peeking through fluffy clouds resembling the cotton candy carried by the street vendors. The smell of durga puja coming in through the open windows. Standing outside Kumortuli is a small smiling face in shabby clothes and dirty hair. The departure of idols might be significant for the whole city, but not for the little boy whose father will be coming home after months of crafting the inanimate joy that would fill the city for the next 10 days.

The single mother spent her bonus on the little piece of jwellery she had seen her daughter longingly looking at in Gariahat. The transferred father took a few extra days off. A son remembered his father on the banks of the Ganges, while the recently widowed woman longingly glanced at the idol's red saree. They felt what the poets may describe as peace and happiness but for them it was just plain old durga puja.

She arrived with her children, shaking the whole city from its slumber, a ray of hope within the gloomy times. Every year she arrives with the same smiling face and listens to all our problems. To the lost boy trying to find his place in society, to the queer person trying to figure out why they were wrong, to the girl who never saw her father after that day in court, to the lady who never knew what happened to her daughter the night she went out with her friends. Lives filled with tragedy after tragedy lie at Maa's feet asking for a way ahead. Maa listens. She gives them hope and sometimes tragedies do go away. The boy lands a job while the queer person is invited back to their family. The girl recieves a gift from her father while the lady cries at the station,report in hand. Maybe not happy endings, but closure. That's what Maa gives. Hope is just the surface of the abyss of our mind which actually seeks closure.

The bright lights and bamboos wrapped in colourful clothes stand as a symbol of the hardwork of all those people who worked relentlessly to make this festival a pathway to overcome tragedy. The people live another day to fight, blessed by Maa.

Poila/Pohela Boishakh (Bengali: পহেলা বৈশাখ) is the first day of the Bengali calendar which is also the official calendar of Bangladesh. This festival is celebrated on 14 April in Bangladesh and 14/15 April in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Jharkhand and Assam (Barak Valley) by Bengalis regardless of religious faith.[2][3][4][5]

The festival is celebrated with processions, fairs and family time. The traditional greeting for Bengalis in the new year is শুভ নববর্ষ "Shubho Noboborsho" which is literally "Happy New Year". The festive Mangal Shobhajatra is organized in Bangladesh. In 2016, the UNESCO declared this festivity organized by the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka as a cultural heritage of humanity.[6]

History and origin

Nomenclature

In Bengali, the word Poila or Pahela (Bengali: পহেলা) means 'first' and Boishakh (Bengali: বৈশাখ) is the first month of the Bengali calendar (Bengali: পহেলা বৈশাখ Pahela Boishakh).[7] Bengali New Year is referred to in Bengali as Nobo Borsho (Bengali: নববর্ষ), where 'Nobo' means new and 'Borsho' means year.[8] [9]

Mughal Emperor Akbar began the celebration of Bengali New Year and officialized the Bengali calendar to ease the tax collection process. Traditional roots

Mughal references

During the Mughal rule, land taxes were collected from Bengali people according to the Islamic Hijri calendar. This calendar was a lunar calendar, and its new year did not coincide with the solar agricultural cycles. According to some sources, the festival was a tradition introduced in Bengal during the rule of Mughal Emperor Akbar to time the tax year to the harvest, and the Bangla year was therewith called Bangabda. Akbar asked the royal astronomer Fathullah Shirazi to create a new calendar by combining the lunar Islamic calendar and solar Hindu calendar already in use, and this was known as Fasholi shan (harvest calendar). According to some historians, this started the Bengali calendar. According to Shamsuzzaman Khan, it could be Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, a Mughal governor, who first used the tradition of Punyaho as "a day for ceremonial land tax collection", and used Akbar's fiscal policy to start the Bangla calendar.[10][11]

According to Shamsuzzaman Khan,[12] and Nitish Sengupta, the origin of the Bengali calendar is unclear.[13] According to Shamsuzzaman, it is called Bangla shon or shaal, which are Arabic (سن) and Persian (سال) words respectively, suggests that it was introduced by a Muslim king or sultan."[12] In contrast, according to Sengupta, its traditional name is Bangabda.[13][14] It is also unclear, whether it was adopted by Alauddin Husain Shah or Akbar. The tradition to use the Bengali calendar may have been started by Husain Shah before Akbar.[13] Regardless of who adopted the Bengali calendar and the new year, states Sengupta, it helped collect land taxes after the spring harvest based on traditional Bengali calendar, because the Islamic Hijri calendar created administrative difficulties in setting the collection date.[13]

Vikramaditya references

Some historians attribute the Bengali calendar to the 7th century king Shashanka.[12][13] The term Bangabda (Bangla year) is found too in two Shiva temples many centuries older than Akbar era, suggesting that Bengali calendar existed before Akbar's time.[13] Various dynasties whose territories extended into Bengal, prior to the 13th-century, used the Vikrami calendar. Buddhist texts and inscriptions created in the Pala Empire era mention "Vikrama" and the months such as Ashvin, a system found in Sanskrit texts elsewhere in ancient and medieval Indian subcontinent.[8][15][16][17][18]

In rural Bengali communities of India, the Bengali calendar is credited to "Bikromaditto", like many other parts of India and Nepal. However, unlike these regions where it starts in 57 BCE, the Bengali calendar starts from 593 CE suggesting that the starting reference year was adjusted at some point.[19][20][21]

Contemporary Bengali calendar

In Bangladesh however, the old Bengali calendar was modified in 1966 by a committee headed by Muhammad Shahidullah, making the first five months 31 days long, rest 30 days each, with the month of Falgun adjusted to 31 days in every leap year.[22] This was officially adopted by Bangladesh in 1987. Since then, the national calendar starts with and the new year festival always falls on 14 April in Bangladesh.[22] In 2018-19, the calendar was amended again, with Falgun now lasting 29 days in regular years and to 30 days in leap ones, in an effort to more align with Western use of the Gregorian calendar. However, the date of the celebration, 14 April, was retained.

The Bengali calendar in India remains tied to the Hindu calendar system and is used to set the various Bengali Hindu festivals. For Bengalis of West Bengal and other Indian states, the festival falls either on 14 or 15 April every year. The current Bengali calendar in use in the Indian states is based on the Sanskrit text Surya Siddhanta. It retains the historic Sanskrit names of the months, with the first month as Baishakh.[22]

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House cleaning and shopping

No matter how the other days are going . but it the first day of the bengali calendar which means in the pahela boishak bengalies keep their dress and house nit and tidy

Visiting family and friends

During Pahela Baishakh people visit their families and friends and spend time together. Pahela Baishakh is also known for uniting friends and family.

Main article: Haal Khata

Haal Khata is a festival celebrated on the occasion of Pohela Baishakh in order to complete all the reckonings of last year and open a new ledger. It is observed by the Bengali businesspeople, shopkeepers and traders.

Red-White attire

On this occasion, men are seen wearing red or white Panjabi with traditional designs on them, imprinted or embroidered. Women and young ladies wear red and white saree with blouses and put on flower crowns on their heads. Girls also dress in salwar kameez. They are seen wearing traditional ornaments and accessories along with their dress.

Baishakhi meal

Usually, Bengali people eat Panta Bhat or poitabhat, which is a rice-based dish prepared by soaking rice, generally leftovers, in water overnight. It is popularly eaten with Hilsha Fish and other curries.[23]

Baishakhi rural fair

It is a fair held by the locals of that area where many different things ranging from books to special dishes are sold. Traditionally the fair was held under huge Banayan trees and traders from far across the areas would gather with their goods and toys in the fair. Some rides such as Nagordola (wooden Ferris wheel), are set for kids. Different types of traditional foods are sold out in the stalls such as Jilapi, Sandesh, Soan papdi, Batasha, Khoi (popped rice), Kadma (a candy made of sugar), and so forth. 'Bioscope', a form of the old movie projector, was also a part of the attraction for the youngsters back in days.[24]

Locality

Bangladesh

Mangal Shobhajatra at Pohela Boishakh in Bangladesh. UNESCO recognises Mangal Shobhajatra as cultural heritage.[25]

The Bengali New Year is observed as a public holiday in Bangladesh. It is celebrated across religious boundaries by its Muslim majority and Hindu minority.[26] According to Willem van Schendel and Henk Schulte Nordholt, the festival became a popular means of expressing cultural pride and heritage among the Bangladeshi as they resisted Pakistani rule in the 1950s and 1960s.[27]

The day is marked with singing, processions, and fairs. Traditionally, businesses start this day with a new ledger, clearing out the old which often involves inviting loyal customers and offering sweetmeats to them. This festival is called Haal Khata. Singers perform traditional songs welcoming the new year. People enjoy classical Jatra plays. People wear festive dress with women desking their hair with flowers. White-red color combinations are particularly popular.[28]

Bangladeshis prepare and enjoy a variety of traditional festive foods on Pohela Boishakh. These include panta bhat (lightly fermented watered rice), ilish bhaja (fried hilsa fish) and many special tarkari (vegetable curries).[29][28]

In Dhaka

Students of Charukala (Fine Arts) Institute, Dhaka University preparing masks for Pohela Boishakh.

Colorful celebration of Pohela Boishakh in Dhaka The celebrations start in Dhaka at dawn with a rendition of Rabindranath Tagore's song "Esho he Boishakh" by Chhayanaut under the banyan tree at Ramna (the Ramna Batamul). An integral part of the festivities is the Mangal Shobhajatra, a traditional colourful procession organised by the students of the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka (Charukala). According to the history, the rudimentary step of Mangal Shobhjatra was started in Jessore by Charupith, a community organization, in 1985. Later in 1989 the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka arranged this Mangal Shobhajatra with different motifs and themes. Now, the Mangal Shobhajatra is celebrated by different organization in all over the country.[30]

The Dhaka University Mangal Shobhajatra tradition started in 1989 when students used the procession to overcome their frustration with the military rule. They organized the festival to create masks and floats with at least three theme, one highlighting evil, another courage, and a third about peace.[6] It also highlighted the pride of Bangladeshi people for their folk heritage irrespective of religion, creed, caste, gender or age.[6]

In recent years, the procession has a different theme relevant to the country's culture and politics every year. Different cultural organizations and bands also perform on this occasion and fairs celebrating Bengali culture are organized throughout the country. Other traditional events held to celebrate Pohela Boishakh include bull racing in Munshiganj, Boli Khela (wrestling) in Chittagong, Nouka Baich (boat racing), cockfights, pigeon racing.[31]

In Chittagong

Pohela Boishakh celebrations in Chittagong involves similar traditions of that in Dhaka. The students of the fine arts institute of Chittagong University brings the Mangal Shobhajatra procession in the city, followed by daylong cultural activities.[32]

At DC hill & CRB, a range of cultural programmes are held by different socio-cultural and educational organisations of the city. The Shammilito Pohela Boishakh Udjapon Parishad holds a two-day function at the hill premises to observe the festival, starting with Rabindra Sangeet recitations in the morning. In the late afternoon, through evening, Chaitra Sangkranti programme is held to bid farewell to the previous year.[32]

At the Chittagong Shilpakala Academy, different folk cultures, music, dances, puppet shows are displayed.[32]

India

Pohela Baisakh festive meal

Bengali people of India have historically celebrated Poyla Boishakh, and it is an official regional holiday in its states of West Bengal and Tripura. The day is also called Nabo Barsho.[33]

West Bengal

Pohela Boishakh has been the traditional New Year festival in the state, with the new year referred to as the Noboborsho.[8] The festival falls on 14 or 15 April, as West Bengal follows its traditional Bengali calendar, which adjusts for solar cycle differently than the one used in Bangladesh where the festival falls on 14 April.[34]

Notable events of West Bengal include the early morning cultural processions called Prabhat Pheri. These processions see dance troupes and children dressed up with floats, displaying their performance arts to songs of Rabindranath Tagore.[35]

Tripura, Northeast India and Jharkhand

Pohela Boishakh is a state holiday in Tripura. People wear new clothes and start the day by praying at the temples for a prosperous year. The day marks the traditional accounting new year for merchants.[36][37] Festive foods such as confectionery and sweets are purchased and distributed as gifts to friends and family members.[37]

The festival is also observed by the Bengali communities in other eastern states such as Assam.[38]

In Jharkhand, this festival is celebrated with great amusement, especially in the cities of Ranchi, Hazaribag, Dhanbad, Jamshedpur, Jamtara, Bokaro and Dumka by the Bengali community and other locals.

Celebration in other countries

রুহের যিকির না করা গাফিলতি

আধ্যাত্মিক গুরু ইউনূস আল গওহার

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Nobody is sad during Durga puja despite all their problems. And the festival does work wonders. There are families that come together, last friendships rekindled last love found again fighting parents trying to keep aside their problems so that their child has a happy time because nobody is sad during Durga puja. Nobody SHOULD be sad during Durga puja. Because for us Bengalis Durga puja is more important than all our problems…big or small.