Pushpanjali, Aarti and other rituals went online, this Durga Puja in Bengaluru
FollowBARSHA Bengali Association in HSR Layout live-streamed their aarti, pushpanjali, concerts on their YouTube channel, and FB page.
Coronavirus can never dampen the high spirits of the Bengali people during Durga Puja. Amid the pandemic, organizers of different associations in different cities had come up with innovative ideas indulging themselves in technology to celebrate the festival.
Bengali Association in HSR Layout live-streamed their aarti, pushpanjali, concerts on their YouTube channel, and FB page. They have maintained the security check of every individual with the help of contactless check-ins through the QR code that is shown in the secure pass (an app) on their mobile. They have maintained the sanitization of the place, and all the external visitors like Dhaki, Purohit, etc were brought into Bangalore 7 days in advance. RT-PCR covid tests were done and were certified negative.
There were multiple cameras to captured different moments during Anjali or Aarti and were live-streamed so that people across the city and nation could watch it. BARSHA used to have almost 3,000 footfall every day during Puja, but this year everything is conducted virtually.
This year, they have opted for the theme Satyajit Ray because of his centenary year. They prepared virtual programs related to their theme which streamed online from their Facebook page.
Eminent signers from Kolkata like Srikanto Acharya (Sasthi), Rapankar Bagchi, Anindya Bose from Porospathor band (Saptami),
Sidhu from Cactus band, Jojo, Durnibar live (Ashtami), and Nachiketa live (Nabami) among others, performed concerts virtually to entertain and make this low-key Puja interesting
They have collaborated with the brand Dunzo to deliver bhog prasadam at all 140 members' doorsteps for three days. This step was taken to keep the crowd at bay during the bhog distribution.
To make the Puja more interesting, they organized an event named ‘Pujor Misti’, a collaboration with Nestle milkmaid where renowned chefs demonstrate how to make some of the best Kolkata sweets at home. This event was also live-streamed from their FB page.
