Kudos! Godess Durga As Migrant Worker

If 2020 has taught us anything, it must be about minimalist living and the prioritization of essentials over comfort. Kudos to Behala Barisha Club, West Bengal, for emphasising this note and for being an abode to a thoughtfully scuplted idol of Goddess Durga; which not just depicts power but also the potential of a woman as mother.

Great mind behind this ideology is of Rintu Das and the same has been put to frame and beautifully sculpted by Pallab Bhowmik. Another unique feature of this idol, apart from its depiction is the material with which it has been sculpted. A lot of thought has gone into the sculpting of the idol; this isn’t a clay idol, unlike any other idols. In fact, they have used fiberglass to sculpt the idol, keeping preservation as a factor on mind.

Unlike any other idols displayed during the Navaratri, this idol of Maa Durga, doesn’t have any sparkling jewellery or a fierce look on her face. This idol has been symbolized to reflect a common woman, a migrant worker, whose priority is to feed her kids. All the ten hands of the Goddess are seen holding rice bags, whilst carrying her children. This unfortunately has been the plight of thousands of migrant workers since the last couple of months, who have been striving hard to fight poverty and meet the daily need of meals.

The art director, Rintu Das has said that he has given a lot of thought to this idea as he has seen a lot of migrant workers walking barefoot with their kids whenever he turned on the Television during the covid news. He says that he felt these women were Durga in his eyes as he could see their plight to feed their child and carrying their child barefoot for miles together to give them at least a shelter or some food. This work of the artists has moved people all across the country to understand what migrant workers have to actually go through and this Navaratri help at least one or two people who need it.

May this Navratri bless everyone with nutritious food and a healthy life.