Women perform special Puja and 'Sindoor Khela' on Dussehra in Shimla

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], October 24 : The Bengali community in the north Indian hill town of Shimla organised a special prayer and played 'Sindoor Khela' on Dussehra also marking the completion of 200 years of Kalibari temple on Tuesday.
Women from the Bengali community gathered in Shimla from outstate Himachal Pradesh to celebrate the festival.
"It has been almost 200 years since Kalibari temple was built; this temple was built in 1823. This year, it is a special occasion for us on this Dussehra. On this occasion, a special event has been organised in Kalibari Temple. A special drum group and artists have been called especially from West Bengal, for this programme. The women are performing Pooja to the goddess who comes to her home, and Durga comes to her home. This drum is played until the idol of the goddess is immersed. Every year on the day of Vijayadashami, Sindoor Khela is organised in Kalibari, in which all the local and especially married women from Kolkata participate," said Kallol Pramanik, an organiser.
On this day, married women bid farewell to Maa Durga, who according to Hindu belief had come to her parent's home.
Rani Banerjee, the fifth generation of the Banerjee family living in Shimla for over 150 years said"Today is the festival of Vijayadashami, which is being celebrated with great fervour across the country. But today also marks the farewell of Goddess Durga. A very beautiful picture has emerged from the famous Kalibari temple of Shimla, where the married women bid farewell to Maa Durga by applying vermilion. On the day of Vijayadashami, married women start gathering in the Kalibari temple in the early morning and the senior woman first applies vermillion to the idol of the Mother Goddess, offers betel leaves and serves sweets. This responsibility is given to the most senior woman among all the women who bid farewell to the goddess Durga as the mother of the bride."
"I have been living in Shimla for a long time, and my family has been living in Shimla for the last 150 years. My grandfather, Becha Nath Ghoshal, came here in 1873 and made an important contribution to the establishment of the temple," she added.
"We bid farewell to the goddess after applying vermilion and offering her sweets. Married women apply vermilion to each other and bless each other with eternal happiness. After this, the idols of the goddess Durga will be taken for immersion. Women also arrive from Kolkata to participate in Sindoor Khela, a special programme organised on the 200th anniversary of the establishment of Kalibari Temple. For me, it is good to be here as a member of the 5th generation, having been part of this since 1873," said Rani Banerjee.
The women coming from other parts of the country take Shimla as their second home here and feel pleased to be a part of this.
"This Doorga Pooja festival and Dussehra have the utmost significance. I was born and brought up in Shimla as a Bengali. This place is very important to me. We are offering special prayers to the goddess Durga, and we are offering this 'Sindoor Khela' (Hindu ritual of Vermillion applying to please Goddess). I wish everything would be peaceful and all would be prevented from any kind of natural disaster. Whatever had happened here due to the rain and flood, I appeal everyone to come forward to help the affected people; that would be the real celebration of this festival," said another Bengali woman, Anubhooti Sinha
"It has been very good to be here; I learned it yesterday from one of the organisers. I came to witness this festival, and I am happy to be here. I got to know that these women are offering special prayers to Goddess Durga, who is a manifestation of Goddess Kali. It is great to be here, as India is a country of colours," said Chris Kirtley, a tourist from Australia.