In Bengal, puja pandal themes echo political fault lines

The scent of incense mingles with fresh paint as artisans put finishing touches on a most unusual Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata.

- Joydeep Thakur

Inside, behind makeshift iron bars, fibreglass figures crouch in a replica prison cell. Above them, Bengali letters hang trapped in bird cages—a pointed metaphor for what organisers call attacks on their language and identity.

Across the city in central Kolkata, another set of artisans assemble battle tanks and fighter jets for a starkly different political statement. The military hardware, part of a theme called “Operation Sindoor,” represents the other side of what will be captured in Durga puja pandals this year.

As Bengal’s biggest festival begins on Monday, puja committees across Kolkata have transformed their celebrations into statements of political allegiance, with some embracing Bengali regional identity while others project nationalist themes—reflecting the broader divide between the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

For decades, puja pandals in Bengal have served as mirrors to the political and cultural anxieties of their time—from partition and independence to economic liberalisation and linguistic pride. This year’s themes capture the state’s current preoccupations as Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee positions Bengali pride as her party's central message for the 2026 assembly elections amid an escalating war of words with the BJP over treatment of Bengali workers in BJP-governed states.

At the Japur Jayshree Dum Dum club, organisers preparing for their inaugural puja have invited six migrant workers from North 24 Parganas district—men who returned home after facing difficulties in other states—to inaugurate their pandal.