Durga Puja is not just a festival but an emotion: Shiwani Chakraborty

Shiwani Chakraborty who is presently seen in Maati Se Bandhi Dor, talks about her devotion for Durga Puja, and on her plans to celebrate the festival this year. Read on here at IWMBuzz.com.

Durga Puja is not just a festival but an emotion: Shiwani Chakraborty 921393

Actress Shiwani Chakraborty, who is currently seen in Star Plus’ Maati Se Bandhi Dor, enjoys the vibe of Durga Puj and eagerly waits for it every year.

Talking about the Puja, she shares, “Durga Puja is not just a festival but an emotion. From the very first day of Mahalaya to the last day of Bijoya Dashami, we are filled with excitement and always on our toes. I have so many memories of Durga Puja that I can’t put into words. I am a small-town girl from MP, and we used to celebrate Durga Puja as a family because there weren’t many Bengalis around. We organized Durga Puja at one place, where it has been held since my forefathers’ time. On the fourth day, coconut ladoos were made at home—a family tradition. We would all go shopping together afterward. Participating in the ‘Dhunuchi’ dance has always been my favourite activity during Durga Puja.”

Shiwani makes sure to take some time off work every year. She shares, “When I was doing Nimki Mukhiya, I always made sure to take two days off to visit my hometown for the celebrations. Now, with families having moved to different places, it’s harder to visit, so I celebrate Durga Puja in Mumbai. This time, I plan to visit pandals, and we’ll see how it goes with the shooting schedule. There are many Bengali pandals here, and I look forward to enjoying the bhog, prasad, khichdi, and sabzi. I will be participating in the Ashtami Puja, where we have a special ritual involving the worship of 108 lotus flowers and 108 diyas. I always try to light one of the diyas.”

Shiwani also reflects on how a tragic incident in Kolkata impacted her. She adds, “I’d also like to mention that Kolkata recently faced a tragic incident involving a doctor. Since my relatives—my masi, mama, and mami—live there, I got to know from them that the festive spirit isn’t the same. There’s a sadness in everyone’s heart. I just want to say that since Maa Durga is our mother and we worship her for nine days, every woman should be honoured and respected every day to prevent such incidents from happening. If Maa has kindness, she also has a fierce form like Kali. Girls should not forget their power and should be like Durga.”