Seniors slog as GenX skips Puja labour
M. GANGULY
Ranchi, Oct. 2: For the younger generation, Durga Puja combines a heady mix of nostalgia with the lure of re-uniting with old friends.
But when it comes to arranging the same, there are few takers, feel many. In some old community pujas, only a few organisers — most on the wrong side of 50 — work for more than two months to organise the Puja.
During the Puja, there are many volunteers to shoulder responsibilities. But the pre-Puja arrangements see old faces moving from door to door, collecting subscriptions and looking after details, without successors in sight.
In most organisations, a core group, comprising only a few residents, runs the show. But, while youngsters vie for top posts, responsibilities at the preparatory stage are thrust on veterans.
“We can’t help it. The younger ones are too busy with their studies or careers. Many of them are away from home. But our children insist that the Puja is held so that they can drop in for a reunion,” said Ananda Ghosh of Anantpur-Nibaranpur Durga Puja Committee that has been organising a low-budget community puja for 71 years.
As youngsters remain untrained in organising the Puja, will the tradition die out in the future? Not really, feel some organisers.
“There came a time when we decided not to organise the Puja due to dearth of active workers,” said the organiser of a community Puja.
“But it didn’t stop. In a meeting, many came forward requesting us to continue. So the old guards had to take it up again.”
With sleepy localities of yesteryears now housing apartments, the job has only become tougher. But, for the aged organisers of these low-budget pujas, sentimentality continues to rule.
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