This blog is again about off-work photography.
I had last attended Durga Puja (I think we can officially call it Durga Pujo) in Kolkata way back in 2007!
Yes, this coming from a Bong who had been raised in Kolkata, still has his parents staying there, actually still likes Durga Pujo and also resides in India. My other Bong friends and relatives will probably start to question me on how much of a Bong-ness I still have left in me, and honestly, I can't blame them. I mean its easy to count how many Bongs fall in this category.
So, this year, I really had wanted to be in Kolkata during Durga Pujo. The tickets were booked and we were all mentally prepared for it, when I decided to attend SILK INSPIRE. The initial dates of the Pujo clashed with it and due to some other challenges, I had to give Pujo in Kolkata a miss 9 years in a row! I might as well now complete 10 years and feel a sense of achievement.
Not that it was a terribly depressing pujo. I managed to push myself through the crowd of some amazing wedding photographers in India and was able to reach the front row. You can read a bit about it on this blog post. However, the excitement of pujo was gone. Its needless to say that if you have fond childhood memories of pujo in Kolkata, pujo in no other city will possibly excite you.
Shweta, on the other hand was very excited. She pushed me into going out on Ashtami, which is the most important day of the Pujo, to visit a pandal or two.
Also, after a long time, she wore a saree.
As she asked me to take a photo of her, I couldn't help but ask her to pose a bit more for a few more photos. So, here is the wedding photographer posing in front of the camera.
Damn! Nothing can beat nice light and a pretty lady in a saree.
