Durga Puja 2007

Durga Puja of Lumding is always special for me. I get nostalgic during these four days of festival and can feel every moment of what is happening at Lumding. 2001 was the last Puja for me at Lumding as I had to leave for a better future.
During 2007 I was lucky to be at Lumding during Puja. Every moment I enjoyed there with friends and with my old memories. But I was surprised to find that the pendals are not those conventional ones which I saw 7 years back. Every pendal is a message to the society. The club members, some of them are my classmates, my juniors, did the decoration with sublime effort. As I look back and try to compare the Puja of 2001 with that 2007, every time I get surprised --- such a difference of thought, engineering and execution, how is it possible and that too it has happened only in these 6 years. Yes the world is moving faster than we think and unknowingly we are adapting ourselves to this change. In the midst of all these changes and modernization, Lumding Kalibari could maintain its heritage and I found the same face of Pratima and the same decoration what I have seen 6 years back. In Kalibari I found my old and traditional Durga Puja of Lumding.
Apart from Kalibari I liked the concept of Beltala Puja Committee. Their concept of live Baul Sangeet was something first time (at least for me) at Lumding. I visited almost all the pendals with feeling of satisfaction and veneration.
With time we have to accept every change. But some changes are hard to accept and I also came across some changes during the 2007 Puja at Lumding. I cannot think of Puja pendals without Dhak-Dhol, instead somebody is playing keyboard and band. This is unacceptable for me. I am surprised to see the people of Lumding are feeling proud to accept the band and keyboard and dumping the tradition of Dhak-Dhol.
My appeal to everybody please adapt to changes but not at the cost something which has its own tradition and value.