Modernization of Maa Durga: A Celebration of Women’s Power, Social and Technological Changes

The five-day-long Durga Puja, celebrated by Bengalis in autumn every year, is not just a religious festival that rejoices in Shakti, or feminine power; it is also a daughter’s sentimental homecoming as well as a creative harbinger of change. 

Originating from Hindu mythology, the celebration of the Goddess Durga’s victory over Mahishasura, the demon, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil, was popularized in the beginning by Zamindars. The wealthy landlords in the 16^th century solidified their social status by hosting this festival in their palatial homes, which featured spacious courtyards known as Thakur Dalan. Later, community celebrations, known as Barwari Puja, were initiated, where families and friends would assemble to commemorate the Devi. Over the centuries, the celebration has evolved into various forms and sizes, demonstrating the festival’s adaptability and fluidity. As Bengalis have migrated to other continents in search of work and better opportunities, they have taken with them the remembrance of these five days and organized weekend pujo in more than 35 countries. 

Tradition and Technology

In Bengal itself, Durga Puja has undergone significant changes. It is now modernized to make it more inclusive and accessible, blending tradition with technology, sustainability, and social awareness. In 2021, a community puja in Kolkata invited women priests to conduct the Devi Puja. Shubhamastu, a group of women priests, broke centuries-old traditions to perform Durga Puja rituals in Barwari Puja. Since then, every year, the members of Shubhamastu take up the task of conducting several pujas in the city. Women Dhakis broke another barrier by playing the Dhak or drums, which is a traditionally man-dominated art form. Leading the way is the Mohila Dhaki Babadhamraj Sampradaya, a troupe of ten women from North Bengal. For a while, Durga Puja committees have had women who are the backbone of the celebrations. From managing crowds to overseeing the preparation of Prasad and food, organizing cultural programs, and even collecting funds for puja, many women play a crucial role. 

The Bengali diaspora has been doing this for many years already. Ratnabali Adhikari completed her 15th year as a priest for the Durga Puja at Brazil’s Sao Paulo, performing the rituals with devotion. Moumita Chakraborty, a schoolteacher in South Carolina, U.S., began her journey last year with a Bengali cultural group in Fort Mill, when around 250 Bengali families decided to start a Durga Puja with a female priest. Ireland’s oldest Durga Puja, Sujan, also features women priests, as does a puja in Germany.  

Conservative voices have also risen from time to time, arguing that the priesthood must remain the domain of men, citing tradition and ritual purity. Some also fear that breaking such conventions risks offending devotees, but in practice, the rituals conducted by women priests have drawn overwhelming appreciation and created an atmosphere of inclusion. From Calcutta to London, from New Jersey to Melbourne, this shift is slowly gathering momentum.

It’s not just the active participation of women that signals a change, though. It’s also the themes chosen by the Pujo organizers while decorating their pandals. The temporary sheds erected to hold the festival serve as a stage to showcase artistic innovation in its finest form during the puja. One of South Kolkata’s puja pandals this year paid tribute to Bengal’s freedom fighters who laid down their lives for the country. The walls of the pandal featured the faces of these revolutionaries, carefully crafted in plaster of Paris, so that every visitor can walk through history while celebrating the goddess. 

A Metaphor for Life

A pandal in North Kolkata turned its attention to the fading sounds of nature and daily life, those little rhythms that urban chaos has almost silenced. Birdsong, once a constant backdrop to dawn and dusk, can hardly be heard anymore. The theme Shabdo highlighted how rapid urbanization and deforestation have destroyed natural habitats. Some others have explored more abstract themes, such as ‘transformation’, reflecting social messages like ‘nothing lasts forever’ through stunning artistry and originality, taking visitors into the mind of an artist. Another one used ‘seed’ as a metaphor for life, potential, and renewal, drawing attention to how something seemingly small contains the energy to grow into something vast and expansive. Special attention was given to using eco-friendly materials, portraying the sacred relationship between nature, community, and divinity. 

The themes got edgy as well. One puja paid tribute to the resilience and strength of acid attack survivors and highlighted issues of injustice towards women. The live performance there, which effectively embellished the theme, drew a large crowd to the pandal. The innovative topic of another puja was ‘Artificial Intelligence: Boon or Curse.’ The pandal there became a theater for thought, as the central part of the ceiling featured a giant robot and a time machine, signaling the impending doom that we face because of technology. 

The Durga Puja celebration around the globe is no longer a relic of the past; it is an updated discourse on the present as we experience it. It is a vibrant, live conversation that commands the attention of all attendees —in ways that make it a sensory and thought-provoking experience impossible to ignore.  

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Sreya Sarkar is a public policy analyst based out of Boston. She is the author of the novel “Beneath the Veneer” published last year.