- Main days Shashthi to Dashami
- Month of Ashvin
- West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, Tripura
- UNESCO heritage since 2021
Where it began
Legend says the demon Mahishasura could not be defeated by any god, so the gods joined their powers to create Durga. Riding a lion and holding their weapons, she fought him for nine days and won on the tenth. Durga Puja celebrates this win of good over evil.
In Bengal the festival is also a homecoming. Durga is welcomed as a married daughter who comes back to her parents' home with her children, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartikeya, and leaves again on Vijaya Dashami.
One story tells that Rama worshipped Durga in autumn before his battle with Ravana, an early, out-of-season puja called akal bodhan. Records show wealthy landlord families of Bengal holding large home pujas by the 1500s and 1600s.
How it grew over time
Ancient times
Durga's battle with Mahishasura is told in the Devi Mahatmya, a Sanskrit text recited during the festival to this day.
1500s to 1700s
Landlord families in Bengal hold grand home pujas with music and feasts that the whole village joins.
Late 1700s
Rich families in Kolkata host famous pujas, and the festival becomes a big social event of the city.
1900s
Neighbourhoods begin community pujas, called sarbojanin, paid for by everyone, and the pandal becomes a public space for all.
2021
UNESCO adds Durga Puja in Kolkata to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Today
Theme pandals turn whole neighbourhoods into open-air art shows, and millions walk from pandal to pandal through the night.
How it is celebrated in different places
Kolkata, West Bengal
Artists from Kumartuli shape the clay idols, and thousands of pandals light up the city for pandal-hopping, dhak drums and dhunuchi dance.
Assam and Tripura
Durga Puja is the main autumn festival, with community pandals in every town and fairs in the villages.
Odisha
Cuttack is known for silver and gold filigree decorations on its idols and pandals.
Bangladesh
Durga Puja is the largest festival of the Hindu community, with many thousands of mandaps across the country.
UK, US and Australia
Bengali associations hire halls for five days of puja, food stalls and cultural shows, often on the nearest weekend.
Durga Puja moments
Durga Puja today
The festival opens with Mahalaya, when many families wake before dawn to hear the Mahishasura Mardini recitation. On Shashthi the goddess is unveiled, and the days that follow bring anjali prayers, bhog meals, new clothes, music and late nights with friends.
On Dashami married women smear vermilion on each other in sindoor khela, and the idols are carried to the river with drums and dancing. People hug, share sweets and say they will wait for the goddess to come back next year.
