Kolkata and Bengal blog

Festivals, places, food and books from Kolkata and West Bengal, in Bengali and English, with the songs and stories to play on the same page.

Face of a Durga idol at a South Kolkata pujo, with a white sholapith crown and marigold garlands

In season · Festivals

Pandal hopping without the crush: Saptami to Dashami 2026

Four days of Kolkata's Durga Puja remain after Saturday evening's crush at Chorbagan. Before you set out, here is when to go, how late the Metro runs, what to do if a crowd closes in and which numbers to keep on your phone.

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FestivalsMahalaya 2026: listen to Mahishasura Mardini by Birendra Krishna Bhadra, in Kolkata or abroad
BooksGhanada: who he is, and which of his stories to hear first
ListenManna Dey's Bengali songs: 14 to start with
ListenOld Bengali songs: 20 adhunik songs, and who made each one
ListenBengal's ghost stories, place by place: where each is set, and what to hear

On air nowKolkata's radio, on Kolkata timeIt follows the clock and the sky over Kolkata. Free, no sign-up.

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Travel
Best time to visit Darjeeling, month by month
October to December gives Darjeeling its clearest mornings and almost no rain; March and April are the second choice. Here is every month, from the weather station's own 30-year figures.9 Oct 2026
Listen
Lalon geeti: seven songs of Fakir Lalon, their words and what they mean
Seven songs by Lalon Fakir that you can play on this page, with the opening words of each, what they mean in plain English, and why the caste songs and the bird songs are the same argument.8 Oct 2026
Festivals
Durga Puja outside Bengal 2026: Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, and the cities with their own guides
Durga Puja 2026 outside Bengal: each city's own almanac days, the Bengali pujas in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune that have put 2026 on their own pages, and why Saptami comes a day early.8 Oct 2026
Listen
Agomoni gaan: the songs of Uma coming home, sung by her mother
What agomoni gaan are, what Ramprasad, Kamalakanta and Tagore heard in them, and six agomoni songs to play on this page between Mahalaya and Shashthi.7 Oct 2026
Listen
Stories you can finish this Puja: long listens for the five Puja days
The five Puja days, Shashthi to Dashami: novels in long audio versions and Sunday Suspense dramatisations to finish, sorted by how much time you have, with the real running time of each.7 Oct 2026
Festivals
Durga Puja in Bengaluru 2026: the pujas, the dates, and what the census says about Bengalis in the city
Durga Puja 2026 in Bengaluru: the days by drikpanchang's Bengaluru reckoning, what twelve Bengali associations have announced, the nearest Namma Metro to each, and what the 2011 census actually counts.6 Oct 2026

Just inNew stories from the channelsWhat the Bengali story channels have just put up, played from their own YouTube.

Kolkata
Kumartuli: the potters' quarter behind Kolkata's Durgas, and how to visit before Puja
Where Kumartuli is and how to reach it, how old the potters' quarter really is, the goddess who came from Dhaka in 1947, and how to walk its lanes without getting in the way of the work.5 Oct 2026
Food
What's in the Durga Puja bhog: khichuri, labra and the day-by-day offerings
What goes on a Durga Puja bhog plate, from khichuri and labra to chutney and payesh, what Saptami, Ashtami, Navami and Dashami add, and why no two pujas agree.5 Oct 2026
Festivals
Kolkata Durga Puja 2026 pandals: the themes announced so far, North, Central and South
Which Kolkata pujas have announced their 2026 themes on their own pages, which are still silent, how to reach each by metro, and a North Kolkata order for one evening.4 Oct 2026
Festivals
Dhunuchi naach: what the dance is, when it happens, and the dhak behind it
The clay incense burner and what burns in it, when in Durga Puja people dance with it, who the dance belongs to, and two dhak recordings and three dhak songs to dance to at home in 2026.3 Oct 2026
Festivals
Durga Puja 2026 outfit ideas: what to wear each day and night, for women and men
A day look and a night look for each Puja day from Shashthi to Dashami, for women and men: which handloom, which colours and why, what to wear on your feet in Kolkata's October, and what it costs.2 Oct 2026
Festivals
Durga Puja in Delhi NCR 2026: CR Park pandal by pandal, then Noida and Gurugram
Durga Puja 2026 in Delhi NCR: the dates as Delhi's own pujas keep them, what CR Park's committees have announced, the older pujas of Delhi, and Noida and Gurugram.2 Oct 2026

Kolkata and Bengal blog

Featured

All posts31

Best time to visit Darjeeling, month by month

Lalon geeti: seven songs of Fakir Lalon, their words and what they mean

Durga Puja outside Bengal 2026: Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, and the cities with their own guides

Agomoni gaan: the songs of Uma coming home, sung by her mother

Stories you can finish this Puja: long listens for the five Puja days

Durga Puja in Bengaluru 2026: the pujas, the dates, and what the census says about Bengalis in the city

Kumartuli: the potters' quarter behind Kolkata's Durgas, and how to visit before Puja

What's in the Durga Puja bhog: khichuri, labra and the day-by-day offerings

Kolkata Durga Puja 2026 pandals: the themes announced so far, North, Central and South

Dhunuchi naach: what the dance is, when it happens, and the dhak behind it

Durga Puja 2026 outfit ideas: what to wear each day and night, for women and men

Durga Puja in Delhi NCR 2026: CR Park pandal by pandal, then Noida and Gurugram