Durga puja comes to end on Vijaya Dashami day
The last day of the festival was, however, marred by nagging rains for most part of the day. Women thronged community pandals, smearing the deity, who assumes the form of a daughter, ready to leave her paternal abode for the husband's home, with vermilion and offering her sweets through traditional rituals.
Even though many were in tears, it was the beginning of a new celebration as married women smudged one another with vermilion in a fun-filled goodwill gesture while males embraced each other uttering, "Shubho Bijoya"- a phrase denoting best wishes for one and all.
Going by the almanac, some of the idols, especially those worshipped at home, were immersed in different rivers, including the Hooghly, where thousands of people gathered to witness the grand spectacle as processions came in with dhaakis (drummers) drumming up a storm on their dhaaks (a local drum) ushering in the idols mounted on trucks. Revellers, determined to lap up the last dregs of the autumn festival, were seen breaking into jig along the journey.
However, in many places, particularly in the big community puja pandals, the idols await immersion after Muharram, to be observed on Sunday.
(Images by Avishek Mitra)
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