Inflation hits Durga Puja celebrations

TDS Desk:

When the heady scent of sheuli flowers, mesmerising sight of numerous kashphul (kans grass) dancing in the breeze and beautiful azure sky speckled with cottony clouds declare the arrival of autumn, the countdown for Sharodio Durgotshob gets off to an auspicious start.

But the real joy of Durga Puja makes its presence felt only when the sound of Dhak (percussion instrument) enchants almost everyone, not to mention the aesthetes.

The moment dhakis (dhak players) start playing their large hollow wooden instruments, attached to slings wrapped around their shoulders, with their thin pairs of bamboo sticks, people gather in large numbers around the puja mandaps (marquees).

From the establishment of the deity on the day of Shashthi, which marks the beginning of the puja, to her immersion on the day of Dashami, the sound of dhak is essential for every segment of the five-day-long festival.

As a result, before the Durga Puja, the demand for dhakis increases every year. Consequently, dhakis visit the houses of dhak makers and shops to buy the new instrument and repair their old ones.

But things are changing gradually. The sale of new dhaks and order for repairing old ones has plummeted as the demand for dhak is decreasing.

The dhak makers, sellers and dhakis have been struggling to make their ends meet. The entire clan of Gazipur Dorgarchala area’s Horilal Das has been involved in dhak making and selling for generations.

He and his brothers collect raw materials and assemble them at their home-cum-workshop. Big dhak shop owners from across the country place their orders to them.

Horilal Das said, “Three generations of our family have been involved in this business. Earlier, we had to work round the clock for weeks before the Durga Puja, but before this year’s puja we haven’t received much work order. This has been a trend for the last several years.”

Dhak sellers and repairers also shared similar experiences as they witnessed low dhak sales and orders for repairing old dhaks.

Basically, three sizes of dhaks – small, medium and large – are sold in Old Dhaka. The small dhaks cost Tk10,000-12,000, and the medium ones Tk15,000-18,000. And one needs to spend Tk20,000-26,000 to buy a big dhak.

Owner of Shakhari Bazar’s Adi Badya Bhandar, Uttam Sur, said he has been repairing and selling dhak for the last 25 years but hasn’t seen such a dull season earlier.

“After the long break of monsoon, dhakis and other music instrument players usually visit our shops with their damp instruments. They either repair their old dhaks or buy new ones. Usually I sell at least five-six new dhaks every year and repair 15-20 old dhaks before the puja but this year I have sold only one dhak and repaired three,” he said.

Puja organisers said high inflation has affected this year’s puja celebration. The number of puja mandaps has also dropped. Therefore, the dhakis continue to repair the old dhaks to adjust with puja committees’ budget, causing a drop in the sale of new dhaks.

Wari Sarbojanin Puja Udjapon Committee General Secretary Debabrata Roy observes a different trend developing in Dhaka’s temples.

He said, “The relationship of dhak is basically with dhakis. But a temple has to pay a dhaki around Tk20,000-30,000 excluding money for food and drink on five-six days of puja. In addition to Durga Puja, Kali Puja, Saraswati Puja and other pujas cost about Tk80,000-90,000 per year. Therefore, the temple committees now buy dhak themselves, and employ local youths to play the instrument!”

Asked whether the demand of dhak is decreasing in puja because of electronic instruments, sound boxes and disc jockeys (DJs), he termed dhak as one of the main components of Durga Puja.

“Puja is impossible without dhak. There are many episodes of puja where dhak must be played. No matter how modern the sound system becomes, the use of dhak will last forever,” he added.