Idol makers are back in Silchar but with hardly any orders; another uncertain year ahead

Durga Puja is probably the biggest and grandest festival in the Bengali community. With its cultural influence stretching as far as to the western hemisphere of the globe to the US and Canada, it’s hard to deny its impact on the common people as it has been part of the Bengali culture for centuries.

With less than two months to go in this year’s Durga Puja, preparations have already started in many corners of the world, especially in West Bengal, Tripura and Barak Valley. Just like every year, this year too, many people are looking forward to this year’s edition, with some expecting enjoyment and merriment, while some others’ livelihood depending on it.

Last year, due to the Corona pandemic, the overall aura of the Durga Puja festival wasn’t at its best as compared to its earlier editions. Understandably, the authorities were still scared about the spread of infection among people and hence they decided to tone down the celebration a bit. But in the Cachar district last year, the Covid SOP imposed during the Durga Puja of 2020 didn’t seem to make sense to most people, including the idol makers. The process of making an idol takes months, and every year the preparation of idols of the Goddess Durga starts as early as in May. Different places and households have different expectations from the idols as some want it big while others prefer moderate or small-sized ones to accommodate in their indoor pujas. But the last year’s SOP demanding the idols to be made within 5 feet came as a huge blow to the entire community of idol makers, especially only 20 days before the festival as that meant they had to give up on all the idols that they had been working for months which were over 5 feet.

Last year, a Barak Bulletin story had tried to explore how the idol makers from Silchar were going through a deep occupational crisis where the district administration’s Puja SOP had restricted their production to a minimum. This year too, the scenario is not so different as the pandemic is still on. And with less than 2 months to go for Durga Puja, with the SOP yet to arrive from the DC office, the idol makers have already started working with great hope and minimum expectations. “Last year, we had to go through a huge financial loss as most of the already prepared idols were eventually cancelled by the clients due to the SOP. Then we thought during the Monosha and Bashonti puja, we’d regain our business but even now, there are a couple of idols still left unsold. Our revenue has slashed down to less than 1/3rd of what it used to be”, said Kartick Suklabaidya, a 47-year old sculptor based out of Tarapur’s Kristi Vivek Club.

Kartick Suklabaidya said that although they have no other option than to abide by the government’s SOP, it is also a fact that the cost of raw materials has hiked since the pandemic started last year. “The cost of clay has increased, the transportation cost has also increased, and yet we’re not getting the fair price for each idol. This is not a profitable business anymore. With less than 2 months to go, as of now, I have only one order of Goddess Durga’s idol. We already have a few unsold idols from last year. How are we supposed to survive? It has even become nearly impossible to pay our electricity bills and house rent these days,” quipped Suklabaidya.

Every year, sculptors from Nabadeep in West Bengal shift to Tarapur and work on idols along with sculptors like Kartik Suklabaidya. They get contracts upwards of Rs 1.5 lakh. Last year, the sculptors had to return empty-handed as there were no orders. The Puja Committees are not willing to pay more than Rs 15,000 for idols. Sukhdev Paul is one such sculptor who has been coming to Silchar for the past 15 years at least to work with the sculptors for Durga Puja. Last year, he came down to Silchar to work for Basanti Puja, but his 20 days visit got extended to 2 months due to the lockdown.

“Every year, we get at least 15-20 orders before Puja, and I’ve also worked with some popular Puja committees of Silchar like the Ambicapatty Chourangi and Shillongpatty pujas. But this year, neither the administration has given us any SOP, nor the usual clients have contacted us for any work. Usually every year we get contracts from several pandals as well as indoor pujas of families. But this year, we’re only getting a few indoor puja orders, whose idols are smaller in size. Now smaller idols mean we get less in return for that. And no big idols till now. So the situation is quite difficult for us. Unlike other years, this year fewer sculptors have come down to Silchar from Nabadeep. We used to get Rs 50,000 to 60,000 every year for normal-sized idols, and now we hardly get 15,000 to 20,000 at best”, said Sukhdev Paul, who has spent his entire life working as a sculptor and has a deep history of working with the sculptors of Silchar.

Both Sukhdev Paul and Kartick Suklabaidya has asserted that as there is no Durga Puja SOP released yet, hence they’ve already started working in adherence to the last year’s SOP. Idols take 3-4 months of intense and detailed work to produce the final version which we get to see in pandals during Durga Puja. Hence, they need to start preparing and working in advance so that their work gets completed in due time before Puja. But the 5 feet cap and all those other restrictions from the last year’s Durga Puja SOP is still haunting the sculptors working in Silchar, and even managing to affect the community in Nabadeep of West Bengal. This, with the combination of the usual price hike in the market and the ever-low demand of the idols even during a festive season, is making the rich heritage laden industry of sculpting and idol-making hit the nadir of their career. Perhaps, the helpful intervention or timely planning of Durga Puja SOP on the District Administration’s part could go a long way to ensure the relevance as well as the survival of these masters of handcrafted artistry in 21st century modern India.