Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The 96th Sharadotsav was celebrated at the Bengali Club in Navlakha with the Kalparambh and Bihit Puja on the day of Maha Saptami, marked by the sound of conch shells early in the morning. Three drummers (dhakis) from Bengal were present, playing traditional drums energetically as part of the worship of Goddess Durga.
Sushma Nandi shared that an inter-school singing competition was held in the morning, with 120 students from 50 schools participating. The competition was divided into two categories and was judged by JayshreeTambe, Shashikant Tambe and Prabha Sharma.
Vice president of the Bengali School and Club, Ravi Shankar Roychowdhury, and joint secretary Ambuj Dutta informed that Pushpanjali and Prasad distribution took place in the afternoon, followed by the aarti and the traditional dhunuchi dance in the evening.
During the dance, men and women of the community, holding lit lamps, danced in front of Goddess Durga to the beat of the dhakis, which lasted for a long time. A large number of people from the community gathered to witness this.
Cultural programmes were held later in the night. On Friday, Maha Ashtami will begin with the Bihit Puja and Pushpanjali at 4:30 AM, followed by Sandhi Puja at 6:24 AM. An inter-school dance competition will take place at 10 AM and after the Pushpanjali at 11:30 AM and the aarti at 7:30 PM, the dhunuchi dance will be performed, followed by cultural programmes.
