Durga Puja is the time of the year that puts Bengal on the global itinerary of culture and festivities. For Bengal, Durga Puja is not just a festival but also a celebration of art, history, heritage and homecoming. A five-day long celebration, Durga Puja is more than what meets the eye and Aaj Tak Bangla celebrated its first Durga Puja with the promise of bringing out untold stories from not just Bengal but also from the Bengali diaspora across the globe.
The channel’s week-long coverage through the pujas included ground reports of theme pandals, heritage pujas that go back to hundreds of years, celebrity puja celebrations, stories on gastronomic delights and much more.
Aaj Tak Bangla’s puja reportage debut travelled all the way to USA and Germany, not only restricting itself to Bengal.
However, the coverage was not just about festivities, Aaj Tak Bangla touched upon other important issues around the festival too. For instance, Aaj Tak cameras reached Malda to capture how a small puja organized by the locals of the area celebrates communal harmony. Both Hindus and Muslims participate in the puja and enjoy the festivities together. While they have never publicized their pujo ever before, Aaj Tak’s coverage of this small pujo in the outskirts of Kolkata brought out the true spirit of Durga Puja which is all about spreading peace and unity, due to which this unique puja is now popular in the state and is already setting an example for others to follow.
Apart from all the above initiatives, the channel also saw intellectuals from various walks of life contributing opinion pieces to add to the highly engaging and impactful Puja Aaj Tak celebrated this year. The Aaj Tak Bangla’s Puja coverage were supported by Dollar, Assam Downtown University and Adani Wilmar as their sponsors.
