Kolkata's Durga Puja pandal highlights human cost of war

During Durga Puja festivities in Kolkata, a pandal at the Behala Friends Club has gained special attention for its theme on the humanitarian crisis of war. The theme, 'Nabanna”, is based on the 1944 play by Bijon Bhattacharya about the Bengal famine. The creators juxtapose the starvation deaths of the 1943 Bengal famine with the unfolding humanitarian crisis in present-day Gaza. The pandal's atmosphere features gunshot marks and a broken roof to depict devastation. An important message conveyed is that "war doesn't give any peace, it gives hardship, whether it is past or it is present." Referencing conflicts in Palestine and Ukraine, the installation sends a strong anti-war message and highlights the need for human empathy in the face of widespread human suffering.