The idol of Kolkata's tallest goddess cost Rs 50 lakh and reportedly spent twice as much in promotions, drawing out crowds from neighbouring pujas.
She sits with an owl at her feet, dwarfed by the towering figure of her mother, Goddess Durga. But has Durga Puja become all about Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth? Many of the organisers of Kolkata's 3,000 pujas ruefully say yes. No cash often means no puja and cash this year was hard to come by.
Ballygunge Cultural, a big south Kolkata puja, spent Rs 45 lakh this year. Organiser Dr Saptarshi Basu says, "We were worried till the last minute about sponsorships. Last year, sponsors were fixed two months before the pujas. This time, we had to wait till the last two weeks."
At the 70-year-old Samajsebi Sangha puja, Bhaswati Sarkar is counting the cash. "The economy is bad. Money market is bad. We have had a very tough time doing the puja this time," she said.
The splash of ads on the streets may belie the fund-crunch tale. But organisers say money is tight, the number of pujas is up and the slice of the ad and sponsorship pie slimmer by the year. "There are too many big pujas in a small area and money gets spread thin," said Ms Sarkar.
The idol of Kolkata's tallest goddess reportedly cost Rs 50 lakh and spent twice as much in promotions, drawing out crowds from neighbouring pujas.
'Parar chanda' or local subscriptions funded pujas are still the norm in places but are on the decline. "Ours is a neighbourhood puja funded by 'chanda' and some ads," says Shyamal Dutta of AK Block, Salt Lake. "Sponsorship may affect the family feel. But we want a good sponsor," he said.
Till 2012, chit fund companies were big puja spenders. But after many of them went bust, puja budgets took a hit.