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>With its predominantly agrarian population and a clutch of locally
popular Hindu shrines, Bibun would have remained one of the laidback
districts of West Bengal, if it was not for Shantiniketan.
The Shantiniketan
Express, leaving Kolkata a little after nine in the morning, is
usually crowded by teachers, students and some local inhabitants.
But with the onset of Christmas week and winter vacation, the number
of passengers had already increased manifold and today, the train was
simply bursting the seams. Yet, none could deny the sense of
camaraderie prevailing within the compartments.
We were all travelling to
see the Pouch Mela – the annual three day fair held at
Shantiniketan. Beginning on the seventh day of Poush ( following the
Bengali calendar, usually falling on December 22/23), the event marks
the foundation day of Shantiniketan.
Mooted by Maharshi
Debendranath Tagore as an ‘ashram’ and a centre for
meditation, Shantiniketan catapulted to international fame through
the open-air school and later the university founded by Maharshi’s
illustrious son, poet Rabindranath Tagore.
The history of the place
goes back to well over a hundred years, to the 1860s, when Maharshi
was stuck by the beauty of the place. The westernmost corner of
Bengal, Birbhum is a red laterite soil zone, watered by the several
rain-fed rivulets. Undulating red vistas spread over miles all
around, with patchy forests of sal, palash and other local
trees as well as jamun and mango groves. Passing through the
village commons of Bhuvandanga (an area once avoided by travellers
because of dacoits), Maharshi was captivated by the kaleidoscopic
beauty of two luxuriantly canopied Chhatim trees, offering
shade in that barren, red land. To the Maharshi, this was an idyllic
venue for meditating. So he bought a large tract of land along with
the two Chhatim trees and built a beautiful prayer hall made from
coloured glass. Trees were planted all around to bring the ancient
forest-ashram look. In keeping with the spirit of the place,
Maharshi named it ‘Shantiniketan’ or the ‘abode of
peace’. Not too far from Kolkata 212 km by road, the place
slowly became popular.
So when Rabindranath
Tagore, adhorring the restrictive system of education, wanted to
start an open air school that would follow the Gurukul system
of ancient India, he fell back on the verdant precincts of
Shantiniketan. In 1901, on the seventh day of Poush, the school was
inaugurated with five students. The system became so popular that by
1922, the place was functioning as a full-fledged university called
Viswa Bhaarati. While this greenscaped landmark began to attract
urban visitors, Bolpur – 2 km ahead of Shantiniketan, burgeoned
into a supportive, satellite township. Direct rail link was
established between Kolkata and Bolpur and the journey was reduced
to 136 km. Even today, journey by rail is more convenient than
travelling by road.
Both Maharshi and
Rabindranath initiated several festivals at Shantiniketan which
marked natural and social occasions and where people could
participate irrespective of age, caste or community. So on the one
hand, while the three days of Poush are observed through prayers and
cultural meets, a fair is held simultaneously where local crafts
people bring their waves to sell, folk artists perform before a
discerning crowd and urban and rural folk intermingle without
prejudice. Although quite young compared to the traditional fairs of
our country, Poush Mela celebrated its centenary in 1994. The fair
has become immensely popular and attracts a large number of visitors
from both home and abroad. Over the years, like any other fair,
Poush Mela too has not been able to shake off the contemporary mores
and has undergone characteristic changes but its role as a meeting
ground of crafts people and buyers or rural and urban visitors has
remained evergreen.
On the inaugural day, the
festival begins with a community prayer or Brahmopasana that
includes Vedic hymns and reading from passages written by Maharshi
and Rabindranath ; invited artists and students sing Rabindra
sangeet. After this, visitors assemble on the central stage at the
fairground where the roving folksingers – the Bauls –
perform. They are introduced to the visitors by Shantidev Ghosh, the
octogenarian preceptor.
A few years back, there
was a turmoil over this particular show. Since traditional Bauls
enjoy the prerogative of performing here, Ghosh had denied admission
to a young Japanese woman who was training to be a Baul. He opined
that this was not a place for experiments or innovativeness, rather
an opportunity for the traditional Bauls (who follow a life of
rigidity) to present their literary renditions. However, matters
came to rest after the lady was allowed to perform at the government
sponsored stage in the age-old Baul festival held at Kenduli (also in
Birbhum) in January.
On the second day, the
different units of the university – Patha Bhawan , Shiksha
Sadan, etc. – hold their graduation and award giving ceremonies.
At the fair, the centre stage never quietens – more bauls and
kirtan singers perform ; jatras and folk theatres are
held.
For the three days of the
fair, several acres of the verdant field is thronged by a crowd of
over ten thousand people. There are kiosks that last for the three
days while many sellers sit wherever they like, spreading their wares
on the ground ; at night some areas are flooded with neon lights,
while at other corners, you cannot even discern your own big toe.
Impromptu programmes by itinerant folk-singers receive umpteen
encores while ubiquitous snack shops attract many like bees to a
flower. Irrespective of their urban or rural roots, children happily
pick p brightly coloured wooden toys while their mothers select
palm-leaf trinkets. A starry eyed young Santhal couple walk hand in
hand, the young husband proud to have brought his teenaged wife on
her first trip beyond the limits of their distant tribal
village…..the vignettes keep multiplying and overlapping, but
never jarring the senses. Because there is no pandemonium, no
resentment – if chaos has a system, it is here at the Poush Mela
fairground at Shantiniketan.
On the second evening,
there is a celebration of fireworks, thoroughly enjoyed by everyone.
As the pyrotechnical display breaks into myriads of lights and
colours, they reflect the joie de vivre of the quintessential
of Shantiniketan.
While enjoyment at the
fair continues unabated, on the final day the students and teachers
observe a serious but moving ceremony. In the morning, a special
prayer session is held where everyone prays for all those departed
souls who were associated with Shantiniketan. Right from the Maharshi
himself, not a single student, teacher or staff is forgotten. This
is followed by a community lunch where they partake of a frugal
departed.
Usually, the three days
include Christmas Day and everyone joins in the Krishtotsav,
observed by the ashramites. Besides, there are cultural events and
memorial lecture.
Back at the fair, the
modernization seems palpable. From a leaf whistle worth a few paisas
to the latest electronic household appliance, you can get them all.
Decorative artefacts and ornaments made from palm-leaf and
terra-cotta vie with mass produced and cheap plastic goods and sham
trinkets. While urban buyers flock to the ships selling cane goods,
the more rustic buyer bargains over the shiny, stainless steel goods.
No shopping in Shantiniketan is complete without buying the
batik-printed leather goods – especially bags and slippers –
and these are sold in plenty. Sweetmeat shops enjoy a brisk sale
although the chowmeins and idli-dosa stalls put in a good
competition. Different publication houses and little magazines have
their respective corners. Sriniketan – the vocational training
institute founded by Rabindranath – has an exhibition of
organically grown vegetables as well as of handcrafted items.
Commuting between the
university campus and the fairground, we visited ‘Bichitra’,
the museum dedicated to Tagore and filled with Tagore memorabilia ;
the tectonically stylized yet mud-built houses where Tagore lived at
different times of the year; the murals and sculptures exhibited at
Kala Bhavan ; the deer park and Sriniketan. It is 3 km away from
the university. Although real estate is booming, still the place is
comfortably swathed in green and with not much auto mobile traffic
(walking or cycling is the common mode of commuting), Shantiniketan
offers a welcome weekend getaway, any time throughout the year and
specially during its festive days.
INFORMATION
Bolpur, 2km ahead of
Shantiniketan, is the nearest town and railhead from Kolkata.
Although there are several trains between Kolkata and Bolpur,
Shantiniketan Express is the most convenient. By rail, Shantiniketan
is 136 km from Kolkata while by road, it is 214 km away . Road
conditions are not ideal and hence better avoided. Kolkata is the
nearest airport.
There is plenty of
accommodation available at Bolpur and Shantiniketan but during the
major festivals like Poush Mela, Vasantotsav, etc. advance booking is
advised. A few of the unmarked hotels are Chhuti (booking from
Kolkata office, Ph : 033-2208305, Mark Meadows (booking from
Kolkata office, Ph : 033-2448254, 2440179, Camelia and the
university’s own International Guest House. West Bengal Tourism
Development Corporation’s Shantiniketan Tourist Lodge at Bolpur
Ph : 03463-52699 and Hotel Rangamati with is opposite to it is
mid-budget but clean and comfortable.
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