Silchar, Oct 19: Pinki had come to a Durga Puja pandal at Silchar’s Town Club field looking for food. Instead, she found herself among 130 young girls worshipped as embodiments of the divine feminine during Kumari Puja.
The little girl, who reportedly came to Silchar from Malda in West Bengal around two years ago, was noticed outside the pandal by Dr Mithun Roy, a member of Sanskriti Chetana Nyas, while the morning rituals were underway. After learning that she was asking for food, the organisers decided to bring her into the ceremony.
They arranged clothes for her and seated her alongside the other girls. Manoj Ghosh, a member of the organisation, performed her worship, while others offered their blessings.
For Pinki, the occasion was an unfamiliar experience, but one she said she enjoyed.
“I like the Puja. I live with my mother and siblings. My father is no more, and I do not go to school,” she said.
Pinki, who came looking for food, was welcomed & worshipped at a Durga Puja pandal in Silchar (Photo: AT)
Her brief account offered a glimpse into the circumstances of a child whose morning had begun with a search for food and ended with her being welcomed into a religious observance.
For Sanskriti Chetana Nyas, the incident also brought into focus the broader social purpose behind its cultural initiatives.
Prof Niranjan Roy, president of the organisation, said it sought to bring people from different communities together through cultural and religious observances.
Established recently, the organisation was formed in response to what Roy described as a felt need to foster social cohesion.
“The worship of the Mother Goddess offered an opportunity to communicate values that extend beyond ritual,” he said.
The decision to include Pinki gave that message a tangible expression. Kumari Puja centres on the reverence of young girls as manifestations of the divine feminine.
Yet, just outside the pandal, Pinki had been looking for something as basic as food.
Her inclusion brought these two realities together - the symbolic honour accorded to girls during the ritual and the everyday needs of a child who says she does not attend school.
For the organisers, the morning became an example of how cultural and religious traditions can create opportunities for inclusion. For Pinki, it was a Puja she said she liked.
As Durga Puja celebrations continue across the region, her story offers a reminder that reverence for the feminine divine carries a meaning beyond the ritual itself.
The enduring test lies in whether concern for children in vulnerable circumstances continues after the festivities end, through access to education, reliable care and the basic necessities of life.