✨ Cultural Gem Festival

Durga Puja Is UNESCO World Heritage

In December 2021 UNESCO inscribed "Durga Puja in Kolkata" on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

UNESCO recognised Durga Puja not only as a religious festival but as a vast public celebration of art and craft — the clay idols made by the artisans of Kumartuli, the themed pandals designed by artists, the dhaak drummers, and the way the festival brings together people of every background.

The festival also supports a huge creative economy: sculptors, decorators, lighting artists, tailors and caterers work all year for the five days of the puja. Bengali communities from Bengaluru to London and New Jersey carry the same traditions to their own pandals each autumn.

The idols are made in the traditional potters' quarter of Kumartuli in north Kolkata. Artisans build a straw frame, coat it with clay from the banks of the Hooghly, add fine layers of clay and cloth, and finally paint the faces — the eyes, painted on Mahalaya in a ritual called chokkhu daan, are the last touch.

Pandals have become an art form of their own. Some recreate famous buildings or villages; others tell stories about the environment or society, using everyday materials in surprising ways. Families spend nights “pandal hopping”, and the city's streets stay busy until dawn.

The UNESCO listing also recognised the festival's inclusiveness: people of every community visit the pandals, and the puja is organised by neighbourhood committees rather than temples. The same spirit travels abroad, where Bengali associations in London, New Jersey, Toronto and Singapore hold Durga Puja with the dhaak, pushpanjali and bhog, keeping the tradition alive for the next generation.