The Slough Durga Puja 2010 will be celebrated at Baylis House, Stoke Poges Lane, Slough, SL1 3PB from 13th - 17th October. Come and enjoy the pandal / marquee experience at a fantastic venue in Slough.
Slough Durga Puja 2010
Durga Puja is the largest festival of Bengalis across the world. The city of Kolkata becomes a world in microcosm for nearly a week in mid-autumn. The entire city transforms into a fairy land of light and music. Going from one Puja extravaganza to another, organized by various local committees who try to out do one another in pomp and grandeur, is an unbelievable experience.
Creating an ambiance in the UK even close to that in Kolkata during the Durga Puja is an impossible task but Royal Berkshire Bengali Association ("rbba") is almost doing the impossible. For "rbba", the goal is to organise and celebrate durga puja in the UK in the "Bengali way", that feels more like revisiting one's roots. The social interaction that one has during their puja makes it a very pleasant experience. The environment feels as close to home as possible with the sounds of real "dhak" and the "pandal" atmosphere.
This year, Durga Puja will be celebrated at Baylis House, Stoke Poges Lane, Slough, SL1 3PB from 13th - 17th October. Their website www.therbba.org contains all the detailed information about the puja.
"rbba" is a multicultural organisation in the Berkshire region of UK that brings the Bengali community across the south of England together. Last year's inaugural Durga Puja turned out to be a huge success with over 2,500 people from diverse social, cultural and religious background attending the festival over the 5 days. The festival has generated incredible enthusiasm among the Indian community as this is the only celebration of its kind in the UK to be held in a marquee and provide the ethnic feeling that one associates with Durga Puja back in India.
"rbba" feels that it is more important to make the younger generation aware of the mythological relevance of Durga. They emphasise more on cultural side. So, rather than bringing in artists from Kolkata or try to make it entertainment based, they conduct various cultural programmes performed by children and members of the local community.
While Durga Puja is about celebration of culture, "rbba" also uses this festival as a platform for business houses to reach out to the Indian community in the UK and showcase their products and services. This year, organisations supporting their puja include TV channels, banks, real estates, radio stations, travel companies and even beauty salons.
See link for more details on Slough Durga Puja 2010 timings / schedule.
http://www.thebestof.co.uk/local/slough/events/264774/durga-puja-2010