chandannagar-the-glowing-heartbeat-of-bengal

As the festival season unfurls its golden drapery, the city and suburbs shimmer under a dazzling blanket of light. In Kolkata, when the phrase light art is whispered, one name gleams above all—Chandannagar. Long before the pandal gates open, many puja committees make their decision: the illumination must come from the Hooghly district’s “City of Light.”

 

The reason is no mystery. Chandannagar’s light artistry is not mere decoration—it is a legend. Its fame has travelled from the streets of London to the ghats of Kolkata, transforming bamboo frames and electric wires into poetry in motion. This year, too, the artisans of this former French colony are scripting fresh marvels with LED, pixel lights and 3D animation, ensuring that the Puja nights will be nothing short of ethereal.

 

Chandannagar’s Jagaddhatri Puja has long been synonymous with lights, but the artists’ work no longer stops at their city’s borders. They illuminate Kolkata’s grandest Durga Pujas, adorn Delhi’s streets and send their creations as far as Gujarat and Jharkhand.

 

This year, the themes leap from ancient myth to modern science. From Operation Sindoor and tributes to the Indian Army, to Sunita Williams’ space voyage, Chandannagar’s artisans have stretched their imagination skyward.

 

One of the brightest stars in this constellation is Susweta Pal, daughter of the late light maestro Babu Pal. Carrying her father’s torch forward, she has designed a 360-degree LED installation portraying Sunita Williams’ return from space. “We have three projects in Kolkata this year,” she explained. “Sreebhumi Sporting, Singhi Park and another in Punjabi Bagh, Delhi. At Sreebhumi, where the theme is ‘Temple,’ we are illuminating the gates of Jagannath temples in Digha and Puri, along with Kedarnath. The structures soar between 22 and 50 feet.”

 

Susweta’s team has also created a glowing tribute to the armed forces. “Through Operation Sindoor, we’ve honoured the army with Sudarshan Chakra missiles and the mighty S-400, alongside Krishna’s Sudarshan Chakra from the Puranas,” she said. The installations, rising to 20 feet, combine patriotism and mythology in a single sweep of light. With an estimated budget of Rs 25 lakh, her team’s work will gleam not just in Kolkata but across the country.

 

Sketches that breathe into bulbs

 

Behind every spectacle lies painstaking craftsmanship. The process begins not with wires but with pencil strokes. Sketch artists first draft concepts on paper, which are then scaled to life-size blueprints spanning dozens of feet. Only then do electricians and metalworkers weave in thousands of bulbs and LED nodes, transforming visions into luminous realities.

 

Veteran designer Asim Roy, who has worked for decades in Chandannagar, described the foundation of this art: “The main work is drawing. That is what I do, and that is what keeps this tradition alive. This year, I sketched the frameworks for both Operation Sindoor and Sunita Williams’ mission. We highlighted her return from space and the bravery of the Indian Army through 22-foot-high structures. I learnt from Satinath Dutt, one of our most famous artists, and I carry forward his legacy.”

 

Roy’s emphasis is clear: without drawing, the light has no story. The bulbs may glow, but the narrative is born in the sketchpad.

 

Light as living theatre

 

Another renowned craftsman, Asim Kumar De, has gone a step further. He has brought the ISRO space mission to life with 3D animation. Using LED, neon, and ‘roop’ lights mounted on iron frames, De has created a moving tableau of an astronaut emerging from a rocket—an electrifying sight that will dance across Kolkata skies.

 

“This year, I have projects in Gujarat, Hooghly, and Kolkata,” he said. “At Baranagar Napara Dadabhai Sangha, Serampore, Picnic Garden Tiljala, and others, we are building 50-foot gates, lighted pillars, and elaborate road illuminations. Even Kolkata’s Dum Dum Airport will wear Chandannagar’s colours, with tricolour road lights for Puja.”

 

For Chandannagar’s artisans, Jagaddhatri Puja remains the pinnacle of their craft. “The light procession here is our crown jewel,” Asim De added. “But our mechanism is unique—we don’t replicate others. This year, I have focused on ISRO’s Vision Missile Technology. A 3D lightscape shows astronauts in orbit, how they live, how they work. Its science made visible through light.”

 

The magic and the machine

 

What distinguishes Chandannagar’s lights is their blend of tradition and innovation. The older generation wove patterns with simple bulbs; today’s artisans wield LEDs, programmable pixels and 3D animations that rival cinema. Yet the ethos remains the same: to capture human imagination through light.

 

Each installation is a small army of labour: designers, welders, electricians and testers working day and night. Frames of 22 to 50 feet are assembled like stage sets. The wiring alone can take weeks, each connection checked, rechecked, and synced with controllers to ensure animations ripple smoothly across the boards.

 

Despite this complexity, the artists’ remuneration often lags behind their fame. “We wait for Puja season all year,” said one craftsman. “It is our livelihood. The world sees the glamour, but behind it is sweat, burns, and sleepless nights.”

 

A city’s identity written in light

 

Chandannagar, once a French colony on the banks of the Hooghly, has reinvented itself as India’s Ville Lumière. The Jagaddhatri Puja processions here, ablaze with moving tableaux of gods, epics, and global events, are spectacles of collective pride. This tradition has travelled outward, ensuring that whether it is a pandal in North Kolkata or a street corner in Delhi, the magic of Chandannagar is never far away.

 

Also read: Children of Sonagachi rewrite the rules of Durga Puja
 

This year’s offerings—Sunita Williams, ISRO rockets, Operation Sindoor, Krishna’s Sudarshan Chakra—reveal the breadth of imagination. Mythology meets military, space science meets spiritual devotion. The lights do not merely decorate; they narrate, provoke, and inspire.

 

As designer Asim Kumar De put it: “Through light, we make the unimaginable tangible. We bring space, mythology, and patriotism to the streets, so that children, elders, everyone, can see and understand.”

 

A tribute and homage

 

This year, the Santosh Mitra Square Durga Puja pandal embraces the theme ‘Operation Sindoor,’ a tribute to the martyrs of the Pahalgam terror attack and a homage to the courage of the Indian Army. Nestled in Santosh Mitra Square—a historic park named after Bengali freedom fighter and martyr Santosh Kumar Mitra—the venue itself embodies layers of historical and political significance, enriching the cultural tapestry of the celebration.

 

“Architecturally, the pandal is conceived as a rugged mountain, punctuated by a cave—an allegory for the treacherous terrains Indian soldiers’ traverse, evoking the battlefield spirit of regions such as Pahalgam. Its exterior brims with military symbolism: camouflage motifs, barbed wire, and soldier silhouettes intricately integrated into artistic murals. The structure, colossal and meticulously crafted with modern materials like fibre, exudes both realism and durability,” said Sajal Ghosh, one of the puja organisers and a BJP leader.

 

Chandannagar’s skilled artisans have imbued the pandal with a palpable sense of patriotism and valour. “Our venue honours freedom fighter Santosh Mitra. Our brave soldiers safeguard India’s frontiers following the Pahalgam tragedy. This year’s theme is our heartfelt salute to their heroism,” remarked Sajal Ghosh, one of the puja organisers and a BJP leader.

 

More than illumination, a living heritage

 

To call Chandannagar’s creations “lights” is an understatement. They are living theatre in bulbs, spectacles where culture, science, and devotion intertwine. In a city where Durga Puja pandals often compete in grandeur, Chandannagar’s illuminations remain the glowing heartbeat of Bengal’s festive season.

 

As the first beats of the dhaak (drum) sound and Kolkata readies for its annual carnival, all eyes will once again turn skyward, searching for the shimmering brushstrokes of Chandannagar. For in the City of Light, the canvas is the night itself.

 

By Pranab Mondal