In my childhood, Mahalaya, meant waking up at the crack of dawn to listen to the Chandipath on the radio. Only Generation X and the early Y’ers in India will truly relate to this. Preparations always began the previous evening—my brother and I were tasked with adjusting the antenna and checking the connections of our trusty old valve radio to catch the shortwave transmission from AIR Kolkata.
The broadcast was riddled with interference and static and as is wont with shortwave transmission the narration would fade out and fade in almost in synch with the narration! Yet we sat glued to the radio, listening to the Chandipath entranced by the inimitable voice of Birendra Krishna Bhadra; his recitation built in pitch and intensity, minute by minute, until it reached a stirring crescendo… Namastasoy namastasoy namoh namah! With a steaming cup of tea in hand and biscuits on the side, we listened for over an hour. Mahalaya was more than just a ritual—it was the signal that Durga Puja was around the corner and school vacation was not far behind.
Fast forward a few years: living in Finland, at the end of Pitripaksha, I heard my Kaka and cousin performing tarpan on the banks of the Ganges in Kolkata. My kaka asked if Mahalaya was celebrated in Finland, and whether anyone performed tarpan here. That question got me thinking. When I polled the community, the response was—understandably—lukewarm.
After all, an early morning ritual of dipping in the freezing waters of the Baltic was quite a daunting ask! A few intrepid souls stepped up, and thus was born The Bravehearts (Shantimoy, Raj, Sohan to name a few)—a group daring enough to perform tarpan in the Baltic sea! For good measure, Ira promised garom cha and luchi-aloo and mishti for the volunteers. Over the years, this became a tradition and more and more people came forward. In this year’s edition, Indrayudh, Indranil, Gaurav and Soumiti joined the Bravehearts for Tarpan.
The highlight this year at Haukilahti beach was when Soumiti performed tarpan, breaking away from tradition that only males could perform this ritual. A few curious Finnish bathers—who had come for a dip—stopped to watch. They listened with genuine curiosity as we explained the significance of Mahalaya, bridging cultures in the most unexpected of ways.