Ganesh Chaturthi is being celebrated with great enthusiasm across the country. We asked actress Paallavi Chatterjee, who was recently seen in The Revolutionaries, what the Ganpati festival means to her. She says, “Ganapati Puja is huge in Maharashtra, not in Bengal. Now, of course, people have started celebrating it at home in Kolkata. Ganesh Puja was never big or widely celebrated in Bengali families, especially during my growing-up years. Lord Ganesha is known as Vighnaharta, the remover of obstacles. I think for me, since I have a temple in my Kolkata and Mumbai homes, worshipping Lord Ganesha protects me every day from a lot of hurdles in everyday life.”
Festivals are becoming bigger and more commercialised every year. Do you think we are holding on to the essence of Ganesh Chaturthi, or are we sometimes losing it in the celebration? On this, she says, “No, I don’t think we are losing anything in the celebration because, in India, we are the blessed ones to celebrate all the festivals, and one has a choice to keep it private or go all out. Also, a lot of revenue comes from these festivals, and for people who are unfortunately not so rich, this is something to look forward to, enjoy with the family and get Bappa’s blessings.”
She adds, “I love and look forward to being invited, getting blessings and meeting everyone! ‘Bhog’ in any form is satisfying, and ‘main bahut shiddat se puja karti hoon.’”
The celebrated actor from Kolkata, Paallavi Chatterjee, is currently seen in Nikkhil Advani’s The Revolutionaries, as well as in the Hindi feature film Shawlwala, along with several other films and short films that are currently under production.
