Seen in the light of the heart

On the evening of Kali Puja, as children, we used to burn candles and decorate the house. Every home was bathed in light. A garland of light was the only thing that could be seen. The fireworks display began after the candle lighting ceremony. What a thrill it was to lose that wager.

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All of the bets had unusual names as well. How many more lovely names could there be? Fireworks, Matabbaji, Chili Baji, Kathibaji, Dillapatash, Malabaji, Bangabaji, Sapbaji, Phuljhuri? We used to go in groups through the mahalla. When one side's betting was finished, the other team would begin. This carried on for quite a while.

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Kali Puja was performed late at night. Its main attraction was staying up all night. Permission could be obtained from his parents. The night is not less long. I sleep twelve months of the year and spend the night. So it is not known what it feels like to spend the night just walking on the streets. It was known on the night of Kali Puja

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One of the funny things we had was that during Lakshmi Puja, we used to store as many coconuts as were broken, that is, the shells (that is, ‘Aichcha’). On the night of Kali Puja, we used to make a flashlight by placing candles in a coconut shell.

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There was a sense of bravery in lighting a candle inside the shell and walking around in that light. At one or two o'clock in the morning, the excitement of waking up all night would subside. Then I would go back to my house and sleep.