{ Anand Sagar's Ramayan AT #2 } - Page 80

A Bengali, Durga puja is by far the most important festival for Debina. Says the 24-year-old Bengali, with an impressive Hindi, "Back home, Durga puja is how Ganpati is here, and in fact larger. Durga puja is like a social festival, with beautiful pandals everywhere. Streets are a changed place; it's like a big fair. Not many bring the Goddess home, as it's not a small deity and only huge deities are put up." She goes on to share her privileged association with the festival, "Durga's idols are made in Kumortuli with the clay from the banks of Ganges, the road to which passes by our home. When the veiled deity is being taken from Kumortuli, we get the privilege to get a glimpse of her before it reaches the pandals. Around 200 people carry the deity from Kumortuli to the pandals on a huge bamboo stretcher. It's a feast to the eye and cannot be put in words." Her family also get to bid the final farewell as the deity is taken via the same way for immersion in the Ganges.

As the shooting of the show takes place in Baroda, the inseparable lead pair is every happy to be able to come home to Mumbai, and celebrate Dassera with their parents, who have specially come down for the occasion. Informs Gurmeet, "Though I had been shooting in Baroda, my parents had already come down to conduct Durga puja at home. I am glad to be to able to attend at least one day of the puja."

For the past two years, Debina's Dassera with her parents has been almost like a joyride she says, "I guess if you are a Bengali, you can smell the Durga puja celebrations. Earlier I only knew of the Durga puja hosted at Lokhandwala by Abhijeet, and at Santacruz by Rani Mukherjee's family. Then we decided to just drive around and discovered a lot more pandals. We happened to come across one just last year in Malad. It was a real nice experience, and we actually sat there for hours."

Considering, they are heading back to Baroda tonight, it definitely would be unfortunate to miss dandiya folk dance form in its heartland, both agree. Says Gurmeet, "We are definitely looking forward to playing dandiya in Baroda. It's the ultimate."

For now, however, they are prepared to spend their festive time shooting and don't mind it a bit. "After all we are almost living the life of Ram and Sita," says Debina of being a part of the centuries old epic, whose underlying principles are even relevant today. Ma Durga's triumph over the demon king Mahishasur, and Lord Ram's victory over Ravan give hope that in this kalyug as well, good will fade the malevolence. This hope also lights in the hearts of Ram Gurmeet and Sita Debina.

If Gurmeet had had the fortune of descending as Lord Ram in this time, he would want to put an end to terrorism that is gripping the globe. "My dad's in the army and I have seen terrorism from close quarters. Terrorists are claiming innocents lives with their evil acts. Bomb blasts are destroying families taking there loved ones away. Tomorrow it could be my loved ones or me. Ram's birth was destined to finish Ravan. For me, today, this would be my mission. Ravan was the Rakshash then, terrorism is the Rakshash now, and it has to end." Can we hear someone say ?Tathaastu??