PHOENIX PHOTOGRAPHY

Kumortuli or Kumartuli is a colony of sculptors in Kolkata, West Bengal, India who specializes in making various sculptures and idols of gods and goddesses of every religion.

These artisans are settled in this colony since ages and making their living by this special profession. These artisans of Kolkata waits every year for DURGOTSAVA – the most celebrated festival of the Eastern part of India including West Bengal, Odisha, Assam, Tripura and parts of Bihar and Jharkhand. Durga Puja or Durgotsav is also celebrated in countries like Nepal and by the Hindu community of Bangladesh.

Mr. Swarnendu Ballav talks about his experience at Kumortuli and he has documented the beautiful art of idol making by the artisans through his photographs.

Introduction : 

I am Swarnendu Ballav, born in a small town at Garhbeta,West Midnapore and brought up at North Kolkata. Professionally I am a back office executive in a banking and finance related firm.Photography is my hobby. I started my photography in the end of 2019 as a street photographer. Other than street photography I love to take pictures of birds and landscape or nature.What really attracts me in street photography are it’s candid moments, street drama, street action, contemporary photography and different stories it conveys.

My Kumortuli Experience:

Kolkata‚ the City of Joy, has many renowned places, the true colour of the city can only be experienced only if you visit those iconic places. One of such few is Kumortuli, the place of the Potters. This place is situated beside the Hooghly river in the older part of Kolkata. The sculptors required clay for making the idol. That’s why they located themselves near the river in Shovabazar area. The main occupation of this place, for centuries, has been making of the clay idols of Gods and Goddesses, worshipped during the festivals in India. From my childhood I have a fantasy about idol making. I live near Simla Byayam Samity, a famous community Durga Puja of Kolkata. Here from childhood I have seen the idol is made at the puja ground. I have seen it to be grown from the hay-bamboo structure to the final deity. So, there was always a curiosity in me to explore this art of idol making. In the morning of the Mahalaya, we used to visit Kumartuli every year with my father to see how the Goddess’s eyes were painted. It was the moment when I first felt goosebumps in my body. It was a different feeling. Year after year the relationship with this place grew stronger. I use to visit the riverside with my friends everytime we visited Kumartuli and checked what was going on there. The low light bulbs, the strokes of the brush, shaping soil to turn into a human-like figure, it all feels so magical to me. I often visit there, click photographs of the various action of the artists. It makes me feel content to capture the memory of their hard-work and their art form. This place is so famous that idols are now even sold to abroad. Throughout the year it serves for all kinds of festivals for all religions and makes us belief, we are all one, all humans. Kumortuli is a place that I cherish always, it never makes me sad or bored. These narrow streets, halogen lights and artist’s sweat will always be a pearl of my greatest rewards.