Ananda Sangbad 2024 Q1

Ananda Mandir

269 Cedar Grove Lane Somerset, NJ 08873

Ananda Sangbad A Quarterly Publication of Ananda Mandir, New Jersey

NON-PROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ PERMIT NO. 1215

January 2024 Ananda Mandir Calendar of Events (Dates are subject to Change) Please check our website frequently www.anandamandir.org Tel: 732-873-9821 NOTE: For Puja time please contact temple or visit our website: anandamandir.org

DECEMBER 2023 Shyama Puja Tuesday, 12 Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 24 JANUARY 2024 Darshan & Archana Monday, 1 Satyanarayan Puja Monday, 1 Shyama Puja Wednesday, 10 Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 21

We wish every member of the Ananda Mandir community a very happy, healthy and peaceful New Year!

FEBRUARY 2024 Ratanti Kali Puja Thursday, 8 Shyama Puja Friday, 9 Saraswati Puja Wednesday, 14 Bani Bandana Sunday, 18 Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 18 MARCH 2024 Maha Shivaratri Friday, 8 Shyama Puja Saturday, 9 Dol Purnima Sunday, 24 Saryanarayan Puja Sunday, 24 (*) See www.anandamandir.org or Call Mandir for details

Special Religious Services: Upon request, the priest of Ananda Mandir offers services such as in-house Shraddhas, Rituals associated with Cremations (Antyesti Kriya), Shraddha Anniversaries, Pre-wedding rituals (Naandimukh, Ashirwad, etc.), Upanayan (Paitey), Annaprasan, Wedding Ceremonies & Wedding Anniversaries, Griha Prabesh (Bhumi Puja), Consecrations of new cars (New Car Pujas) and others. If you have needs for any of the above or more, please feel free to contact Biswabhai @ 732-873-9821

2 January 2024 Ananda Sangbad A Periodical Newsletter Published By

ANANDA MANDIR (A Tax-Exempt, Non-Profit Organization) 269 Cedar Grove Lane Somerset, NJ 08873 Phone: 732-873-9821 Website: www.anandamandir.0rg ***

Debajyoti Chatterji

Executive Editor (Acting) All queries, articles, news reports and letters should be directed to debsmees572@gmail.com

Phone: 908-507-9640 ***

For general information, please contact the following executives of Ananda Mandir:

Ananda Sangbad

SALUTE TO OUR VOLUNTEERS!

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nanda Mandir is justifiably proud of a smooth operation year after year.

In a typical year, we organize over seventy religious events in our temple, offer half a dozen cultural programs in Tagore Hall, hold several classes on a weekly basis for children in the Front Building, conduct special programs for senior citizens, regularly publish magazines and newsletters, and encourage writers to pursue literary interests. During Durga Puja and Kali Puja, we serve more than 5000 lunches/ dinners, in addition to serving dinners to all devotees attending all our other puja events. We provide detailed reports to our members on past year’s accomplishments and our plans for the coming year through Annual General Meetings and Annual Fund-raising Luncheons.

Also, our priest, Biswabhai, provides personal religious services like administration of last rites and performance of shraddha or events like

annaprasan and wedding.

Last but not the least, we constantly take care of three buildings and the almost 10 acres of grounds associated with these three buildings.

Many of our members and well-wishers may not know the many behind-the-scenes volunteers who are responsible for the year-round smooth operation of Ananda Mandir.

These are the folks whom you do not see at the pujas or cultural events, the ones who don’t get much public recognition. But without their active support, we could not offer the services we offer or meet the year-round maintenance requirements of our 10 acres campus!

So, let’s express our gratitude this time to the many members of our Maintenance Committee. Theyworked year around, and not only did they take care of numerous “regular maintenance” tasks but also responded to calls for “urgent” action at all hours.

2023 was a very busy year

for the members of our Maintenance Committee. They took care of all the “regular maintenance” items such as fertilizing and mowing the lawn, snow removal, care of shrubs and trees, sprinkler system, children’s playground, HVAC equipment, spring cleanup, fire and burglar alarm systems, periodic cleaning of grease traps in the kitchens, and many other tasks. They made sure that we passed all inspections such as the ones mandated by the Township Fire Department and the County Health Department (for our kitchens).

The team also faced many unusual (and major) maintenance and repair/renovation challenges during the year.

Here are the most significant ones: • Removal of many custommade light fixtures on the ceiling of the Prayer Hall and replacement with readily available and lower cost alternatives; • Repair, renovation and re-

painting of the wooden deck at the back of the Priest Residence; • Repair and refurbishment of our “scissor lift” (used to handle tasks at extra-high ceiling levels in Tagore Hall and the temple); • Complete clean-up and rearrangement of our garage storage area • Fixing the nagging problems with the main doors of the temple • Satisfying the “Knox Box” requirements of the Township Fire Department.

For 2024, the team has several major “repair/replace/renovate” items on their plate: • Inspection and repair of the temple and the Tagore Hall roofs • Painting of parking lot lines • Possible replacement of the Front Building roof • Installation of a canopy over the back entrance to Tagore Hall We wish our Maintenance Committee every success in the New Year!

Anjan Lahiri President Jai Prakash Biswas Vice President Debajyoti Chatterji Vice President Ashok Rakhit Vice President Arun Bhowmik General Secretary Sanchoy Das Treasurer Pradip Majumdar Assistant Treasurer

Repair/Renovation of the Deck

BECOME A MEMBER OF ANANDA MANDIR AND PARTICIPATE IN THE COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES TO ENRICH YOUR FAMILY Repair of Temple DoorsInstallation of “Knox Box”

Inspection of Tagore Hall Roof

January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

3

A TRIBUTE TO OUR MOTHER: PRATIVA HORE

By Shravani Kosnik (New Jersey) & Indrani Dhar (New York)

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hen we were asked to put together a tribute in honor of our mother, Prativa Hore, we at first panicked, feeling there would be no way we could do her justice within the boundary of 1200 words. Her impact on our lives was so deep, her presence so larger than life, that we are only now realizing the extent of our loss. We decided to describe her fascinating 90-year life in chapters.

Chapter 1 The Gram (Village) Our Ma was born in Gomdandi, a small village just outside of Chittagong in undivided India, to loving parents Charulata (nee Bal) and Upendra Rakshit. Shegrew up in a large extended family with her 5 brothers and 1 sister, aunts and uncles and numerous cousins. Her mother helped run the household while her father stayed 15 km away, across the Karnaphali River in Chittagong proper to run his law practice, coming home to their gram-er bari(home) every Friday to be with the family.

Ma loved recounting stories of life growing up in such verdant surroundings: Hilarious tales of childhood antics with her siblings and cousins. Tragic ones also, such as the horrific Bengal Famine, its impact on Chittagong, and how it made her sensitive to the plight of those less fortunate. Scary yet exciting stories of routine Japanese air raids during WW2 causing the sirens to go off and everyone hiding for cover, usually under the bed if you could fit. In one such recounting, a British bomber crash-landed near her village and the pilot emerged alive; it was the talk of the town. But her most prideful story was of her Indian Independence fighter uncles Lokenath and Harigopal (Tegra) Bal, her mother’s brothers, who were members of the resistance movement led by Surya Sen. They carried out the famous Chittagong armory raid in 1930, in which her uncle Tegra was killed. Lokenath Bal was arrested and spent 15 years in the infamous cellular jail in the Andaman Islands. He later became the Deputy Commissioner of Kolkata. Ma always brimmed with pride over his bravery and self-sacrifice.

These were her formative years from which she would develop her deep sense of duty to family and friends, her open-mindedness and flexibility, her fearless -- and some would say feisty -- nature, her optimism, and her love of adventure.

Chapter 2 The Union One day when our mom’s eldest brother Dilip returned home on school break from Presidency College, he

brought along a close friend who was studying at St. Xavier’s, Lalmohan Hore. From a distance our mother eyed this dashing, well-dressed fellow and was smitten. We’re unsure who made the first move, but the affection became mutual and the rest is history. Our mother traveled by palki and wed our father in style. Thus began this amazing union of two charismatic people and their families that would help lay the path for so many in our clan to come to America. That clan has now grown to almost 60 people with the youngest two additions born just a year ago.

Chapter 3 Chasing the American Dream In 1969, our parents immigrated from India to New Jersey via a two-year stay in Montreal. They were among the small group of early Bengali immigrants, really pioneers, who laid the foundation for so much that our Bengali community enjoys today.

Only a handful of families were here, clinging to each other and to anyone newly arriving, with the hopes of preserving what they all left behind. From this deep desire to reconnect with other Bengalis and to grow something of value for future generations, Kallol of NJ was born in 1975. Named after a club my parents were closely involved with in Asansol where they lived for many years, Kallol would grow to be one of the most well-known, dynamic and respected Bengali organizations in America. Our parents devoted so much time and energy to growing this organization that we would frequently joke about it being our 3rd sibling and our parents’ favorite child. Ma served as Kallol’s first woman President in 1984 through 1986, executive board member and Puja Committee Chair for several terms. She remained very active in fund raising and public relations, including participating in numerous cultural programs, theater and dance dramas.

Chapter 4 Family, Friends and Everything In Between This perhaps was the most important part of ourMother’s life. Oh, what she would not do for her family and dear friends! And how she lived life to the fullest – from creating a beautiful life for her children; to having loads of fun with her grandchildren and brand new great-grandchild Ian; from travelling all around the world with my father exploring new cultures and cuisines; to always looking her best on special occasions – replete with matching nail polish, jewelry and of course sunglasses; from learning about plate tectonics, geology

and evolution (her favorite topics); to dancing up a storm whenever a good song came on, even while she was using oxygen and a walker. She was incredible, full of surprises and truly one of a kind. We can only hope that our lives will be a tenth as impactful as hers was.

Chapter 5 Devotion In 1995, my parents more deeply embraced their spiritual side when they became one of the founders and early contributors to the formation of Ananda Mandir. Our mother attended almost every board meeting and fundraiser, until she no longer had the strength or stamina to. The mandir grew from a modest one-room temple into the magnificent structure and cultural center that it is today, enjoyed by thousands of Bengalis and non-Bengalis. To her it was her second home, a place of comfort and peace, particularly after our father passed in 2012. She frequently went, sometimes just to sit quietly on the side while Biswabhai performed his daily rituals. Other times, she would go just to drop off food and have an impromptu adda session with him.

The mandir gave her such a sense of joy and renewed purpose and she continued visiting there often, until the week before October 9, 2023, the day she left us. She was ready. She was at peace and her job here done.

Chapter 6 The Goodbye Family and friends delivered beautiful tributes at Ma’s funeral and sraddha; they spoke of her deep love and support for the community, which she helped nurture from seedling to mighty banyan tree, laying roots that allowed newer organizations to take hold and thrive. Many also spoke about the deep impact she had on their own personal lives; how she often served as a cheerleader or even de facto mother figure, always providing the right words of encouragement. We are forever indebted to the close friends and relatives who took such excellent care of her in the last several years of her life, regularly checking in on her or taking her out on fun outings. You all made her very happy, and for that we will never forget your kindness.

Ma has taught us many wonderful lessons: to be respectful and caring of our elders; to always help those in need; to be open-minded and nondogmatic; to forgive and move forward; to never stop being curious about the world and to never stop pushing forward even when faced with adversity.

We hope Kallol and Ananda Mandir will carry on their good work for a long time to come, led by new generations of young leaders who would want to make a difference. For us, her family, we will also try to do the same in her memory. We will miss you, our dearest beloved Ma. Keep smiling and looking out for all of us.

4 January 2024

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few months ago, a friend of mine insisted we go watch the movie, ‘Oppenheimer’ (2023, Dir: Nolan, C.). So, we did. While the movie’s epic scope and historical significance moved me, I was left with an array of nagging discomfort. I had already heard buzz about the film’s biased perspectives – that it had ignored the contributions of women and scientists of color; that it had disregarded the lingering sufferings of Japanese non-combatants as well as the first nations inhabiting the test site; that it was nothing but a rah! rah! for the U.S. While all the criticisms were largely true, I was particularly shocked at the film’s cavalier treatment of women scientists, who, I believe, were not insignificant in number. The director had done his duty by gender-inclusion with a cameo appearance of ‘Lilli Hornig,’ a chemist.

The film had not only whitewashed but had also turned a gender-blind eye to historical facts.

Why did Oppenheimer’s imbalanced portrayal incense me so? After all, it’s only a film made for entertainment! To explain the root cause of my annoyance, I must discuss the influence films have on us, viewers, particularly developing children, and the historic gender prejudices that plague the movies. To make my case, I will bring in information from both India and the U.S. – countries most relevant to us.

Inarguably, movies occupy a very special and influential place in our societies. Nearly four percent of India’s population (1.43 billion in 2023)i watch films daily in theaters, and many more watch on television and Smart Phone.ii To keep the population entertained, India’s major film industry, dubbed Bollywood, produces nearly 1,000 Hindi films annually,iii and another 800 movies are made in regional states.iv In contrast, around 600 films are made in Hollywood every year.v In today’s world, how we dress, the language we use, the way we dance, sing, eat, worship, get married, and celebrate birthdays, are all influenced by what we watch in movies. At times, even the deities we worship are born on the silver-screen. An example of such an event is the advent of ‘Santoshi Mata,’ whose celebration became widely popular in India after a movie of the same name was released in 1975.vi Films’ impact on society can also be gaged by the number of actors who, despite their political inexperience, win elections to high offices in both India and the U.S. Given the deep influence movies have on us, we can rightly assume that they teach us lessons in gender roles, education and career choices, relationships, and human interactions. Now the question is, given such power over lives, could we not use movies to teach egalitarian gender relationships?

Unfortunately, when we turn to films as a tool to redress gender inequalities, what immediately comes to notice are the gender disparities entrenched in the industry itself.

Worldwide movements, such as ‘Me

Ananda Sangbad

WOMEN IN FILMS

By Shamita Das Dasgupta (New Jersey) Too’vii and ‘Time’s Up’viii have exposed the horrific conditions women face in movie workplaces. Nonetheless, detractors of these movements claim that gender discrimination in film industries is a thing of the past.

They indicate the increasing numbers of women centered movies produced each year, the prominent women directors working in the field, and the amount of money female stars make.

Blatantly missing from this list are women technicians and editors, who seem to be lost in the melee. But have the times really changed?

In India currently, for every 6.2 men engaged in films, there is only one woman. Among active directors, 9.1 percent are women, whereas there is not even a single female decisionmaker among film-producers.ix The problem with such skewed representation is that the stories selected, and perspectives taken for moviemaking end up being from male viewpoints.

Even women characters are depicted as men imagine them. Male producers and directors tend to be reluctant to choose reality based female centered plots and characters. Of the 1700 films released in India in 2014, less than 25 percent were female centered. An analysis of 4,000 films made between 1970 and 2017 indicate that women’s screen presence was 31.5 percent on average, compared to 68.5 percent of men’s.x Furthermore, only 15 percent movies have presented women as scientists, technical experts, mathematicians, politicians, or successful in business. In most roles, they played a teacher, caregiver, or wife and mother. Sadly, having a job and being a mother and wife are routinely depicted in Indian films as conflicting roles.

Hollywood might fare only slightly better than this dismal picture.

In this highly influential industry, women’s engagement is one in five.

In 2019, women-centered films constituted only 37 percent of total films released.xi A study of 900 films made between 2007 and 2016 showed women had only 30.5 speaking roles, the rest went to men, and only 12 percent movies presented a semblance of gender equality.xii To date, three woman have won an Oscar award for best director – confined to 3 percent in this category. In India, four women have won the Filmfare award for best director.

Another important problem that plagues film industries is the differences of remuneration. In Bollywood, male actors earn five times more than women.xiii In Hollywood, male actors earn at least one million dollars more than women costars. xiv Several Indian female actors have complained that their calls for equal pay have often been rejected by the argument that women’s roles are less demanding than men’s. ‘All women

do is display their bodies and prance around.’ So, the added issue here is how women are portrayed in films.

Often, female characters exist to titillate male viewers’ sexual imaginings. In India, women are shown in skimpy clothes 35 percent of times on screen, compared to men who are in similar attire only 13.5 percent of times. In Hollywood, the statistics in this regard are 26 percent and 5.7 percent respectively.

In such a situation, can we even hope to rectify the abysmal conditions and utilize this powerful tool to change society? Undoubtedly, films can shift society even in a short time.

After the television program ‘Sesame Street’ was introduced in the U.S. in 1969, it ushered in sea-change in child development. Research shows a clear demarcation between pre- and postSesame Street generations. Some of the effects of watching Sesame Street were increased interests in reading, commitment to formal education, and a jump in learning skills. Also, children exhibited higher interests in meeting people from different countries and race. These were not temporary, but permanent shifts in their characters.

Likewise, many films have ushered in substantial psychological and legal transformations in societies. The movie ‘Scum’ (1979, Dir: Clarke, A.) encouraged the closing of England’s brutal juvenile detention home – Borstal; ‘Victim’ (1962, Dir: Dearden, B.) helped change British anti-homosexuality laws; ‘Street of Shame’ (1956, Dir: Mizoguchi, K.) instigated the end of legal prostitution in Japan; and ‘The Snake Pit’ (1948, Dir: Litvak, A.) inspired mental health system reform in the U.S. Recently, after the release of the movie ‘Hidden Figures’ (2016, Dir: Melfi, T.), universities and colleges experienced a noticeable increase in applications from young Black women choosing mathematics and engineering as their fields of study.

After the televising of ‘Roots’ (Miniseries, 1977) and the documentary ‘13th’ (2016, Res. and Dir: DuVernay, A.), the nation was jolted to recognize the foundations of White supremacy and police brutality toward Black compatriots. Many White citizens later acknowledged that watching the ‘13th’ was the paramount reason for their support of ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.

This is perhaps only a partial explanation for my exasperation with the invisibilization of female scientists’ voices in ‘Oppenheimer.’ I believe, director Nolan has missed a real opportunity to showcase the women scientists, mathematicians, and administrators involved in the Manhattan Project and inspire a new generation of girls and young women to embrace STEM disciplines. According to Geena Davis, ‘If she can

see it, she can be it.’ Contrastingly,xv if she cannot see it, she dares not be it.

Here, I make an appeal to you as a viewer. When watching a film or TV program in any language, keep a tally on how many times a girl or woman is being told not to venture out at night, how she should behave in public, when she should come home; asked why she is going out, who she is going out with, and where; or to explain her behavior in general. Do the same with boys and male characters. Second, watch how many times boys and men are given instructions to respect the opposite gender and care for their wellbeing, and vice versa. Compare the statistics you have just culled. Make notes on how many female doctors, engineers, scientists populate the screen, what they do, and how they act. Make sure their occupations are not portrayed as peripheral to their roles as wife and mother. I believe such comparisons will lend you a deeper insight into the gender discrepancy that perpetuates gender inequalities in our societies.

REFERENCES: i. India Population 2023 (Live).

(2023). Available: https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/indiapopulation ii. Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media. (2015). ‘Cinema and society: Shaping our worldview beyond the lens.’ Oak Foundation. Available: https://seejane.org/wp-content/uploads/cinema-and-society-investigation-of-the-impact-on-gender-representation-in-indian-films.pdf. iii. The Real World. (2021, January 1) ‘Welcome to Bollywood: A beginners guide to India’s billion dollar film industry.’ Trafalgar. Available: https://www.trafalgar.com/realword/bollywood-beginners-guideindias-billion-dollar-film-industry/. iv. ‘Cinema of India.’ (2021, September 20). Wikipedia. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_of_India. v. ‘Cinema of the United States.’

(2023, December 10). Wikipedia.

Available: https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Cinema_of_the_ United_States#:~:text=As%20 of%202017%2C%20it%20 produced,released%20on%20average%20every%20year. vi. ‘Santoshi Mata.’ (2021, September 20). Wikipedia. Available: https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santoshi_ Mata. vii. ‘Me Too movement.’ (2023, November 17). Britannica. Available: https://www.britannica.com/topic/ Me-Too-movement. viii. ‘Time’s Up: The next iteration of the #metoo movement.’ (2023). The Social Change Agency. Available: https://thesocialchangeagency.org/ blog/times-up-the-next-iteration-ofthe-metoo-movement/. ix. Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media. (2017, January 17). ‘Only 1 in 10 film directors in India is woman: Study.’ Available: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/ continue to page 13 }

January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

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“SOME ARE BORN GREAT, SOME ACHIEVE GREATNESS, AND SOME HAVE GREATNESS THRUST UPON THEM” the defense of the Scottsboro Boys, a group of Black men falsely accused of raping two White women. Rosa took numerous jobs, ranging from domestic worker to hospital aide. At her husband’s urging, she finished her high school studies in 1933, at a time when fewer than 7% of African Americans had a high-school diploma. In December 1943, Parks became active in the civil rights movement, joined the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP, and was elected secretary at a time when this was considered a woman’s job.

In 1900, Montgomery had passed a city ordinance to segregate bus passengers by race. Conductors were empowered to assign seats to achieve that goal. Over time and by custom, however, Montgomery bus drivers adopted the practice of requiring Black riders to move when there were no White-only seats left.

The first four rows of seats on each Montgomery bus were reserved for Whites. Buses had “colored” sections for Black people generally in the rear of the bus, although Blacks composed more than 75% of the ridership. The sections were not fixed but were determined by placement of a movable sign. Black people could sit in the middle rows until the White section filled. If more Whites needed seats, Blacks were to move to seats in the rear, stand, or, if there was no room, leave the bus.

Black people could not sit across the aisle in the same row as White people. The driver could move the “colored” section sign, or remove it altogether. If White people were already sitting in the front, Black people had to board at the front to pay the fare, then disembark and reenter through the rear door. For years, the Black community had complained that the situation was unfair. Parks said, “My resisting being mistreated on the bus did not begin with that particular arrest.

On Thursday, December 1, 1955, after working all day Parks boarded the to the Montgomery City Lines, around 6 p.m., in downtown Montgomery. She paid her fare and sat in an empty seat in the first row of back seats reserved for Blacks in the “colored” section, directly behind the ten seats reserved for White passengers.

As the bus traveled along its regular route, all of the White-only seats in the bus filled up. Later, when several White passengers boarded, the driver noted that two or three White passengers were standing, as the front of the bus had filled to capacity. He moved the “colored” section sign behind Parks and demanded that four Black people give up their seats in the middle section so that the White passengers could sit. Parks said, “The driver

By Partha Sircar (California)

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was suddenly reminded of this immortal quote. I do not know why or how. I looked up the Internet and found that it is attributed to Shakespeare. About ‘greatness being thrust upon them’, sometimes it has been thrust upon them by a single act on one specific day. Like Rosa Parks in Mobile, Alabama on December 1, 1955 or Matangini Hazra in Midnapore, in Bengal, India on September 15, 1942. Other than that single act on a single day, which threw them to greatness, nay perhaps immortality, there was little in common between the two. The two events took place in two cornersof the world,one In the USA and another, in India, half way across the globe; and at different times – one in 1955 and the other in 1942. There was little similarity between the two women in age or in background. But there is one similarity: On a particular day, they were suddenly inspired to act for a greater cause, which left their footprints in history: Rosa for the Civil Rights in the USA and Matangini for the independence of India from the British.

Rosa Parks

Nothing was remarkable for Rosa Parks till that momentous day on December 1, 1955 in Mobile, Alabama in the segregated south. She was born Rosa Louise McCauley in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1913, to Leona a teacher, and James, a carpenter. She attended rural schools until the age of eleven and then attended Industrial School for Girls in Montgomery for three years. In her final year. Parks went on to a laboratory school set up by the Alabama State Teachers College for Negroes for secondary education, but dropped out to care for her grandmother and later her mother. In 1932, Rosa married Raymond Parks, a barber from Montgomery. He was a member of the NAACP, which at the time was collecting money to support

wanted us to stand up, the four of us. We didn’t move at the beginning, but he says, ‘Let me have these seats.’

And the other three people moved, but I didn’t.” Parks moved, but toward the window seat; she did not get up to move to the redesignated colored section The driver then requested Parks to stand up, which she refused. When repeated appeals failed, , he called the police, When Parks refused to give up her seat, a police officer arrested her. As the officer took her away, she recalled that she asked, “Why do you push us around?” She remembered him saying, “I don’t know, but the law’s the law, and you’re under arrest.” She later said, “I only knew that, as I was being arrested, that it was the very last time that I would ever ride in humiliation of this kind.

Parks later said about being asked to move to the rear of the bus, “I thought of Emmett Till – a 14-year-old African American who was lynched in Mississippi in 1955, after being accused of offending a White woman in her family’s grocery store, whose killers were tried and acquitted – and I just couldn’t go back.” [Four months ago, in August 1955, a Black teenager, Emmett Till, was brutally murdered after reportedly flirting with a young White woman while visiting relatives in Mississippi. On November 27, 1955, only four days before she would make her stand on the bus, Rosa Parks attended a mass meeting at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery that addressed this case, as well as the recent murders of the two other activists. The featured speaker was T. R. M. Howard, a Black civil rights leader from Mississippi who headed the Regional Council of Negro Leadership. Howard brought news of the recent acquittal of the two men who had murdered Till.

Parks was deeply saddened and angry at the news, particularly because Till’s case had garnered much more attention than any of the cases she and the Montgomery NAACP had worked on—and yet, the two men still walked free] Parks was charged with a violation of Chapter 6, Section 11, segregation law of the Montgomery City code, although technically she had not taken a White-only seat; she had been in a colored section. She was bailed out of jail that evening and tried within a few days. She was found guilty and was fined. The arrest and conviction catapulted her to an iconic stature in the Civil Rights Movement.

Rosa Parks moved to Detroit in 1960 with her husband and her mother. She continued her political activism into the 1970s. She died in 2005 in Detroit at the age of 92. The US Postal service issued a commemorative stamp, featuring Rosa Parks in 2013.

Matangini Hazra

The story of Matangini Hazra (1870-1942) was probably even more intriguing. She was born in a poor peasant family in a village in Tamluk in the district of Midnapore in the eastern state of West Bengal in India.

She had little education and was married off at the age of twelve and lost her husband at eighteen. She continued to live in her father-in-law’s village.

Matangini got attracted to Indian independence movement late in life.

Perhaps the notable participation of women in the struggle in Midnapore played a part in it. She was attracted to the Gandhian credo and participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement. She was arrested several times for her protests, including once when she was incarcerated for 6 months.

After her release, she became an active member of the Indian National Congress. She also took to spinning her own Khadi, a signature item in Gandhiji’s Non-cooperation Movement. Was fondly called as Gandhi buri, Bengali for “old lady Gandhi”.

Then came the momentous phase of her life. It was 1942. In August that year, under the banner of the Quit India Movement, local Congress workers planned to besiege various police stations and government offices located in Midnapore district. The 73-yearold Matangini Hazra took the initiative.

On 29th September, she led six thousand supporters, mostly women, to capture the Tamluk police station. When the procession reached the outskirts of the town, the Crown police ordered them to disband, citing Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code.

When a defiant Matangini stepped forward, appealing to the police not to shoot at the crowd, she was hit by a bullet.

Unwavering, she moved forward holding the tri-color (India’s flag) high, urging her comrades to follow suit. Despite being riddled by bullets she moved on, ceaselessly chanting the patriotic song, Vande Mataram.

Later they found her limp, lifeless body, lying in a pool of blood. But the tricolor was still held high. Even in death, the brave heart had ensured that the flag – symbolizing the spirit of freedom – remained unsullied. continue to page 6 }

6 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

GLOBAL WARMING AND ITS EFFECTS: HYPOCRISY OF WEALTHY NATIONS, AND ECUADOR

By Rahul Ray (Massachusetts)

O

nly about twenty years ago, people who spoke about global warming, its causes, and its potential effects on earth, were scorned as ‘tree-hugging’ wild-eyed liberals who lived in a fantasy world. I have always been a liberal socially, politically, and environmentally. As can be expected, I had a large solar system installed on my roof before that became a common practice. The reason that drove me to execute such an act was to have a ‘zero’ carbon footprint, but it was also for an economic consideration. In other words, the calculation of the cost of installing such a system against offsetting such a significant cost weighed heavier on my mind. I am happy to say that it was one of my smartest decisions. But that is not the reason that drove me to write this article.

At the outset, I acknowledge an excellent article in Bengali by Amartya Bandopadhyay, published in September 5, 2023 issue of ‘4 no. platform’, a socio-politically conscious e.magazine.1 In the past five or so years, the expression ‘global warming’ has entered the public lexicon. By and large a significant portion of the world population is aware of the potential for the devasting effect of burning fossil fuels to generate electricity and run the human progress machine forward. For example, I was discussing with my son who lives in Brooklyn, NY about the possibility of buying a home in NY. He said, “House prices at Rockaway Beach, Queens, NY, are significantly lower and affordable for me.But I won’t touch them because everything there will be underwater in a matter of a few years.”

The causes of global warming and its potential for devastation are known to many. Yet, most people throw their hands in despair – ‘What, if any, can I do to prevent this potential catastrophe?’

That is indeed true, but we can make a collective effort, however small, such as consuming less (virtually every moving machinery and computing syste, requires electricity to operate, and electricity is produced largely by burning fossil fuels), considering switching to solar or other forms of renewable energy offered by the utility company, eating less red meat (large animals need more feed, larger pastures -all are highly energy intensive. Additionally, they produce a lot of methane, a potent greenhouse gas towards global warming via their

belch and fart), take public transportation whenever available because a bus or a passenger airplane is far less polluting than an automobile or a private jet.

However, at the end of the day, most people rightfully point out that the gargantuan effort of trying to change from fossil fuel to renewable energy (solar, wind, hydro) in any significant way is the job of national governments and not individuals.

Rightfully so.

The idea of the government’s role in switching from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources (the sun, wind, water) brings the issue of costeffectiveness. Recently, I was listening to a National Public Radio report in which the reporter stated that big oil and gas had a nearly 50% investment-to-return ratio, while the same for renewable was less than 10%.

Therefore, only national governments with significant money in their treasury and with policy-change mandates can afford to initiate such an investment-intensive effort. At the end of almost every international conference on the environment, including the recently concluded COP 28, a joint statement is routinely made by participating nations to reduce the use of fossil fuels and seek the development of renewable energy. However, such promises so far have meant very little, if any. Because wealthy nations which can initiate such efforts balked.

There is yet another ugly side to this debate. It is not just the present and future, the past also counts significantly towards any solution. Undoubtedly, the most industrialized nations, such as the United States, parts of Europe, and lately China, are responsible for producing most of the greenhouse gases today and in the past. This gives rise to a stickier issue about who should pay for the clean-up of the environmental mess

tion for centuries.

In all global conferences on the environment in the past and at present, it has been concluded that it is the responsibility of the polluting nations to fork over money, ranging in hundreds of billions of dollars to clean up the environmental mess elsewhere.

Many industrialized nations, including the United States, have morally accepted the responsibility. But talking is cheap. To the best of my knowledge, not a single red cent has changed hands to that effect. In other words, moral acceptance has not translated into real money. Here lies the hypocrisy.

The impasse stated above has created inaction in parts of all the countries in the world, rich and poor except one.

Ecuador is a small country in the North-west corner of the South American continent. It is a relatively wealthy country on this continent with a trade surplus. In other words, Ecuador exports more than it imports. Its number one export item is oil, accounting for nearly 40% of total export. Additionally, Ecuador is a significant exporter of precious metals and gems. It is estimated that this country has an oil-reserve of 6.51 million barrels with an estimated value of 456 billion US dollars (at a price of $70/barrel).

Approximately 11% of Ecuador’s total oilreserve (or 0.7 billion barrels) lies under the soil in Yasuni National Park on the Amazon Delta. This area is home to 610 bird species, 260 varieties of animals and lizards. This area is also the home of two primitive people who are yet to be touched by human civilization. Since 1989 this area has been designated by UNESCO as one of the most diversified places on the earth.

In 2007 Rafael Correa, the newly elected president of Ecuador, came up with an original and almost unbelievable proposal. He proposed that Ecuador would stop removing 8.5 million barrels of oil with an esti-

not in the consideration those days.

President Correa’s proposal was soundly rebuffed by wealthy national governments and prominent world economic bodies such as World Bank.

Fast forward sixteen years, on August 21, 2023, under the stewardship of outgoing President Guillermo Lasso Ecuadorians took part in yet another attempt to protect Yasuni area by stopping drilling for oil.2 This historic referendum passed by nearly 60% of the popular vote. In another referendum, work at Choko Andino gold mine in Quito province was stopped by a 68-31% majority.

Prior to the referendum, world economic houses including the World Bank sent dire alarms about Ecuador losing its creditworthiness.

For example, Fitch Solutions lowered the index to CCC+, meaning Ecuador is not a business-friendly country to invest. In other words, Ecuador as a nation would have to pay for its publicly supported action to become ecofriendly and protectthe earth-crust from warming and its catastrophic effects.

Ecuador is a shining example in the face of global inaction towards eco-friendliness and prevention of global warming. In the recently concluded COP 28, the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai Rishi Sunak, the British Prime Minister was criticized for taking a private jet to the conference. He callously replied, paraphrasing – “I have too much work to do.”

REFERENCES: 1. ’Poth dekhacche Ecuador’, Amartya Bandopadhyay, 4No. Platform, September 5, 2023, issue.

2. Ecuadorians vote to halt oil drilling in bio-diverse Amazonian national park, Dan Collyns, The Guardian, August 19, 2023.

“SOME ARE BORN GREAT, SOME ACHIEVE GREATNESS, AND SOME HAVE GREATNESS THRUST UPON THEM” | continue from page 7

such as heatwaves, floods, tsunamis, and storms of unprecedented magnitude that polluting countries have brought into less industrialized and less-polluting countries. The situation is similar to African Americans in the United States demanding reparations from the government for their enslavement, torture, and discrimina-

mated then value of $720 billion from the Yasuni area, if the developed and wealthy countries created a trust fund with 50% of the then market value of the oil-deposit -- to protect this Amazon-area from further destruction.

The global warming and its potentially devastating effects of climate change by burning fossil fuels were

The legacy of Matangini Hazra lives on. A statue of her was installed in Hazra Park in the Maidan near Shahid Minar in 1977. It is reportedly the first statue dedicated to a woman freedom fighter in India. A statue also stands in Tamluk at the very location where she laid down her life. Several schools, colleges, colonies and roads are named after her, including the prominent Hazra Road in South Kolkata. Indian Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp with her picture in 2002 (see above).

January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

Evergreen Club Activities

“পুনরাগমনায় চ”

(July – December, 2023)

Reported by Prabir Biswas (New Jersey)

F

rom July to December, we had four meetings. We skipped October because many members were busy with Durga Puja and Kali Puja.

In this period, we lost our very dear friend, Prativa Hore. Our August meet at the Stage House Tavern was her last meeting. Her absence will be felt dearly.

July meeting was a Zoom meet.

July being a continuation of summer travel season, we had only about 15 participants. We had this meeting in a casual open format environment. It was an instant success. Utpal Sengupta opened the meeting with a Tagore song.

Jayasree Chatterjee rewarded us by reciting a Kipling poem. Manoj talked about his memories on his grandma. Many of us connected with their own grand-parents’ days. Debajyoti Chatterji, with his keen sense of humor, read a story about a man marrying a beautiful girl who turned out to be a robot.

The August meeting was an in-person lunch meeting at Stage House Tavern. Because of proximity of this restaurant from Ananda Mandir, this restaurant has become a popular destination for most of our member. It was refreshing to meet the friends in-person. We got a separate private room for our twenty plus friends.

Notable mention is that we got a new addition to our Evergreen group. It is a mother-daughter duo, Ratna and Sudeshna, very charming by all measures. They were cheerfully welcomed by all. Also, the meet was a special one because we got the opportunity to celebrate our beloved friend Dr. Samir Dutta’s 87th Birthday.

September meeting was a Zoom session. Meeting was packed with planned programs. About 20 members participated. Session started with a song from Shanti-di.

Jayashree Chatterjee recited a poem by a British poet, John Donne. Ira Ganguli read one of her writings.

Banani Mukherjee read one of her writings. Samir Dutta talked about his Burma experience. Manoj Deb Roy presented a short poem. Mita Sinha read a quote from Swami Vivekananda. Susmita and Ratna Roy presented songs. And lastly, Saroj Bhol recited a poem by Satyajit Roy. Our November meeting was an in-person meet in Stage House restaurant. Wehad two new participants, Sebika Basu and Monidipa Ghosh. It was a casual openformat meet. Food was, as usual, sumptuous. BecauseDecember being Holidayseason, we decided to skip December.

Writers Club Activities (July – December, 2023)

Reported by Debajyoti Chatterji (New Jersey)

D

uring the second half of the year, three meetings of the Writers Club were held. All were Zoom video sessions. While the pandemic years made Zoom conferencing a necessity, it has become the preferred mode for Writers Club meetings in the post-pandemic era. Several members are from distant states (like Massachusetts, Kansas and South Carolina), so it is possible for them to join NJ-based meetings from the convenience of their home. We can also occasionally invite out-of-state guest writers, thanks to the videoconferencing technology.

Our first meeting of the reporting period washeld on Friday, July 28. It used an “open format”, allowing writers the freedom to choose the types of writings they preferred to present: poems, short stories, narratives or essays. The meeting was attended by about a dozen writers. Because of our usual time limit (2 hours), five members could read their writings: Swapna Ray (Massachusetts), Shamita Das Dasgupta (NJ), Amit Chakrabarty (Kansas), Ranjana Sanyal (NJ) and Banani Mukherjee (NJ). Shamita Dasgupta had been specifically requested to present a work of translation and Amit Chakrabarty had been requested to discuss, with examples, key features of “godyokobita”(poem in prose).

The second session was held on Friday, October 6, and followed the “open format” mode. It was a well-attended meeting, thanks to several new members (Nabanita Sen, Biswajit Sengupta, Prabir Biswas and Kaushik Sengupta.) The following writers could read their pieces within our time restriction: Aditi Ghosh Dastidar, Anirban Biswas, Utpal Sengupta, Vishnupriya and Biswajit Sengupta (all from NJ).

The final session of the year was held on Friday, November 17. Being close to the Thanksgiving holiday, attendance was modest. The following writers had the opportunity to present their work: Rimi Pati (South Carolina), Vishnupriya (NJ), Shamita Das Dasgupta (NJ) and Banani Mukherjee (NJ).

7

দী

বিশ্বভাই

পাদির তখন অন্তিম সময়| মেজদিকে অত বিচলিত হতে কখন�ো দেখিনি| আবেগে মথিত হয়ে একদিন সন্ধ্যাবেলাতে মন্দিরে বললেন, বিশ্বভাই আমাদের শাস্ত্রে এমন ক�োন প্রার্থনা নেই যা মানুষের আয়ু বৃদ্ধি করতে পারে? প্রস্তরমূর্তি দাঁড়িয়ে আছেন, আমাদের পুজ�ো নিচ্ছেন, তিনি কি দীপাকে ফিরিয়ে আনতে পারেন না? মেজদিকে বলেছিলাম, আমরাভাবছি যে দীপাদি চলে যাচ্ছেন, বাস্তবিক ক্ষেত্রে তা নয় এ হ�োল পরিবর্তন, জীর্ণ বস্ত্র পরিত্যাগ করে আমরা যেমন হাসি মুখে নুতনবস্ত্র পরিধান করি, এ ঠিক তাই। নবকলেবর ধারণ করে শিশুর নবীন হাসি ধারণ করে আবার পুনরায় ফিরে আসবেন তিনি। কালের চক্রে মেজদির শেষ শয্যার পাশেআজ বসে আছি, বহুস্মৃতি ভেসে আসছে, তিনি যেদশাতে এখন আছেন তার নাম “উৎক্রমণ’’। যমরাজের উত্ক্রান্ত নামকরশি অফুরন্ত প্রাণশক্তির আধার মেজদির দেহের প্রতিটি ক�োষ হতে প্রাণবায়ু নিংড়ে নেবে, সকল জ্ঞানইন্দ্রিয়ের সুক্ষ উপাদানগুলি পূঞ্জীভূত হয়ে একত্রে প্রাণবায়ূর সাথে মিলিত হয়ে জীর্ণ এই দেহ ত্যাগ করে নুতন দেহ ধারণের প্রক্রিয়াশুরু করবে। ICU র হিমশীতল স্তব্ধতার মধ্যে প্রাণবায়ু সঞ্চালনের যন্ত্র এক নির্দিষ্ট ছন্দ মাত্রাতে শুরশুর, শুরশুর ছন্দে মেজদির দেহে প্রাণের ধারা বজায় রেখে কক্ষের নিস্তন্ধতাকে যেন আর�ো ঘনীভূত করছে। বিভিন্ন যন্ত্রের মধ্য হতে প্রবাহিত ওষুধ এক একটি নালিকার মাধ্যমে তাঁর দেহে প্রবেশ করে এক য�োদ্ধাকে জীবন যুদ্ধে জেতান�োর কৃত্রিম প্রচেষ্টা চালিয়ে যাচ্ছে। শান্তি পাঠ শেষ করে ভাবছি এই দেহ জরাকাল অবধি আনন্দের মধ্য দিয়ে বহুবিধ ভ�োগ সাধন করেছেন, বহু কর্মযজ্ঞে র কান্ডারী ছিল এই দেহ, আজ সে দেহ চিরনিদ্রায় শায়িত। জলের গভীরে থাকা মাছ যেমন চ�োখে দেখা যায়না, তেমনি এই নিগূঢ় য�োদ্ধার চলতে চলতে থেমে যাওয়া শরীরের মধ্যে এখন অন্তিম যাত্রার প্রস্তুতি শুরু হয়েছে, “উৎক্রমণ’’, চর্মচক্ষুতে তা দৃশ্য নয়। মনে হল শিয়রে দাঁড়িয়ে একবার “মেজদি’’ বলে ডাকি কিন্তু সেইচ্ছা র�োধ করলাম। চির আনন্দের আল�োকজ্বল এক জ্যোতির্ময় ল�োকে তিনি প্রবেশ করেছেন। ওষুধ, চিকিৎসা এবং যাবতীয় কৃত্রিম প্রচেষ্টাকে পরাজিত করে শেষ যুদ্ধে জিতে রওনা দেবেন অজানা অন্তিম এক রাজ্যে। অজানা বলব�ো কেন? যেরাজ্যের সাথে আমাদের জন্মজন্মান্তরের সম্পর্ক, সে রাজ্য কি অজানা?

JAI DA দুদিন আগে “দিদি, দিদি” বলে ডাকতে তিনি চ�োখ মেলেছিলেন, প্রিয়কন্ঠস্বর শ্রবণে শেষ বারের মতন চ�োখ চেয়েছিলেন। কি বলতে চেয়েছিলেন তানা বলা থেকে গেল, যে ইন্দ্রিয়গণ দেহের মধ্যে ব্রত পালনের শপথ নিয়েছিলেন। যেমন—বাকইন্দ্রিয়ের শপথ আমি বলব�ো, দর্শন ইন্দ্রিয়ের শপথ আমি দেখব�ো, কর্ণের শপথ আমি শুনব�ো, সেই প্রতিটি ইন্দ্রিয় এখন যমের উৎক্রান্ত নামক রশির অধীন হয়ে লুপ্তকর্ম। সুদৃঢ় ভঙ্গিতে যিনি কথা বলতেন, সেই বাকশক্তি এখন রুদ্ধ। যাঁর চ�োখের দৃষ্টি সর্বদা ছিল একরাশ বিস্ময়, সেই দৃষ্টি আজ ছুটি নিয়েছ, ক্রমেক্রমে প্রতিটি ইন্দ্রিয়ের সূক্ষ উপাদানগুলি প্রাণবায়ূর সাথে মিলিত হয়ে দেহ ছেড়ে বিদায় নেবে। মনের মধ্যে নানান ত�োলপাড় চলছে কিছুদিন। আগেও শুভেন্দু দার কাজে তাঁকে বলেছিলাম, মেজদি—আমরা যেদিন মাতৃগর্ভে আসি সেদিন হতেই আমাদের মৃত্যুর প্রক্রিয়া শুরু হয়ে যায়। জন্ম হলেই মৃত্যু এবং মৃত্যু হলেই জন্ম| জন্মের পিতা হলেন মৃত্যু। সেই স্মৃতি র�োমন্থন করেই আজ ওনার মৃত্যুশয্যাতে চ�োখের জল নিয়ন্ত্রণে রেখেছি। মেজদি একজায়গায় বসে থাকতে পারতেন না| চরৈবতি, চরৈবতি, সর্বদা বেড়াতে ভাল�োবাসতেন। এখন তিনি আনন্দ উৎফুল মনে হাসিমুখে বেড়াতে

বেড়�োবেন অসীম অনন্তে, বাড়ি ফেরার তাড়া নেই, উবারের চিন্তা নেই—শুধু পথ চলাতেই আনন্দ। মানুষকে সকলকর্ম হতে মুক্ত করে যমরাজের এই রশির বন্ধন, এ এক আশ্চর্য রশিবন্ধন, মানুষ যেই মাত্র এই বন্ধনের বন্ধনে আবদ্ধ হ�োল সাথেসাথেই সে মুক্তি পেল, খ�োলা হাওয়াতে পাল তুলে অসীমের রাজ্যে লাগামবিহীন ভ্রমণ। মৃত্যর পর এই প্রেতদেহকে ভ�োগায়তন শরীরের আকারধারণের নিমিত্ত আমরা তাঁর পারল�ৌক ক্রিয়া করব�ো, প্রিয় জনের ভবিষ্যৎ দেহগঠনের কারক পূরক পিন্ড আমরা নিবেদন করব�ো এরপর সাম্বৎসরিকের শেষে তিনি পাড়ি দেবেন পরিচিত সেই পিতৃল�োকে। এহল গমনের বা আনন্দময় যাত্রাপথের সংক্ষিপ্ত বৃত্তান্ত। তার পর কি? তার পর পুনরাগমন। ধরণী হতে অন্তরীক্ষ আবার অন্তরীক্ষ হতে ধরণী। পুনরাগমনের এই বৃত্তান্ত আর�ো হরষের । পুনরপি জনমং, পুনরপিমরণম, পুনরপি মাতৃজঠরে শয়নম। বায়ু, ধুম, বাস্প মাধ্যমে সুদূর অন্তরীক্ষে পৌঁছান�ো, সেখানে তিনভুবনের সাত প্রকার বাক বা রশ্মি উদকের শ্রেষ্ঠ অংশকে পুনঃপুনঃ দ�োহন করছে, নিত্য সেথায় মধু ক্ষরিত হচ্ছে, সেথায় সর্বদা মধুর ধ্বনি। বাকবা মেঘ গর্জন হবে তা হতে বারিধারা, সেই বারিধারা আকাশ হতে পৃথিবী কলশের মধ্যে পতিত হবে। আকাশ হলেন লিঙ্গ শিবের রূপ, আর ধরণী হলেন মাতৃয�োণি। বেদ বলেছেন সুদূরের ওই বারিধারা হলেন বীর্যধারা যা ধরণীতে প্রাণের সঞ্চার করছে, সেই বারিধারার মধ্যেই সুপ্ত আছে ধরণীর অন্নের বার্তা। “অন্নাদ ভবন্তি ভূতানি পর্জন্যাদন্নসম্ভবঃ”—অন্ন হতে পুরুষের দেহে রেতঃ উৎপন্ন হবে সে রেতঃ মাতৃদেহে গর্ভের সৃষ্টি করবে, পূর্বজন্মের সংস্কারের সূক্ষ উপাদানগুলি বাসনা হয়ে সেই গর্ভমধ্যে আসবে। Migrating পাখিগুলি সুদূর দেশ হতে দেশান্তর অতিক্রম করে ঘনযামিনীর মধ্যে বিশ্রাম নিয়েযেমন ঊষার কিরণে পুনরায় তাদের গন্ত্যবের প্রতিযাত্রা শুরু করে নির্দিষ্ট সময়ে তাদের বাসের অনুকূল সর�োবরে নেমে এসে আনন্দে ক�োলাহলে জলক্রীড়া করে, এযেন সঠিক সেরূপ। পূর্বজন্মের সংস্কার গুলি নবদেহে পুঞ্জীভূত হবে, আনন্দও হরষের মধ্য দিয়ে শুরু হবে পথচলা, শুরু হবে কথাবলা। আমরা আমাদের স্বার্থে প্রার্থণা করব�ো যে আপনি আমাদের মধ্যে পুনরায় অবতীর্ণ হয়ে সমাজ ও সংগঠনের গঠনমূলক কাজে ঝাঁপিয়ে পড়ুন। আপনাকে ধন্যবাদ জানবার স্পর্ধা নাই| আছে শুধু আবদার ও প্রার্থণা— আপনি আমাদের মধ্যে আবার অবতীর্ণ হ�োন! পুনরাগমনায় চ।

8 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

Puja Activities for October-December, 2023 Reported by Mita Sinha Chair, Puja Committee

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nanda Mandir, situated in the heart of Somerset County, is a favorite place for our community. We not only have all pujas performed as per Bengali calendar but we also do annaprasan, poitey, marriage ceremony, shradha, batsarikandantashti kriya.

All of our ceremonies are performed by our priest at Ananda Mandir. We also private pujas at the homes of our devotees. This is the one and only big Kali Mandir in the state of New Jersey. People come from out of state to offer puja here. The beautiful Temple, ground with lots of parking space makes it more attractive for our devotees.

The month of October was a busy month for us. On October 8, we had our live Mahishasura Mardini celebration, as in every year, starting at 4:30 am. Mahishasura Mardini, a Hindu Stotra, describes Ma Durga’s act of slaying the asura.It is narrated during Mahalaya with songs and Chandi path, ending with Arati of Ma Durga. After the program, we had our grand breakfast and went home with a good feeling that Durga Puja is around the corner.

On October 14, we had our Til Tarpan.This is offered to pitris (departed ancestors).

Black til seeds, milk and water were used for the offering.

This was done in the morning and a number of people came in to the Mandir to offer prayers for their departed ancestors.

We also had our monthly Shyama Puja in the evening.

As always, many devotees came to the temple on this auspicious day. After Puja, Arati, and Puspanjali we had our dinner.

Durga Puja was celebrated this year from October 20 to 24 at Ananda Mandir. It started with Shoshti puja and ended with Bijoya Dashami.

Goddess Durga symbolizes the divine force known as Shakti that was used against the negative forces of Evil.

These five days of Durga Puja are very special for all Bengali family. The Durga Puja started on a Friday.

This was a special treat for so many people because they were able to enjoy two days of puja on the weekend. Saptami was on a Saturday this year and it made it easier for

people to come to the temple. We had a big crowd on Ashtomi as well.

Sandhi Puja was in the afternoon this year and the Mandir was full of devotees. On the Nabami day we had the Kumari Puja.

Little girls between the ages of 5 to 11 were worshipped on the Nabami evening. In the evening of Bijoya Dashami, we had thakur boron, sindurkhela and dance with dhak, sankha and ghanta.

All of us enjoyed the last day of the puja. The Temple was packed with devotees.

hard to make it a successful Puja this year.

We also had live streaming of Durga Puja on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Everyone enjoyed this year’s Durga Puja.

The month of October ended with Kojagori Lakshmi Puja. This puja falls on a full moon day (“Purnima”), in the month of Ashwin.

This Purnima is also known as Sharad Purnima in most parts of India. We had our monthly Satyanarayn puja also on this evening. Both of these pujas were performed beautifully. We all had delicious dinner after the puja.

The first puja for the month

illuminated with beautiful colored lights The night echoed with firecrackers and fireworks lighting up the sky. This puja is always performed at night, so most of our members stayed on until midnight to see the puja, and all had their dinner at the Tagore Hall.

The next puja was Jagadhatri Puja at Ananda Mandir. Ma Jagadhatri is another representation of Goddess Durga and is worshipped on Shukla Navami tithi in the month of Kartik. This puja was performed in the morning at our temple. Devotees came in to offer puja and Pushpanjali at the Temple,

puja on December 12. This puja is always done in the evening, and a lot of our dedicated devotees came to the Temple to attend this puja.

As always, our priest did a beautiful Puja.

The last puja for the year 2023 was our monthly Satyanarayn Puja on December 24. A number of devotees came to the temple in this cold winter day to attend this special puja.

We had a very successful Durga Puja and Kali Puja this year. Ananda Mandir is a special place for our community. This is a place of worship and also a place for socialization for our Bengali

Bijaya Dashami in Prayer Hall

Durga Pratima

Kumari Puja on Maha Nabami

We had thousands of devotees visited the temple on these five days. Tagore Hall was open to the public for Durga Puja. Foods were distributed on all five days in the morning and evening. Beautiful music played in the background, created a holiday atmosphere. We had multiple vendors inside the Tagore Hall selling sarees, jewelry and various other items. This year the weather was perfect, and that made it enjoyable for everyone. All of our volunteers worked

of November was our Maha Kali Puja. Kali Puja honors the Hindu goddess Kali and it falls during Diwali celebrations. Ma Kali symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.

It also signifies the attainment of spiritual enlightenment by removing ignorance.

Goddess Kali is the ultimate manifestation of Shakti. She is the Adi Shakti. On the puja night, the goddess is offered flowers, sweets, seasonal fruits and red hibiscus flowers.

All of our buildings were

Kali Pratima and all of them had prasad after the puja.

The month of November ended with Raas Jatra & Satyanarayan Puja. Raas Jatra is dedicated to the divine love of Lord Krishna and Radha. This is a Vaishnava festival observed in Bengal and parts of Odisha. We also had our monthly Satyanarayan Puja this evening. We had a lot of devotees came to the temple to see this puja.

December is usually a slow time of the year for us.

We had our monthly Shyama

community.

Our Temple works smoothly because we have a great team of volunteers and they invest their time to do everything needed for the Temple. I invite everybody to come and join us and experience the beautiful puja and friendly atmosphere of Ananda Mandir.

Our website is www.anandamandir.org and you can find details of our puja dates, temple timings and information of all other cultural activities on our website.

January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

9

HIGHLIGHTS OF CULTURAL COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES Reported by Debajyoti Chatterji (New Jersey)

T

wo major cultural events were presented to the Ananda Mandir community during the final quarter of the year. The first was our “Bijoya Sammelan”, held on Sunday, October 29, and the second was a concert of devotional songs on the occasion of Kali Puja on Sunday, November 12.

Bijaya Sammelan The star attraction for the Ananda

Mandir Bijoya Sammelan (held in Tagore Hall on Sunday, October 29) was Adity Mohsin, the renowned Rabindra Sangeet exponent from Dhaka (Bangladesh). The artist did not disappoint the audience that filled the large auditorium.

Adity Mohsin, one of the brightest and most popular artists to graduate from Shantiniketan in recent years, mesmerized the audience for almost two hours. She presented over 20 popular and semiclassical Rabindra Sangeet to the delight of the audience.

Ms Mohsin was ably supported by Pinu Sen Das on tabla, Atish Mitra on guitar and Satyajit Bhattacharya

on keyboard.

Ananda Mandir thanks Ms Mohsin and the team of supporting musicians for making this Bijoya Sammelan a truly memorable event. A Big Thank You to A2ZSounds for the -high-quality audio support.

Concert on Kali Puja Night Bengalees love to enjoy devotional songs on the occasion of Kali Puja. In recognition of this custom, Ananda Mandir organized a concert of devotional music, featuring celebrated local and Kolkata artists. This concert consisted of two parts. The first part

starred the well-known local vocalist, Suranjan Bhanja Choudhury, with Gokul Panda on tabla, Priya Das on mandira, and Sunrita Panda on harmonium.

The second part of the concert featured the classical vocalist, Sandip Bhattacharya and Arijit Kastha on tabla, a celebrated duo from Kolkata.

The outstanding performances by all of the featured singers and their accompanying artists made the evening a memorable one for all who had come to Ananda Mandir for the Kali Puja. Our thanks go to all the artists and the support staff.

10 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

AMERICAN INGENUITY IN TV ADVERTISEMENTS

By Basab Dasgupta (California)

O

ne of the appealing aspects of the American society is its spirit of innovation. It seems that Americans are always innovating something new – new products, new processes, new equipment, new games, new drugs, new music, new topics at school, new lifestyles, new outfits and so on. The rest of the world then starts to emulate them. Part of the reasons is a pioneering spirit inherent in all Americans and part is potential financial fallout. As a friend said, “making a buck is the father of invention”.

While the American innovativeness is well recognized in most areas there is one area where the USA leads the world by far, but it is not talked about that often. That area is advertising of products and services on television for which brain-center is Madison Avenue in New York City.

The advertisements (ads) on TV caught my attention immediately after I arrived in the USA. I grew up in India without any TV and the only advertisements I saw which involved moving characters were in movie theaters before start of the movie and during intermission. There were only a handful of them by companies like Horlicks, Sunlight soap, Pepsodent toothpaste, Amul butter, Glaxo etc. and it was the same set of ads running for years. There was nothing remarkable about them.

The ads on American TV made an instant impact because of the humor, music, characters involved in the ad and the storyline which often involved a twist. Some of my eternal favorites are from Alka-Seltzer (“I cannot believe I ate the whole thing”), Wendy’s (“where is the beef?”), Coca-Cola (“I would like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony”), Miller Lite (“Great taste, less filling”), Dos Equis (“The most interesting person in the world”), California Milk Processors Board (“Got Milk?”) and Budweiser (“Whassup?”). Then there was also the allure of beautiful women in various poses of seductiveness. The action-packed ads involving cars and trains were captivating just for the natural beauty of the background. A drive along the winding California shoreline

or through a straight Arizona desert path has been featured in numerous car commercials.

Unfortunately, the number of ads on TV and their durations have been increasing slowly but surely over the years. A typical half-anhour sitcom has ten minutes of ads. I was shocked by the amount of money the TV companies charged the advertisers. Prices for ads depend on the popularity of the show and reach their peak during the Superbowl. The TV studios strive to produce shows and programs to attract the largest audience and get the highest ratings which in turn allow them to charge most fees for advertising during those programs.

The ads during the Superbowl half-time breaks used to cost around $40,000 for a 30-seconds slot during the time of Superbowl one. Now it has reportedly jumped to $7 million for Superbowl LVI. These commercials have become so popular that the advertisers vigorously compete to produce ads that are innovative, attention-grabbing and hopefully memorable ones. Some people watch the Superbowl broadcast just to watch these ads.

It seems that there are two schools of thought in producing effective ads. In one category the emphasis is on saying the name of the company and/or the product repeatedly whether the ad itself is interesting to watch or not.

The idea is that this repeated utterance of the name of the product or service will make it find a storage place in the listener’s head. The ads for lawyers, dentists and other service professionals as well as medical products fall into this category.

In the other type of ads, which is the majority, the creator tries to be clever if not humorous and hopes that this unusual nature of the ad will catch the attention of the listener and redirect it to the product being advertised. A rather large number of attention-grabbing ads from major corporations have dominated the TV screen for decades.

In recent years, the insurance company GEICO has done an amazing job of coming up with innovative ads.

In fact, there have been several series of such ads and ads

within each series conform to a certain humorous theme.

Other companies which have followed this strategy are Budweiser, Progressive Insurance, Miller Brewing and more recently, Liberty Mutual. It is almost amusing that GEICO has recently released a “Best of GEICO commercials” DVD! Many ads use nostalgic songs from the sixties and seventies to associate the brand with happy memories of the baby-boomers who are presumably their largest customers. Appearances by famous celebrities in ads exploit their popularity and

France and Germany probably feature more nudity. The ads in Japanese TV programs seem almost cartoonish. On a recent trip to India, I felt that the ads on Indian TV are perhaps a little long and dull.

It is only natural to put so much emphasis on marketing and spend money on ads in a capitalistic society because the economy thrives on consumer spending. More ads usually translate into more business and hence more profit for the companies advertising their products. Also, revenue from advertisements keeps most of the TV stations afloat, which

favorite items. Unfortunately, these ads have become a waste of time and a major annoyance as opposed to convenience. To make matter worse, unscrupulous companies are using ads for pornographic materials to misguide the users to dangerous websites and infect their computers with viruses.

A fundamental mode of operation or “business model” for generating profit of many internet-based “dot. com” companies is not based on sales of what they are offering but what they can charge to other advertisers who would want to advertise

they are handsomely compensated for their sales pitch.

More recently computer-generated graphics and animations have found their way into the advertising world simply because of their visual appeal and perhaps lower cost of production.

Apart from marketing consumer products, ads have become very important in political campaigns at all levels but especially the presidential campaigns. Budget for ads is probably the most significant expense in any campaign. Ads are also used to solicit donations for a variety of charitable causes.

Ads are deliberately broadcast at the loudest volume allowed by FCC to get the attention of the viewers, even though many complain the volume being annoying. Ads appear to be louder than regular programming, even though the maximum volume limit is the same for both, because programs have various ups and downs in the volume during their duration.

I have seen TV ads in other countries in Asia, Europe and North America while visiting there. Nothing made an impression on me. Ads in

in turn creates entertainment for the public as well as jobs.

What makes Madison Avenue unique, and intriguing is that it is a melting pot of marketing acumen, investment dollars, creativity, technological innovations and Hollywood personalities.

Madison Avenue techniques, according to the author and journalist William Safire refer to the “gimmicky, slick use of the communication media to play on emotions”.

On the positive side, ads on TV provide convenient opportunities for taking bathroom breaks or doing some minor chores. During playing of professional sports there are pauses on the field just so that the TV station broadcasting the game can insert ads. These are called “media breaks”.

Ads have found their way from TV broadcasting into the internet. One cannot work on a computer for almost any length of time without some ad popping up on the screen peddling some product. Sophistication in technology has allowed companies like Goggle to “spy” on a user’s shopping searches and preferences and bombard their user screen with ads of their

at their websites.

Computer generated graphics are now increasingly used in ads, not only to simulate real and fantasy story lines but also to display products in intimate mechanical details, whether it is an engine or floor plans of a house.

Of course, there are other modes of advertising with videos such as displays on movie screens and large outdoor billboards/neon signs (ala ads on Time Square, casino boards in Las Vegas as well as Jumbotron screens in sports stadiums). However, displaying video ads on TV remains the most common marketing strategy.

On the other hand, there are companies making money by selling software one can use in one’s computers and TV sets to block out the ads altogether.

The entire advertising industry has a life of its own which is evolving with technology. Unfortunately, just like almost everything else in our life, the goal of making maximum profit by big corporations has overshadowed all other benefits and appeals of ads to the viewers.

January 2024 11

Ananda Sangbad

NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

By Debajyoti Chatterji (New Jersey) India is building a gigantic renewable energy farm in the Rann of Kutch (Gujerat) According to a news report by Associated Press, India is currently building the world’s largest solar-and-wind energy complex in an environmentally and politically sensitive location, the salt marshes of the Rann of Kutch area of Gujerat.

When finished, it will occupy a land area of 280 sq miles, approximately the size of the country of Singapore, and produce 30 gigawatts pf renewable energy annually, enough to power nearly 18 million Indian homes. The solar panels and the wind turbines are all being manufactured in India. The project is being managed by the Adani Group, and the wind turbines and solar panels are being manufactured by companies affiliated with Adani Group. The location is close to the Pakistani border, and the land is salty, marshy and prone to frequent flood. Four thousand workers and five hundred engineers are currently living on the job site.

(Associated Press)

Bengal-born chef earns Michelin star for his Chicago restaurant Sujan Sarkar, Kalyani-born restauranteur, has six restaurants in North America to his credit. According to a report in Telegraph India, Indienne, his newest restaurant in Chicago, has earned the coveted“Michelin Star” -- the first restaurant in Chicago to earn this distinction. He appears to be the first Bengali chef to have earned this recognition. So far, only chefs of Indian ancestry have earned Michelin Stars for their culinary skills, and Sujan Sarkar is now the latest member of that select group. (Telegraph India)

A quick-thinking forklift operator stops a car theft A Fox News report tells the funny story about a thief who was trying to steal a car in a warehouse complex. He was spotted by a forklift operator. The quickthinking forklift operator simply used his equipment to scoop up the villain and raised him up about 20 feet from the floor. He kept the car thief at that height until police could arrive and arrest the thief. (Fox News)

“No nation in the world bought more planes than India in 2023” According to New York Times, more than 1000 jets were ordered during this year

by Indian companies, making India the largest buyer of aircrafts. In February, Air India ordered 250 airplanes from Airbus and 220 planes from Boeing. In June, IndiGo ordered 500 new Airbus A320s. In India, the aviation industry is booming, and further rapid growth is forecast for the next few years. New airports are springing up all around the country, making air travel a viable alternative to rail travel for millions of Indians. Next year, New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport will increase its passenger handling capacity to 109 million – and will become the second busiest airport in the world after Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson International Airport. (New York Times)

A live, three-inch long, worm discovered in a woman’s brain A 64-year-old woman in Australia arrived at a hospital with a strange set of symptoms: abdominal pain, dry cough and night sweats. Doctors suspected some kind of infection but could not identify the exact type or source of infection. They struggled with the diagnosis for 18 months as the patient’s condition worsened.

In June 2022, surgeon in Canberra Hospital extracted a three-inch long parasitic roundworm -- from a lesion in the woman’s brain, live and wiggling! The doctors have a hypothesis about the way the roundworm found its way into the woman’s body (and subsequently to her brain) but that would too long a discussion for the space we have here. (Washington Post)

A snake falls from the sky on a woman’s hand and attacks her New York Times reported the hard-to-believe story of a Texas woman, working on her yard, suddenly found a snake fall from the sky onto her forearm. To make matters worse, the snake immediately wrapped itself tightly around the woman’s forearm and started hissing at her. To make things really bad, a hawk flying overhead quickly dropped to the woman’s forearm to snatch his dinner back! As the struggle among the snake, the hawk and the poor woman continued for almost 40 seconds, the sharp talons of the bird dug into the woman’s forearm. Finally, the hawk wrenched the snake away from the lady’s arm and flew away. After medical examination and treatment, the woman recovered from the wounds. (New York Times)

WOMEN’S SOCCER WORLD CUP – AN ANALYSIS

By Tathagata Ghosh (New Jersey)

T

he Women’s Soccer World Cup is an important event for the sport of soccer and is also significant as a metric for emancipation and freedom for the women.in the world.

Sports is one of the last bastions of inequality. For eons, women were explicitly prohibited, frowned upon and generally discouraged from playing many sports. Women have made inroads into many sports but in the developing world, many women do not get a chance to play. Cultural mores in those countries may have killed any interest in encouraging or watching women playing soccer.

A Short History of Women’s Soccer Women’s football was banned from 1921 for 50 years in England by the FA (Football Association).

Interestingly enough, previously on 1920 on the Boxing Day, over 50,000 people filled a stadium to watch women play. It could be conjectured that the rising popularity of women’s soccer versus the nascent men’s soccer league caused the banning of women from playing football.

These infamous words from the FA Council by way of explanation “The game of football is quite unsuitable for females and ought not to be encouraged.”

It was not just in England that women’s soccer was banned. Many countries in the western world and elsewhere also banned women from playing football.

The bans were lifted late in the 20th century and in a sense killed the development of the sport from what could have been.

In the USA, Title IX mandated gender equality in collegiate sports, and that was a great fillip for the soccer and led to the National Women’s Soccer Team being one of the strongest in the world.

FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand The 2023 Women’s World Cup brought together countries from every continent. The major teams participating in this world cup also are ranked very highly in the Women Peace and Security Index (WPS Index) maintained by Georgetown University. The European teams definitely have a strong background in women’s rights, equality and progress. These included countries like Sweden, England, Denmark and Norway who head that list.

This World Cup was also very

inclusive, and many players who were gay and out did play in this competition without any fear. The matches were held in womenfriendly and LGBTQ-friendly locations of Australia and New Zealand. In contrast, Qatar, where the men’s FIFA 2022 world cup was held, LGBTQ representation was forbidden and openly discouraged.

European Countries and Latin American Teams The European countries who are traditionally men’s soccer powerhouses participated in this World Cup. All the South American teams werethere too and were very competitive. The ultimate winner was Spain, and the runner-up was England. Australia, the host, also did very well but a few of the superpowers including Brazil, Germany and Netherland did not do as well as expected despite the quality soccer they played.

Asian Countries Asian teams in the fray were China, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam. India should have been part of the competition but the reality is that most schools in India do not play soccer.

Specifically, girls’ schools (or girls in coed schools) do not play soccer.

It is just culturally “inappropriate”.

All the other countries in Asia who play soccer possibly have no strong cultural barrier in participating in sports.

Other Countries in World Cup 2023 There were a couple of teams that caught my eye. The unusual ones in my mind were Haiti (a failed state) and Jamaica who have developed extremely good women athletes.

A special mention needs to be made for Morocco, an Islamic state, which participated in the World Cup. They also had one person playing in a hijab. She was not particularly skillful but she was there without fear or favor.

There are many countries from Africa who are extremely good who have found representation here.

State of US Women’s Soccer If there was one national team in the USA, it was the USWNT (US Women’s National Team). In the last few years, they have dominated the game but came up short in this continue to page 12 }

12 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

LEGACY OF BALENDRANATH TAGORE

By Mandira Chattopadhyay (Ohio)

B

alendranath was the only son of Birendranath, Rabindranath’s brother, older to him by sixteen years.

Balendranath was born in 1870, nine years later than Rabindranath. Balendranath was a poet, an essayist, a businessman, a man with many hats. He was a great admirer of his famous uncle, Rabindranath.

Balendranath was a great supporter of his uncle’s efforts to establish Shantiniketan. But unfortunately, his life was smeared with several tragic episodes. His father became a lunatic just within two years of his marriage and was put in the lunatic asylum of Alipore. Eventually he recovered and returned home five months later. That year in November his son was born, whom he named Balendranath. It is said that his only son’s Annaprasan (rice feeding ceremony) was celebrated with a lot of pomp and splendor. Soon after the Annaprasan Birendranath was again admitted to the asylum. Once he returned home, he never recovered completely.

Balendranath grew up in the Tagore household, but somehow his talents were totally eclipsed by his towering uncle Rabindranath. It is indeed incredibly sad that with time Balendranath slipped away from the treasure island of the great Tagore family.

I would like to bring back my experience as a student of Rabindra Bharati University which used to be in Jorasanko, the abode of the Tagore’s.

There we had to take courses highlighting aesthetic theory, irrespective of our majors. It was at that time that I came across this relatively unknown albeit versatile genius of Balendranath within the Tagore dynasty. Because of his untimely death, he has not been able to come to limelight.

Balendranath, an offspring of a lunatic father was physically disabled from his early life. He was not able to walk properly. Nonetheless his mother insisted that he should be admitted to school along with his cousins. However, on their way to school he would be teased and bullied by his cousins who would pick on his disabilities. Eventually his mother would arrange another vehicle to transport him to school.

It is said that Balendranath aspired to be an engineer from his childhood.

But once during his travel to Srirampur by boat, he had a turning point in his life. He was captivated by the music of the boatmen. There was a calling, a fire of emotion in his mind, and he incessantly began to write short articles and essays. We are all very much aware how Rabindranath would share his writings with his favorite ‘Bouthan’ (sister-in-law). But we are not aware of the fact that Balendranath’s patient listener and critic was none other than Mrinalini Devi, Rabindranath’s wife.

Whatever Balendranath read or wrote, be it in Sanskrit, Bengali, or English he

would always share it with Mrinalini, his favorite sister-in-law. Mrinalini in turn was enriched from these interchanges with Balendranath. Needless it is to say that among all the nephews and nieces Balendranath was Mrinalini’s most favorite.

Soon Balendranath would start sharing his writings with Rabindranath, who would guide and edit his work, and was his serious critic. When Balendranath was barely fifteen, he published his work in “Balak’, a magazine published by Rabindranath’s sister-inlaw Jnanadanandini Devi, wife of Satyendranath. Balendranath published his first book entitled ‘Chitra O Kabya’ (Pictures and Poems) when he was twenty-four. He dedicated that work to his illustrious uncle Rabindranath.

Two years later Balendranath would get married. On his wedding day, Rabindranath presented him with a collection of his poems. Rabindranath composed a poem on that day entitled ‘Utsab’ which was included in his collection of work ‘Chitra.’

Along with his uncle Rabindranath, Balendranath would arrange literary and cultural meetings from time to time. There would be literary discussions and musical events, followed by sumptuous dinners.

Rabindranath used to take Balendranath to oversee the family’s properties in Orissa. During one such visit, the two would take a trip to Konarak. Balendranath wrote an enlightening article about this trip and published it in the magazine ‘Sadhana.’ He also participated with his uncle in Bengali Literary Conferences held annually. When he was twentysix, he helped Rabindranath establish a nationalistic store called ‘Swadeshi Bhandar.’ Here indigenous products were sold, and the production of such goods nationally was strongly encouraged. The same year Balendranath along with Rabindranath became an active participant in the Indian National Congress held in Calcutta. At the same time, they were involved in the activities of Brahma Samaj.

Most notably, Balendranath was engaged in a host of business activities with Rabindranath. They started an organization called Tagore and Company which was involved in real estate, sugarcane, jute and tannery. Balendranath managed the operations in Calcutta.

Balendranath was an ardent follower of his grandfather Debendranath’s (Rabindranath’s father) monotheistic religious movement. With his grandfather’s blessing he proceeded to establish Brahma School in Shanti Niketan and devised the ground rules of operation. Unfortunately, he was not alive to witness the fruition of his effort.

When he was barely twenty-nine, he was diagnosed with cancer. With no treatment available at that time, he died in 1899, leaving behind his continue to page 13 }

WOMEN’S SOCCER WORLD CUP | continue from page 11 World Cup 2023. Their progress was followed closely in the US and widely celebrated. The team members were treated as national heroes. In the history of sport, it is unusual to see the women’s team more celebrated than the men’s team.

But this World Cup had seen another ugly side when it came to USWNT. There is been an outpouring of hate from right-wing circles again because of who and what these women stood for. The undisguised homophobia was possibly the trigger but hate has many triggers.

Disparity between Mens World Cup and Women’s World Cup It is also interesting to note the disparity in the money and the budget between these two world cups.

The Women’s world cup had a budget of about 500 million whereas the Qatar Men’s World cup had a budget upwards of 200 billion.

It is also important to contrast the viewership. The men’s world cup had an estimated 3.57 billion live audience. In contrast the women’s matches viewership was up from previous years but it was in the ballpark of a few million.

But it is important to note that the freedom and opportunity to play soccer should be available regardless of viewership and money involved.

State of Indian Women’s Soccer Indian women’s football started in the 1970’s. They had very poor showing even as late as 2010. I have personally not seen any women playing in India in my school or college and I do not see any reason why not. I can only assume that there was an extreme cultural bias as to the sports that could be played by women and very low interest.

I have felt that it is more important to have widespread involvement and participation than have a handful of elite players represent the country.

All of the interest may come when Indians see women in the west playing and then deciding whether it was appropriate for Indian women to participate in such a brazen sport. Soccer needs a participation from a very young age.

It is only when parents allow girls to wear shorts(pants) will there be any progress in women’s soccer in India. It again means that that only in more cosmopolitan cities there is even a chance of development of women’s soccer – where girls are allowed to wear shorts. Many decades more to go probably.

The Reality of Women’s Sports Many of the matches I have watched where my older daughter was playing had minimal audience, mainly restricted to parents.

The only sport that seems to have done well in terms of creating an audience seems to be tennis.

In my school in India, a wellintegrated, coeducational cosmopolitan school, we were one of the lucky few schools with ample grounds and facilities. Girls played a variety of sports including basketball but not soccer.

I think rather than having a team qualify for some soccer championship, it is more important that the schools in India and in other developing countries get a chance to play soccer.

Women’s soccer in most countries still does not have the money, sponsorship or even playing facilities.

Women’s soccer is looked down by the powers that be. In a true misogynistic moment, President Jair Bolsonara recently declared ‘Women’s soccer is still not a reality in Brazil’ despite having some of the best players in the world on their squad.

The Scandals Surrounding Women’s Soccer The Women’s World cup has mostly been without scandals. An unfortunate incident happened in World Cup 2023 when the President of the Spanish Soccer federation kissed a top women’s player on the mouth during trophy presentation. It as a non-consensual kiss and it showed the problems within the Spanish soccer system.

There is abuse even in the US women’s soccer league system that has led to many coaches being fired.

Pay inequality is another sore point, and the USWNT has been on the forefront of this fight.

The Path Forward Thanks to the collegiate sports system in USA, there are about half a million girls playing soccer. This seems to be a reasonable model to be followed in other countries. Soccer had to be played from a young age for girls to be able to master the sport. Parental interest, school support and player interest is primary.

Secondary but necessary may also be sponsorship and encouragement by National Sports/Soccer Federations.

The sport is only growing and getting better. Hopefully there will be point where they attract audiences and can even compete in popularity with men’s sports someday.

January 2024 13

Ananda Sangbad

REVIEW OF MUSICAL& THEATRICAL PROGRAMS

COMMUNITY SERVICE NEWS

51st Pt. Motiram-Pt. Maniram Sangeet Samaroha, Hyderabad, India

Food Donation Amount Reaches a New Record!

By Debashis Roy Chowdhury, California

T

he 51st ‘Pt. Motiram-Pt. Maniram Sangeet Samaroha’ concluded on November 30, 2023 at CCRT, HITEC City, Hyderabad.

This Indian classical music festival pays homage to Pt. Jasraj and hosted by his daughter, Smt. Durga Jasraj.

A redeeming feature of the festival is its live streaming through YouTube for audiences worldwide. That is how I viewed part of the program from my hotel room in Washington, D.C. On the night of November 28, 2023, the concluding artist was Pt. Venkatesh Kumar, a leading vocalist in India today, originally hailing from Northern Karnataka.

He started with raag ‘Maru Bihag’ singing the popular vilambitbandish (slow composition), “Rasiya ho na ja ...”. His gayaki, a blend of Gwalior and Kirana, which he has fine-tuned with a personal style, was demonstrated in the rendering. Pandit-ji glided with ease among various vocal techniques: ‘bolalaap’, ‘aakar-based alaap’, ‘sargam’, ‘layakari’, ‘pukar’, ‘bol-taan’ and ‘taan’ to make his vistaar (elaboration of a raag) blossom like a bouquet, with elements of surprise throughout. However, what touched the audience the most was the bhav (emotion) and purity of sur (melody).

The next raag, ‘Jog Kauns’ was the highlight of the night.

The raag is a relatively recent

creation, being conceived in the 1940’s by Pt. Jagannathbuwa Purohit, with penname, ‘Gunidas’. Since then, it has gained remarkable popularity. Pt. Venkatesh Kumar’s rendition on this occasion was mesmerizing, true to the depth and solemnity demanded by the raag.

He followed it by a composition and a tarana in raag ‘Sohini’. What struct me was the ‘bhav’ he could express even in a fast-paced tarana, indeed a rare feat.

Pandit-ji concluded his program with the wellknown bhajan, “Payo re mana Ram ratandhanapayo” and a Marathi Abhang. It was an amazing experience to listen to a leading vocalist like Pandit-ji from the comfort of my hotel room in D.C. over a steaming cup of coffee in the morning.

The final evening of the festival was on Nov 29 with a grand finale of music and dance by a variety of artists vocalists: Ankita Joshi, Rutuja Lad, Dhanashree Ghaisas and Ruchira Kedar; dancers: Yamini Reddy (Kuchipudi), Arushi Mudgal (Odissi), Shinjini Kulkarni (Kathak), Krishna Pranita (Bharatnatyam), accompanied by instruments (sitar, flute, sarangi, harmonium) and percussion (pakhawaj, tabla, mridangam). The program lasted nearly four hours and was meticulously executed. A remarkable feature of each

vocal presentation, accompanied by dance and instrumental accompaniment, was the jugalbandi (duet) between recorded voice tracks of (late) Pt. Jasraj and live singing.

On one hand I was delighted to hear Jasraj-ji’s voice with popular compositions in raags, ‘Shuddh Sarang’, ‘Bihag’, ‘Malkauns’, ‘Bhairav-Bahar’ and ‘Darbari Kanada’. On the other hand, the audio quality of Jasraj-ji’s old recordings did not always go well with high-quality live music on stage. Still, it was a unique attempt to recreate the musical moments of a past master.

The classical dance performances were graceful and skilled. Smt. Arushi Mudgal impressed the most with her ease and fluid movements.

Her facial expressions were so naturalistic that at times it did not seem like a performance. Smt. Shinjini Kulkarni is grand-daughter and disciple of PtBirju Maharaj and her Kathak presentation bore testament to her revered lineage.

In its 51st year, the Samaroh continues to be a major musical event in Hyderabad, presenting the leading artists and the upcoming stars of Indian Classical music today. We should be grateful to Durga Jasraj-ji and the organizers for their vision and generosity in making the music accessible to audiences world-wide through streaming.

F

or many years, Ananda Mandir has supported Franklin Township Food Bank through periodic food donation campaigns. Recently, we exceeded our previous donation records by donating a total of 330 pounds of food during the month of August to the Franklin Township Food Bank.

We were pleased to receive a “thank you” letter from Allie O’Brian, development Director of Franklin Township Food Bank. In her email of December 6 to Utpal Sengupta (Chair, Community Services Committee), she wrote: “Hello Paul!

Thank you so much again - it took me a minute to find your paperwork but we received a WHOPPING 330 pounds of food in your last drop off!!!! No wonder you hurt your back!!!!

Hope you are well and hope to hear from you soon!

Allie” We thank all the members of the Ananda Mandir community who participate in our food donation drives!

Holiday Goodwill Gestures to Neighbors & Township Services

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or the past several years, a small team of volunteers have visited the Fire and Police Departments of Franklin Township during the holiday season to thank them for their yearround service to the community. The team also visits a few homes that share our property boundary to say, “Happy Holidays, Neighbors!”. Below are a few photos of our team visiting the Township Fire and Police Departments and a neighbor’s home.

WOMEN IN FILMS | continue from page 4 hindi/bollywood/news/Only-1-in-10-filmdirectors-in-India-is-woman-study/articleshow/51037116.cms; Ramachandran, N. (2022, August 4). ‘Female representation report is ‘wake-up call’ for Indian film and TV sectors.’ Variety. Available: https:// variety.com/2022/film/news/female-representation-report-india-film-tv-streaming-1235333155/. x. Farooqui, M. (2018, October 18). ‘Gender equality in cinema gaining traction in India, but queens have a long way to go.’ Money Control. Available: https://www.moneycontrol. com/news/trends/entertainment/genderequal-cinema-gaining-traction-in-india-butqueens-have-a-long-way-to-go-3051661.html. xi. Broom, D. (2021). ‘Here’ how gender stereotypes are plaguing Hollywood films despite progress.’ World Economic Forum.

Available, https://www.weforum.org/

agenda/2020/02/women-hollywood-starring-role-equality-diversity/. xii. Pasquine, F. (2018). ‘Gender inequality in film infographic.’ New York Film Academy Blog. Available: https://www.nyfa.edu/ film-school-blog/gender-inequality-in-filminfographic-updated-in-2018/. xiii. D’Cunha, S. D. (2017, August 30). ‘In India, the gender pay gap extends even to Bollywood.’ Forbes. Available: https://www. forbes.com/sites/suparnadutt/2017/08/30/ in-india-the-gender-pay-gap-extends-evento-bollywood/?sh=3180d85a502b. xiv. The Guardian. (N.D.). ‘Hollywood’s gender pay gap revealed: Male stars earn $1m more per film than women.’ Available: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/ sep/15/hollywoods-gender-pay-gap-revealed-male-stars-earn-1m-more-per-filmthan-women. xv. Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media.

See, https://seejane.org/.

Legacy of Balendranath Tagore fourteen-year-oldwife, Sa| continue from page 12 hana. Mrinalini Devi was totally devastated at the unexpected demise of her favorite nephew. After the completion of the funeral rites of Balendranath, Rabindranath published three unfinished works of Balendranath.

On one of the

works, Rabindranath used the pseudonym,Shivsundar.

It is important that we remember Balendranath, a disciple and a constant companion of Rabindranath in his travels, literary and business activities, and a conscientious follower of Maharshi Debendranath’s monotheistic philosophy.

14 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

COMMUNITY NEWS

NJPA CORNER

GSCA CORNER Reported by Pradip R. Das (New Jersey) Durga Puja October 28 & 29, 2023 For us Bengalees, Durga puja is the time of the year, irrespective of whatever challenges and difficulties we faced in the past year, our spirits are lifted by the joyous festivities and cheers that the season brings. In our adopted homeland here, we strive to recreate and relive the nostalgia surrounding Durga puja back in India and pass it onto the next generation. We all participate wholeheartedly in this endearing process.

As in other years in the past, Plainfield High School was the venue. Every aspect of the two days’ festivities, the reception, the magnificent puja itself with eloquent mantras, anjali& prasad, and puja concluding dhunuchinaach and sindurkhela, dinner, talent & youth activities and the evening’s cultural on-stage programs earned much appreciation and kudos. Several stalls by jewelers, sarees and other clothing items, books and CD’s, insurance companies, food stalls drew interested on-lookers and buyers all evening and created a mela-like experience to augment the puja atmosphere.

Saturday’s evening program commenced with “Bhuban Mohini Ma”, a GSCA Inhouse program of vocal and group dance performances

by GSCA members. This was a rendition of several popular Bengali devotional songs welcoming and in praise of Maa Durga.

Two local performers then did a recitation “Ek GucchoKobita”, composed of poems relating to our own personal life experiences, individual and social. “Rhythmic Rendezvous - A Night of Timeless Tunes”, a musical presentation by a local New Jersey based performer, Shilpi Kundu, was appreciated by all present. Her passion for music was amply demonstrated by, amongst others, Hindustani Classical as well as Rabindra Sangeet songs.

The main artist for Saturday was Papon, an Indian singer, multi-instrumentalist, composer and record producer hailing from Assam and based in Mumbai.

Papon’s musical influences span a wide range, from traditional folk songs of eastern India to ghazals and new-age electronica. He sings in multiple languages, including Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Punjabi, Marathi, Gujarati and Tamil. His musical talents and musical style combined with his mellifluous voice and soulful presentations mesmerized all audience present that evening.

Sunday’s evening programs started with a presentation “Amar Shohor America”, by Banga NextGen, a dedicated group of next generation Bengali youngsters based in New Jersey.

The presentation itself was a poetic odyssey that mirrored a young Bengali woman’s journey in New York city, celebrating her love for both the Bengali and American dream. Through captivating music and dance, this production weaved a lyrical narrative, using the city as a symbol of belonging and pride, bringing together her Bengali roots and American identity.

“Aladdin”, a theatrical presentation by the Somerset Youth Division of Somerset Bengali Association was next on stage. The audience/ spectators were transported to the fantasy land of Agrabah, where they followed the exciting tale of a poor young man who was granted three wishes by a genie in a lamp, which the man used to woo a princess and to thwart the sultan’s evil vazir. This was a superb performance by children, and the stagecraft and choreography were of high caliber. Much kudos to all the children performing on-stage and adults managing backstage.

The main attraction for Sunday was Aditi Munshi from Kolkata. Aditi Munshi and troupe is a group of multi-talented young Bengali/Indian classically trained vocal and instrumental musicians performing Bengali devotional kirtan and folk items. Ms. Munshi and her troupe represent the Kirtan sensation of the new generation and are continuously striving to bring Kirtan, an ancient Indian music form, closer to the hearts of the younger generation living in

India and abroad. Aditi mesmerized all present with her voice and wooed them with her congeniality.

GSCA’s objective of bringing communities together and propagating goodwill and brotherhood towards all through such social gatherings was met in all aspects.

GSCA Board Election 2023 Four of the seven Board positions being vacated on January 1, 2024 are being filled by members’ secret ballot election during November/December 2023. Results will be announced later in December but after this report has gone into print. Details will be covered in the April 2024 issue of Ananda Sangbad.

The new board takes office from January 1, 2024.

GSCA Holiday Party, December 15, 2023 The annual fun-filled extravaganza will take place at the Crown of India banquet in Plainsboro this year. This is an event for both members and non-members. Details will be provided in the April 2024 issue.

GSCA Philanthropy For several years, GSCA has been making concerted efforts to expand its philanthropic activities in ways that are having greater impacts on communities and individuals. Most notably, currently GSCA’s scholarship fund is supporting 40 students who are continuing their studies in Medical, Nursing, Engineering and other undergraduate programs in India.

The students that are selected for support by GSCA are supported through their entire curriculum until they graduate successfully. Additionally, GSCA provides a one-time scholarship to 6 Plainfield High School graduating seniors every year.

GSCA’s philanthropy wing is indeed doing a noble and praiseworthy job in making a difference in individuals’ lives and to their families.

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Reported by Chanakya Ganguly (New Jersey)

n November 18th, NJPA celebrated Kali Puja, at the house of NJPA’s VP, Nimai Ghose where Ma Kali murti is located. Biswabhai (from Ananda Mandir) performed the puja with devotional chants, which was video streamed online through YouTube for all to be able to participate from afar. A few NJPA members were present at the event. Since the Covid-19 virus continues to infect people in our community, it was decided to not perform the puja at a public place this year.

Goddess Kali symbolizes Kaal or time (nothing escapes the march of time). Her garland represents ego arising out of limited bodily attachment and self-importance. Thus, suggests extreme yogic discipline, to dismantle life and put it back again for gradual mastery of activity to be converted to action, cessation of vibrations, operating from stillness, as it touches Shiva.

For spiritual aspirants, yogis and awakened devotees, Kali represents Enlightenment. Just as reality itself can be both kind and tough, the yogi’s Kali is the enlightening force that removes preconceived notions, frees one from conditioned beliefs and everything else that keeps one away from recognizing one’s identity, through the process of self-realization.

Yoga, natural living, can help deal with consumerism, indiscipline, deculturization and a fragile psyche and thus help reduce psychological, physical violence, improve relationships, habits, energy, overall well-being and reduce psychosomatic illnesses. Yoga, natural medicine can make us reflect on diet, lifestyle for Global Health. Spiritual ambition, wisdom from the heart, helps counteract self-interest, without undermining human liberty. As Madison said, “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition”. Yogaand Democracyare rooted in finding harmony within – from an individual, to family, to society, to nation, to the world (as one family).

Yoga can help realize that more discipline leads to more freedom to realize the Spiritual Constitution. As one does one’s duty with self-discipline, the rights appear naturally and so does freedom as a by-product with self-responsibility; thus, the Spiritual constitution within; like a kite flying in the air in freedom, controlled by a steady disciplined hand. The citizenry should have Mind training on Wisdom, character, to be awakened, disciplined with high self-control. It is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self. Democracy, as Lincoln said in his Gettysburg speech, is government of the people, by the people, for the people.

Stay warm, upbeat, calm, composed, rugged, focused this winter, and have a bright year ahead. Information about upcoming events will be available on our Facebook page “NJPA Parivar.”

Christmas and new year decorations park street kolkata

Ananda Sangbad

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January 2024 15

RECOGNITION FOR SUDIPTA BHAWMIK

ndian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT Kharagpur), has chosen Sudipta Bhawmik, a wellknown member of the New Jersey Bengali community, as one of the recipients of this year’s Distinguished Alumnus Awards. Sudipta completed his BTech, MTech and PhD degrees from IIT - Kharagpur. The Institute has brought honor to itself by bestowing this coveted award to one of its graduates who has an impressive record of accomplishments.

Sudipta is a semiconductor design engineer by profession but is best known for his passion for theater. He is a highly recognized actor, director and playwright who has written, produced and directed plays in Bengali and in English. His plays have been staged to critical acclaim in the US, Europe and India and have been translated into many languages. He has received a number of awards and recognitions from literary and theatrical publications and organizations.

Congratulations, Sudipta!

ACVERTIEMENT

16 January 2024

Ananda Sangbad

WINNERS OF 2023 GAYATRI MEMORIAL AWARDS FOR LITERARY EXCELLENCE

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nanda Mandir has announced the winners of the 2023 Gayatri Memorial Awards.

There are no winners in the English nominations category this year, and no award will be given.

The winner in theBengali nominations category is Manas Dey (Cumming, Georgia). He will receive a cash award of $500 and a plaque with appropriate citation.

Additionally, the judges decided to present an Honorable Mention award toSumita Basu(Katy, Texas). She will receive a cash award of $300 and a plaque.

Congratulations to Manas Dey and Sumita Basu!

Manas Dey An engineer by training (BE from Bengal Engineering College, Shibpur, MTech from IIT, Kharagpur, and advanced education at MIT on supply chain management), Manas received his MBA from IIT, Delhi, and has worked in industry for almost twenty years. However, he is passionate about Bengali literature and enjoys writing short stories. He also writes poems, songs and plays. His writings have been featured in many North American publications as well as in several Indian magazines (such as AnandabazarRobibasorioyo) and online media (such as Banglalive.com). In 2022, he received an award in a short story competition, held in connection with that year’s Kolkata Book Fair. His latest book of short stories, GolpowallarGolpohaat,was released at the 2023 Kolkata Book Fair. Some of his short stories posted on social media have gone viral.

Sumita Basu Driven by a life-long passion for literature, art and culture, Sumita graduated from Calcutta University with honors in Bengali. Later, she completed her M.A. in Bengali from Jadavpur University where she came in close contact with several luminaries in Bengaliart, literature and theatre like Sankha Ghosh, Chittaranjan Ghosh, Pabitra Sarkar, Swapan Majumdar and Naresh Guha. Soon after moving to America with her husband, she completed her Masters in Administrative Science (MAS) from Boston University. For several years, she worked in the financial sector. During this period, she continued to nurture her passion for art and literature by regularlycontributing to Bengali magazines.Additionally, she taught at Harvard University inthe Comparative Literature and South Asian Studies departments for a number of years.

Tagore Hall at Ananda Mandir

Available to all Members of Our South Asian Community!

A 12,000 square foot, multi-purpose facilitythat serves all members as anauditorium (with stage and audio-visual capabilities) as well as a community hall, and offers classrooms and meeting rooms.

Ideal for your religious, educational, cultural and social events!

For more info, please email TagoreHall@anandamandir.org Or call 732-873-8300