Durga Puja Entrepreneurship: Seven Small Businesses During Puja.

Durga Puja is all about goddess Durga and worshipping women for all their power. And during each puja, these seven women bring light in your lives.

Durga Puja is the celebration of the mother Goddess and the biggest festival in Kolkata. It is believed that goddess Durga lies in every woman. Women hereby, defined are as fighters, true warriors, superior and omnipotent. But behind the grandeur of the festival, women bring light to their commodities, marketing and production.

It is a cliché that new dresses are mandatory for a Bong during the festival. Not only dresses, but shoes, bags, jewellery and other fancy items. However, there is a difference of opinion that women are more fascinated in buying new items.

At the same time, many women are busy with their business during the festival period as well. Though the paradigm shift of business can be observed clearly. Women became much more intelligent and focused when and what to deal in the business. Here, the proves of the women of Kolkata :

Flower Seller

Mainly on the roadside, we usually see the fulwali Mashi who sells different flowers, leaves, for Arti and Puja purposes. They come from remote areas, take trains. And around 5 or 6 a.m, they get ready to sit in some corner or under shade. During the festival, there is a craze and demand for flowers and these Mashis make garlands, bunches, bouquets and a lot more.

Handicrafts Fair

Women exhibit various kinds of dress material; right from sarees, kurtis, salwar kameez, Khadi weaving, junk jewellery of designs in vogue. In such fairs, one can get to see women from different districts and even states vending clothes or other items right before the puja.

Junk jewellery

Women are hooked to the junk jewellery. Gariahat and Shyambazar- the two most popular marketing hubs in Kolkata. Girls of different ages are seen buying these items. In fact, many women showcase handmade earrings on the display board for selling.

Food Stalls

For a Bong, Durga Puja is associated to pet (Stomach) Puja. People in Kolkata prefer non-veg as well. Young girls are seen outside the pandals selling Biriyani, Chinese, and other mouth-watering snacks like chop, cutlet, kabiraji. Some women can be seen outside the stalls, catch customers by handling pamphlets and manage to deal with the buying and selling of yummy food dishes.

Tea Stalls

Once more we get to see the Mashis making tea and all set to sell it. Alongside, they sell paan, hanging above savouring, paan-masala or cigs.

Shopping Mall

During the festival, the malls are open all night. The women, mainly in the garment section, at midnight seem busy billing, folding, displaying, and handling the cash-counter.

Restaurants are decorated lavishly. Here, women with a cap, hands behind, bowing a little, with a smile on their pretty face utter-‘Welcome sir’ ‘welcome, ma’am,’ ‘anything else, ma’am?’ ‘how was the food, sir?’

Online marketing on social media

Pre-puja or last-minute commodity can be seen on social media for a ray of hope or fame. Women come ‘live’ with items like sarees, earrings, junk jewellery for an hour and display the items one after another. The seller mentions the price, colour, look, and shipping charge of the items.

In conclusion, women are compared with Ma Durga with her ten arm protection.

I have mentioned only seven points here but, there are many more women who sustain their daily life by creating their own businesses. And, that is the best decision that helps gain prosperity.

Picture Credits: YouTube

Arpita Bagchi

I'm a teacher by profession. Interest in music, reading, writing, traveling etc.

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