To Craft The Faces Of Maa Durga During Durga Puja, Sculptors Use THIS Clay

It’s that time of the year again when the streets of West Bengal echo with “Dugga Dugga.” The sounds of thumping beats from the dhak and the fragrance of dhunuchi spill the streets of Kolkata as it’s Durga Pujo time; a time to celebrate Maa Durga’s victory against Mahishasura. What’s most striking about the festivities are the handmade clay idols of Maa Durga sculpted by expert potters with devotion in their hearts. Age-old rituals, and specific ingredients that are time immemorial, go into crafting the faces of these idols for Durga Puja.

Ganga Maati Or Clay From Ganga Used To Craft The 1st Layer

The history of idol-making in Bengal dates back to 300 years. Believed to have originated from Kumartuli (translates to Potter’s Locality), it houses over 150 potter families who have been carrying out the family craft for years. To sculpt the faces of the idols, Ganga Maati or Ganga River’s soil is used. The smoothness of the soil, its malleability and the piousness of the holy river are reasons for its use.

The Ganga Maati makes for the first layer of the face. The second layer consists of a special hard clay. This clay is made of jute powder, rice brand and Ganga clay to harden the face. The potter places the first layer in the mould and then imposes the second layer. If the idol is large, instead of using a mould, the potter crafts it with his own hands.

Sanjeev Das, a potter based out of Nutandihi in West Bengal spoke to NDTV, elaborating on the intricate idol-making process. He stated that they first make a mould for the face using plaster of Paris (PoP). Then, using that mould they craft the face of the idol. Many times, if the idol is large especially the face of Lord Ganesha, they craft it by hand.

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Puniya Maati Or Clay From Brothels, An Intrinsic Part Of Idol-Making For Durga Puja

Apart from Ganga Maati, another main component of the Maa Durga idols is Puniya Maati (blessed soil). This is a mix of the mud from the holy river Ganga, cow urine, cow dung and the mud from the brothel called Nishiddo pallis. There are many interpretations of crafting an idol of the Goddess from the mud extracted from brothels.

It’s believed that the use of soil from the doorsteps of brothels is a way to include the participation of the prostitutes, who also have a piece of the goddess in them. A sign of respect given to them during Pujo. Another belief is that when a man enters a brothel, he leaves all his virtues at the courtesan’s doorstep.

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A potter or priest is supposed to ask a courtesan for this soil to craft the idol for Pujo. On receiving, the “divine soil”, the priest chants a special mantra to energise it. Only then will it be used in the idol-making process, which is incomplete without the Puniya Maati and Ganga Maati.

Cover Image Courtesy: Canva Pro