A TIME FOR CELEBRATIONS: A Ganesh puja in Mumbai. (PTI)

There’s a month to go for the Puja but the season of festivities has already kicked off, with the Marathis in Calcutta celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi.

“We have been holding Ganesh puja in the city for the past 82 years. The oldest puja is at Maharashtra Niwas, in Hazra,” says Tushar Thavre, the president of Maharashtra Mandal in Calcutta.

“We try to create an atmosphere like that in Maharashtra at this time of the year,” says Maharashtra Niwas’s cultural secretary Vidula Khatawkar.

This year, the club has a lot up its sleeve. It has planned several events between September 15 and 23 to make the community members feel at home.

Kirtans and bhajans have been organised in the evenings. A theatre group from Nagpur will stage a comedy, Paying Guest. Dance drama Rasya will be performed by Marathi men, women and children in the city. The organisers have also made arrangements for indoor games tournaments.

“Amateurs staging a dance drama is a first for us. The actors are very enthusiastic and their effort alone is sure to make it a success,” feels Sanjay Bhattacharya, choreographer and instructor of Rasya.

Children with special needs have not been left out. Deaf and mute Rajesh Gollar is ecstatic to have got a chance to play Dhritarashtra in the dance drama and is excited to learn more about his culture.

The experience of recreating a mini-Maharashtra will remain incomplete without Marathi cuisine. So, authentic Marathi dishes, like pau bhaji, vara pau and poha, will be prepared by members of the club and served to participants and invitees on all days.