Bengali New Year a Day Ahead
By Arnab Ghosh, Gaea News NetworkWednesday, April 14, 2010
KOLKATA, INDIA (GaeaTimes.com)- Tomorrow will mark the beginning of the Bengali New Year and this has given the Bengalis across India a reason to celebrate. Even in Mumbai, which is not a Bengali-speaking state, the Bengalis are chalking up grand plans to celebrate the day with gusto and enthusiasm. For the Bengalis Poila Boisakh is associated with buying new clothes for family members and gorging on sumptuous Bengali delicacies including sweets. The Bengali restaurants in various places in Mumbai are almost booked to their capacity.
A lot of Bengalis will also visit the temples of deities they worship. The preferred dishes for the meal on the Bengali New Year include fish items like lobster curry and mutton curry. The lunch or dinner on the day is never complete without a liberal amount of sweets like rossogolla, sandesh and kheer etc. This is the date when the Bengali traders open a new book for their accounts which is an age old tradition. Some people also perform pujas at their home. The Bengalis also visit and meet up with their relatives on the New Year and exchange pleasantries.
The Bengali New Year is a time for bonding with the near and dear ones for the Bengalis. In Kolkata, several cultural programs will be held tomorrow where the plays of popular Bengali authors will be enacted. Several companies including the cellular service operators offer special packages for their customers on the New Year eve. The popular eating outlets also prepare Poila Baisakh special menu on the day which prove to be a huge hit with the customers.
