Indian Independence Day at Thames Alive 2025 with DURGA DISPLAY Workshop

GRAPHIC IMAGE © BONG VINCI commissioned by Make Calcutta Relevant Again

THAMES AND GANGES CONNECT ON INDIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY: Durga Idol Display, Workshop and Film

Start: 12:30 pm

Finish: 4:30 pm

Event type: Family-friendly and suitable for children aged 5 years old.

PROGRAMME:

Assemble: Kingston Museum, upper floor from 12 noon

12:30 pm: Introduction by Cllr Kamala Kugan, Royal Borough of Kingston.

12:40 pm onwards: Paintings and Artefacts on Display by artist Papia Ghoshal, who will explain their importance linked to the Goddess and the riverine festival in Bengal/India.

12:40 pm to 1:30 pm: A family-friendly workshop led by Mahua Bej (Heritage Bengal Global) has elements of music, worksheets, drawings, and storytelling. Children learn about techniques for idol illustration, sketch drawings, and observation sessions. Playing with dhol and other artefacts for the Durga festival, children get to know about folk performance by the practising Baul performer Papia Das Baul.

1:30 to 2:30 pm Food and Informal chat when activities continue. Guests can browse the display, talk to artists, and choose to purchase items for sale.

3:00 pm: Launch of DURGA DARSHAN in Kingston River Festival

3:15: Routes of Intangible Heritage Celebration by Dr Sanjukta Ghosh (SOAS/SACeP), which is an interactive session.

3:30 pm: Docu film screening on Kolkata Durga Puja and QA

4:15 pm Concluding Remarks by Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Director of Heritage Bengal Global

Co-organised by Dr Debojyoti Das (University of the Arts London).

This workshop at Kingston Museum on the 15th of August is part of the Durga Darshan series, linked to the iconic Lal Baba Rice Thames Durga Parade, organised by Heritage Bengal Global as an annual spectacle on the River Thames that has gained international media attention. The idol has been crafted meticulously using sustainable resources by the students of Techno India and has been selected to join the prestigious Cultures Flotilla alongside the Royal for the Thames Alive 2025, Kingston River Cultures Festival.

Please join us and consider donating directly to celebrate the global legacy of the greatest crowdsourced arts festival, Kolkata Durga Pujo, which will be a proud part of the diaspora for Kingston 2025. CLICK TO DONATE