The All Bengali Crime Detectives

by Suparna Chatterjee

'Now, on 23 June 1757, Nawab Siraj-ud-Daula was defeated at the hands of Robert Clive in the Battle of Plassey. Even though this was in fact an important victory for the East India Company, Nabakrishna Deb and his counterpart, Krishnachandra Roy of Nadia, interpreted this as a victory of Hindus over Muslims. Robert Clive, being the shrewd statesman that he was, actually supported this idea, and believe it or not, it was Clive who suggested to Nabakrishna Deb that this victory be celebrated by performing a Hindu Puja. Can you imagine?! Clive was a Christian and strongly opposed idol worship, but simply for the sake of politics, he encouraged Nabakrishna Deb to organize a Durga Pujo. 'Earlier Durga Pujo used to be celebrated in parts of Bengal only during the spring time, and the Nabapatrika Pujo in autumn. Now, Nabakrishna decided to shift the timing of the Durga Pujo, and celebrated it in the autumn month. So the first autumnal Durga Pujo actually took place in the year 1757, as a victory celebration of the Battle of Plassey. The Nabaptrika Pujo and the Durga Pujo got intermingled with one another. In the following years, he encouraged more and more zamindars to do the same. When the 'babus' of Bengal saw that this Pujo had the blessings of the East India Company, they fell over each other to please the sahibs, inviting them over, feeding them beef and foreign liquor, even arranging for baiji's to come from all over the country to entertain them. I would say, in that respe...