spandan's blog

Janus Films have salvaged the classics and remastered those in 4k.

Showtimes : June 12–14 at Detroit Institute of Arts.

Click here for the DTA showtimes.

Click on the picture below for the New York Times article

Spandan first Saraswati puja held on 22nd Feb 2014 at Spartan Village community hall was a huge hit. A considerably big crowd consisting of all ages attended, enjoyed participated and appreciated the puja. The pujo itself was short and sweet followed by bhog lunch consisting of khichudi- labda paired with luchi misti. Plenty of pictures were taken which could be enjoyed on Spandan's facebook page.

Probably it was the largest crowd sourcing exercise to prepare goat meat in Greater Lansing! Spandan volunteers distributed effort to prepare 51 pounds of goat meat (pnathar mangsho). That was the major attraction, as far as food was concerned, but highlight of the evening was actually a wonderful play 'Bhushandir Math' presented by the student folks of MSU. Tributes were paid to the legendary singer Shri Manna Dey. Once again talent of the Bengali folks of the Greater lansing area was on display! More pictures on our facebook page!

Bhushandir Mathe from Spandan on Vimeo.

Spandan Inc. celebrated the Durga Puja on October 19, 2013 at the Bharatiya Temple of Lansing. The whole day celebration was very well attended, four hundred people came from Greater Lansing and surrounding places like Midland, Ann Arbor, Detroit and Kalamazoo. Puja in the morning and then cultural function in the evening was followed by a sumptuous dinner.

Here is picture from one of our Facebook albums. Want to see all the pix? please visit our facebook page.

Dr. Roy's analysis is ideal to explain to the young. The original article can be found here

Durga Puja - Myth, Lore & Rites An Article for My Young Friends : Dr. Sumit Roy

The Social Aspects

Durga Puja, known colloquially as DurgaPujo or sometimes just Puja, literally means “the worship of Durga”. Durga is the name of a goddess (Debee ) in the Hindu religion. Durga is a Sanskrit word which means “she who protects from misfortune”. Durga Puja is a typically Bengali Hindu religious festival, the most popular community festival in West Bengal and wherever there is a sizable Bengali Hindu community. This festival has become so much an integral part of the Bengali Hindu way of life that we find ways to celebrate it even here in the US, continents away from our homeland, amidst a majority culture which is poles apart, and in spite of the many difficulties in logistics. Like most religious events, the Durga Puja festival can be viewed from a diversity of perspectives, such as social, mythological, folkloric, ritualistic and theological. I like to give my young Bengali-American friends a quick glimpse of what the first four of these are. I have inserted original Sanskrit words in places in italics using a phonetic spelling but indicated its English equivalent as well.

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