As blinking lights and illuminations telling mythological stories accompanied by the peppy song 'Dugga Elo' set the jovial mood of Durga Puja – perceived mostly as a secular festival in Kolkata – a voice from nearby stall becomes loud and clear: "The Israeli occupation of Palestine must be unconditionally opposed. Indian government cannot change its historic stance in favour of the Palestinian people."
No, it is not a political gathering. At the heart of the city engrossed in festivity, it is the inauguration of a Marxist literature stall run by the Communist Party of India (Marxist). These stalls have for decades marked the way the Lefts in West Bengal negotiate with ‘Pujo’, the biggest socio-cultural symbolism of the state that it could neither negate nor fully participate in, maintaining its atheist credentials.
Since 2011, though the Left Front in West Bengal experienced a steady decline, failing to get even a single assembly seat in 2021, their book stalls started regaining their popularity and strength. “For the last 4-5 years, the stalls are performing better than early days,” says Soumitra Basu, secretary of Lawyer's Area Committee, Kolkata District.
Declining But Surviving: Durga Puja Bookstalls And A Marxist Past
Durga Puja bookstalls have for decades marked the way the Lefts in West Bengal negotiate with ‘Pujo’, the biggest socio-cultural symbolism of the state that it could neither negate nor fully participate in, maintaining its atheist credentials.
This year, they have made 114 stalls across the city. Some of them have performed really well, notes the district-level leaders. The stall at 8B bus stand near the Jadavpur University – known as a left bastion – was inaugurated on October 18, and by October 21, their sales reached Rs 1 lakh. The numbers are quite similar for the stall near Baghbazar Puja as well. Inaugurated by former CPI(M) state secretary Biman Basu on October 18, it achieved the feat of Rs 1 lakh sell by October 22. "Last year, there were 109 stalls, and we sold books worth Rs 47 lakhs," says Kallol Majumder, the Kolkata district secretary of the party.
These stalls started their journey during the first United Front government in 1965. The major objective behind such an endeavour was to spread awareness about Marxist literature. But with time, they started keeping popular novels and storybooks as well. “We have added popular novels, story books and children’s books to our collection. This time, we have got books from 8 publishers, including Ananda, NBA and Chirachorit,” says Rajib Mukherjee, a local party leader who is currently in charge of the Baghbazar stall.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Russian literature used to be one of the major attractions of these stalls. The Bengali translations of Nikolai Ostrovsky's How the Steel Was Tempered, translated as Ishpat, Mother or Maa by Maxim Gorky became popular among the youths. There were mainly two factors that worked behind its popularity.
"Firstly, it was the price of those books. It used to be very cheap in contrast to other books and hence was accessible to people from marginalised groups. Secondly, the active role played by the Russian Translator's Academy that came up with commendable translations of Russian literature that not only kept the essence of the original text, rather the meaning and nuances were intact," says Majumder.
Shamsur Hussain, in his mid-40s, while checking the books, says, “I was exposed to the Russian literature only through these stalls. Alexandra Kolontai’s Red Love changed how I looked at love.” V I Lenin’s State and Revolution also shaped his political thoughts, Hussain adds.
However, from the late 1980s, the quality of the translated Russian books couldn't match the original version. Majumder thinks that the fall of the USSR was definitely responsible for such decline. Still, there are some Russian classics that one can find in the stalls. Apart from that, the novels by Manik Bandyopadhyay, Samaresh Majumder and other renowned Bengali authors alongside the Marxian literature are also visible.
Preserving the stalls, nevertheless, has not been easy since 2011, given the hostile political environment. Before 2011, there were more than 130 stalls across the city. In 2018, it was reduced to 99. “But after that, every year, our number of stalls is increasing. Non-cooperation from the police and attacks by the ruling party affected us greatly. Still, we survived,” notes Basu, who is in charge of the stall near Bhavani cinema.
The alleged attacks by TMC party workers on the stalls sometimes made them change their space, and they even had to close it on a few occasions. “This year, the stall near Kalighat- the constituency of the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee couldn’t be opened,” says Basu. Last year, there was ruckus and citing that the police denied permission this time, says Majumder. Another stall near Beleghata had to shift towards the party office, he adds.
The stalls are, however, not selling only books. The one near Tollygunj is also collecting relief funds for the people of Palestine. “Besides, for the last 873 days, we have been distributing food to poor people in this area. This is an endeavour we took up during Covid and still carrying on,” says a party worker.
The beats of Dhak whereas cover the air, making it difficult to listen to the cries of millions of war-torn people across the Gaza Strip, state committee member of CPI(M) Sridip Bhattacharya reminds people of their fates. “We would fight the lies peddled in social media through books. This will be our weapon.”
As the crowd thickens on the streets and the bright red flags fade out, one passer-by asks, “Dada, ekhane kono Palestine er Itihash er boi acche? (Do you have any book on the history of Palestine?” A party worker smiles: “Yes, we have”.