Basanta Utsab

Today is Dol Purnima. Basanta Utsab, as celebrated in Santiniketan. Last night and early morning today, they have walked the procession around the campus singing songs of spring. The ritual is called "Baitalik". 

On such days, memories of the time left behind come rushing back. Long walks through the red soil, exploring the length and breadth of the place with my bicycle christened as Pushtak, consuming tea after it has boiled endlessly, the unhygienic breakfast with locally made breads that never had an expiry date written on them, friends who seemed more important than text books, the bonfire, the art...the music...the poetry...the nature, that became so much a part of life. All those elements that appear as the conscious backdrop for my book, Fall Winter Collections!

Sitting far away this day, this video is a small attempt to revisit the past, recall the memories, and celebrate Basanta Utsab in our own way. Photography by Prof. Dipankar Roy, DEOMEL, Viswa Bharati. The voice you hear is that of Saugato Sundar Samanta, my batchmate, who is as stranded in Mumbai as I am right now. He used to be quite "taken" at Santiniketan of late '90s, if you understand what "taken" means ;)

Separated by time...geographically apart, yet very much together...all of us!
https://youtu.be/UmdP_kSjLjE