It is this land were once Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a 15th-century saint who is considered to be the combined avatar of Radha and Krishna, had set his foot.
Kolkata: Baranagar, near Kolkata, is undoubtedly a very old area and a testimony of the fact lies in Baranagar’s mention in the literature of the middle age. And there is no doubt that this place, like many others, was hit by the wave of Vaishnavism and till date, the structures and festivities stand as proof.
It is this land were once Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a 15th-century saint who is considered to be the combined avatar of Radha and Krishna, had set his foot. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had once spent the night at the Pathbari and today, the house is known as Kanthadhari Mutt. It is here that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had visited a poor devotee and had donated a kantha (a light blanket) to him. And from then, it got its name Kanthadhari.
In Kolkata, Rath Yatra, Dol, Jhulan Yatra and other festivities are celebrated with great pomp. It is same in Baranagar but here, Jhulan festival has its own unique features.
Here, the Jhulanbari is famous for the Jhulan Yatra. The house is decorated with dolls and lights during the festival. Earlier, puppet dances used to be held on the occasion of Jhulan Yatra in this house. There was a time when the swing on which the idols of Krishna and Radha are placed used to be decorated with small colourful toys. These dolls used to depict mythological characters. Entire Baranagar used to celebrate Jhulan Yatra with dolls but these days, the lilliput dolls are missing and along with them, the art of making clay soldier dolls, animals and deities is also getting lost.
