Dikhyaa Mohanty 
Kolkata’s Durga Puja will now be officially recognized across the globe after the annual festival was inscribed on Unesco’s ‘Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Durga Puja was ‘acknowledged’ during the 16th session of Unesco’s inter-governmental committee for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, being held virtually in Paris.
UNESCO tweeted from the official account – “Durga Puja in Kolkata has just been inscribed on the #IntangibleHeritage list. Congratulations #India”. The website of UNESCO also stated that – Durga Puja is seen as the best instance of the public performance of religion and art, and as thriving ground for collaborative artists and designers. The festival is characterised by large-scale installations and pavilions in urban areas as well as by traditional Bengali drumming and veneration of the goddess. During the event, the divides of class, religion and ethnicities collapse as crowds of spectators walk around to admire the installations.
Apart from Durga Puja, the other Indian festivals which are on UNESCO’s Intangible cultural heritage list are- Chhau dance, Kumbh Mela, Tradition of Vedic chanting, Ramlila, Kutiyattam, a traditional performing art form in Kerala, Ramman, religious festival and ritual theatre of the Garhwal Himalayas, Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan and Navroz, Parsi new year celebration.
