14/10/2026
The days leading up to Pujo have always taken me back to a little girl travelling towards her favourite time of the year.
To my roots in the Sundarbans, the familiar warmth of my dida bari in Shyamnagar, and those early mornings when I would leave for Kolkata to spend Pujo at my mamabari.
My childhood wasn't always easy. There were days that felt far too heavy for a child. But in those journeys, in the anticipation of Pujo, and in the little rituals that came with the season, I found pockets of joy — the kind that made your heart feel full without needing a reason, and that you spend years trying to find again.
Growing up and moving to the city, I carried those memories with me. Perhaps that's where Akashlina began.
Through Akashlina, I want to preserve everything that made Pujo magical to me: the artisans breathing life into Maa at Kumortuli, the rituals passed down through generations, the morning cha, the familiar streets, and the little details we often overlook while living them.
Perhaps Akashlina is my way of finding my way back to that little girl, one little piece of Bengal at a time. ❤️
