Durga Puja to go digital, best committees will be awarded

Kolkata: With Bengal’s biggest carnival now dominating more space in the social media, as colourful images of the idol and the pandal are shared on Facebook and Instagram increasingly every year, the best Durga Puja will now be honoured digitally.

“We’ll be honouring the best Durga Puja committee on social media platform this year and our award would cover all the creative aspects of digital promotion. “The creative aspects would include concept, creativity, implementation and the number of page ‘likes’ to the Best Integrated (cross platform) Social Media Campaign,” a spokesman of the ‘Sharodiya Digital Impact Awards’ committee told a press meet on Thursday.

Divided into three parts, the judging category comprises — Best Digital Impact Award, Jury Choice Awards and Peoples’ Choice Award. The trophies will be handed over to the winning Durga Puja Committees on September 24, 2017.

Dance exponent and pioneer of ‘culture therapy’ for prison inmates Alokananda Roy, popular band singer Surojit Chatterjee, internationally known dance choreographer Sudarshan Chakravorty were present at the announcement programme.“We know about many awards for the best durga puja theme, pandal, idol and even illumination, instituted over the past couple of years. But with social media now being a part of our everyday life, a digital award for the best Durga puja, taking into account aesthetic aspects, is long overdue,” Alokananda said.