Pahela Falgun, Valentine’s Day being celebrated
The Bengali nation especially the youths is celebrating Pahela Falgun, a festival welcoming the advent of spring, on Sunday.
As per the new calendar, the first six months of Bangla year have 31 days, and the last six months of the year have a length of 30 days, except for the month Falgun. In that way, Pahela Falgun coincided with Valentine’s Day this year.
This year the festival comes when the entire world is facing the coronavirus pandemic.
Any formal programmes marking the day was not allowed at Bakultala on the premises of fine arts faculty on Dhaka University campus, centre point of the festival, in view of the pandemic but the people were celebrating the day informally wearing colourful dresses and floral ornaments and offering flowers to dear and near ones, reports Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha.
Jatiya Basanta Utsab Udjapan Parishad arranged the Jatiya Basanta Utsab 1427 at Mukta Mancha of Suhrawardy Udyan maintaining health guidelines, which has been regularly held at the Bakultala on DU campus since 1991.
The programmes is being be held in two phases – first phase being held from 7:00am to 10:00am and second phase to be held from 3:30pm to 7:00pm, said a press release.
State minister for cultural affairs KM Khalid addressed the function as chief guest while cultural affairs secretary Badrul Arefin as special guest. Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy director general Liaquat Ali Lucky chaired it.
Besides, Shilpakala Academy also arranged ‘Basanta Utsab-2021’at the Nandan Mancha of the academy.
Bengalis mark the spring festival on the first day of Bengali month of Falgun. It is also called Basanta Utsab. It usually falls on February 13.
Since 2020 it is being coincided with Valentine’s Day on February 14 which has also become a major day in celebration of the festival-loving Bengalis especially the youths.
In 2019, Bangla Academy revised Bangla Calendar to match it with the Gregorian calendar aimed at observing the significant days in line with the historic background.
On the day, the capital Dhaka and other major cities of the country usually become ablaze with mirth and merriment as curious youngsters wear yellow and red dresses, flower-made ornaments and attend traditional musical functions.
But this year, the festival will be celebrated in a small scale avoiding gathering.
Clad in yellow sarees and panjabis, people specially the youths will visit Dhaka University campus, which is considered the focal point of the celebration, Ramna Park, Suhrawardy Udyan, Rabindra Sarobar, Dhanmondi Lake, Hatirjheel and different other places in the capital.
City markets were seen busy with purchasers buying colourful panjabees and sarees and other traditional dresses ahead of the festival.
Different brands of garment products, shoes and ornaments are also giving special offer to customers on the eve of the two major festivals.
Newspapers have been also publishing special supplements for the last couple of days carrying the message of the festival.
People usually attire colourful yellow or orange dresses particularly yellow or red panjabis and sarees and present flowers to their soul mates as a token of their profound love for each other. Girls wear floral ornaments like crown.
As spring has arrived with blossom of flowers and new leaves in trees, nature is getting fresher and colourful shape that touch hearts and minds of all ages of people.
The spring has been depicted as the king of all seasons in poetry for its extra-ordinary beauty of nature.
After the dryness of winter, new leaves start to come out again and the nature adorns the branches with new colourful flowers like Shimul, Polash and Marigold denoting the message of arrival of spring.
In nature, it is considered that ‘Krishnachura’ flower brings the message of arrival of spring.
Famous excerpt of Subhash Mukhopadhyay ‘Phul phutuk na phutuk, aaj Boshonto’ beautifully depicts the advent of Basanta Utsab.
‘O wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?’, a way English romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley described the arrival of spring in his famous poem ‘Ode to the West Wind’.
Everything in nature gives an impression of youthfulness or freshness as if the nature takes a new birth. Colourful flowers, melody of birds or mild touch of the sunshine – everything will make one feel that springtime is the nature’s festival.
News Courtesy:
https://www.newagebd.net/article/130153/pahela-falgun-valentines-day-being-celebrated
