ABSTRACT
This is a photo of Stephen Croucher taken in October 2008 in Kolkota, India. Stephen was attending Durga Puja festivities. Durga Puja is an annual Hindu festival that celebrates the Hindu Goddess Durga. For many Hindus, particularly those in West Bengal, this is the biggest festival and cultural event of the year. There are Durga Puja celebrations around the world because Indians have migrated from India to multiple corners of the world. The festival takes place during a 6-day period, during which large pandals, or temporary structures made of bamboo and cloth, are made. Some of these pandals are very simple, but some are extremely elaborate. The purpose of the pandals is to house the stage where the Durga idol stands; the idols are almost entirely made of clay and paint. During the festival worshipers enter the pandals and worship the idols. At the end of the festival, the idols are taken to a local river and “given” back to the river. As a communication researcher and as
Chapter Outline
someone who greatly admires Indian cultures, the celebration of Durga Puja has always fascinated Stephen. One thing he learned during this particular Durga Puja was that for some Indians celebrating Durga (the Goddess) enhances their sense of “Indianness” (a chance to celebrate culture, history, and/or being Indian), while for others the celebration is just a chance to drink and be merry with friends. The communication scholar might approach Durga Puja and look at how this celebration relates to an individual’s identity (Collier & Thomas, 1988; Cupach & Imahori, 1993; Ting-Toomey, 1993, 1999). The scholar could ask if the celebration of holidays and identity are possibly related to one another (in fact, Noth, 1995, argued that the two are related). Such a relationship could be explored through a variety of research methods (e.g., ethnography, focus groups, and statistics). The method we explore in Chapter 11 is in-depth interviewing.
