Ajanta Dey is a descendant from Shova Bazar Rajbari. Her forefather Raja Nabakrishna Dey had started Durga Puja at Shova Bazar at Kolkata nearly two and a half century ago. It started after the Battle of Plassey in 1757.
The Durga Puja then was witnessed by Lord Clive, Warren Hastings, Lord and Lady Bentick, Lord and Lady Canning . Amongst the visitors were Prince Dwarkanath Tagore, Iswar Chandra Viddya Sagar, the Maharajas of Burdwan and Natore.
In an exclusive interview with VOA Bangla Service , Ajanta Dey describes in details the way puja was done in those days. She also describes the Puja Fair. She said that no major changes have taken place in the veneration of the deities, almost everything remains the same accept that it has lost some of its charms.
