The small shack was hot and sultry. Binapani, its hapless owner, looked up thoughtfully towards the gaping hole in her thatched roof. The harsh October sun scorched her bare back as she adjusted her soiled sari to cover it and shaded her eyes as she waited with bated breath. It was the morning of Bijoya Dashami, the last day of the five-day festivities that celebrated the homecoming of the Goddess Durga. For Bengal and its diaspora all over the world, this was a day filled with sadness and forlornness. A…
