Rathayatra is celebrated in different districts of West Bengal in a grand way. The chariot in some cases are not made of wood rather they are made of brass. These brass-drawn chariots are seen in different areas of Bengal. The three places where these chariots are drawn in Paschim Barddhaman district of West Bengal are Bankati, Ukhra and Searsole.
Rathayatra marks the beginning of the festive season as in this auspicious day the kathamo puja of Maa Durga is performed in many households. In this post I shall try to mention Rathayatra in Ukhra, a census town in Kanksa block of Paschim Barddhaman district of West Bengal. Rathayatra in Ukhra was started way back in 1763 Sakabda (9th Aashar, 1248 Bangabda) i.e., 1841 as per the English calendar by Late Sambhunath Lal Singh Hunday. In the initial stage the chariot is made of wood. Nine years later in 1850, it was converted to brass. This was prepared by Radhaballav Mehatari (Karmakar) of Birbhum. The chariot is about 30 feet in height.
Durga Puja of Hunday family is also famous. Sambhunath Singh Hunday started Jhulanyatra and Rashyatra along with Rathayatra in Ukhra. It was said that possibly these festivals started at the same time along with Durga Puja.
The pancharatna Ramchandra Jiu Temple was founded by Meruchandra Hunday in 1739 A.D and Gopinath Jiu Temple by Bakhtar Singh Hunday in 1801. The Hundays have two brass chariots – one big (30 feet) and another small (12 feet). Previously both are used but now only the big one is drawn. Both are kept throughout the year in ratha griha. Last year I was invited by Shri Sandip Hunday to witness the rathyatra in Ukhra. Accordingly, I boarded Hool Express from Howrah and reached Ukhra at around ten in the morning. From the railway station I boarded a toto and reached Gopinath Jiu Mandir.
On the evening of Rathayatra, Gopinath Jiu and Radharani came out from the main temple in a palanquin and brought to ratha griha. Before they get inside the chariot they move around it thrice. For the last fifteen years or so the chariot is drawn by a tractor but previously people used to draw it through the rope. The chariot began to move through the crowded streets with people and devotees of various age groups holding the rope. The rath went to Vajpayee More and returned from there. On both the days of the festival there happened to be a fair at the Rathtala Road in Ukhra.
Special thanks to Shri Sandip Hunday
Date of posting: 8th June, 2025.
Blog of Kinjal Bose 