Mahalaya 2021: When And How To Hear ‘Mahishasuramardini’ Live On Radio? See TV Show Time, YouTube Links

For the last 90 years, it has been a ritual in most Bengali households to wake up at the crack of dawn on Mahalaya to welcome the Mother Goddess by playing the Mahishasuramardini composition on radio

Durga Puja celebrations begin with Mahayala, which is on October 6 this year | Photo: Getty

Mahalaya 2021: It’s Mahalaya on Wednesday, October 6, the last day of Pitri Paksha. It is believed Goddess Durga arrives on her yearly trip to Earth on this day as Devi Paksha begins the next day. 

Mahalaya has a special significance in Bengal and for the Bengalis. And for the last 90 years, it has been a ritual in most Bengali households to wake up at the crack of dawn on this day to welcome the Mother Goddess by playing the Mahishasuramardini composition, a timeless classic, on radio.

The 90-minute musical presentation, originally composed in 1931 to be performed live on radio, narrates the creation of Goddess Durga to save the gods from Mahishasura, the buffalo demon. 

Celebrated composer of the yore, Pankaj Kumar Mallick, set it to tune and it became a tradition to perform the composition live from 4 am every Mahalaya. Top artistes of the time lent their voice to the devotional songs, which were accompanied by a Chandipath by the legendary Birendra Krishna Bhadra. 

The artistes included Supreeti Ghosh, Dwijen Mukhopadhyay, Manabendra Mukhopadhyay, Arati Mukhopadhyay, Utpala Sen, Tarun Banerjee, Krishna Dasgupta, Shyamal Mitra, Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, and Pankaj Mallick himself.

From 1966, the All India Radio started playing a recorded version of the classic composition. 

 

An artist paints the eyes of an idol of Goddess Durga ahead of the Durga Puja festival in Guwahati | Photo: Getty

How To Listen To Mahalaya LIVE

All India Radio, or Akashvani Radio, holds a "special dawn programme" on Mahalaya every year. On Wednesday, the one-and-a-half-hour-long programme will begin at 4 am, and can be caught on Indraprasth, FM Gold, and AIR Live News24x7 YouTube channel. 

🗓️6 अक्टूबर 2021, प्रातः 4 बजे से 5:30 बजे तक

🔘'महालय' के अवसर पर सुनिएगा हिंदी और संस्कृत में विशेष कार्यक्रम -

♦️महिषासुर मर्दिनी♦️

📡इन्द्रप्रस्थ, FM Gold, AIR Live News24x7 YouTube चैनल पर pic.twitter.com/sQUlCG9LIt

— ALL INDIA RADIO आकाशवाणी (@AkashvaniAIR) October 5, 2021

Mahalaya 2021 On TV And YouTube

Several TV channels also air the Mahalaya programme in the morning. Zee Bangla, Star Jalsa and other Bengali channels have special shows on the occasion. The Zee show airs at 5 am. DD Bangla will telecast a special programme, 'Durgatinashini Durga', at 5.30 am on Wednesday.

Just in case you are not able to wake up so early, or miss the radio programme or TV show due to any reason, there is YouTube too. Many YouTube channels have the original recording.

ABP Live wishes all of you a very happy Durga Puja.