Admittedly some religious traditions can be nuanced, but yikes, I can see how this might not be well received…
Air India plane crash commemorated in unusual way
Durga Puja is a major Hindu festival that takes place every year over a period of 10 days, in late September through early October, and it’s particularly popular in West Bengal.
As part of this tradition, it’s normal to design elaborate temporary structures, known as pandals. These are intended for worship, community gatherings, and artistic expression. So the festivals often take place around these pandals, and they can have all kinds of themes, ranging from mythological stories to social commentary,
Most pandals are pretty traditional, and quite beautiful…
…some are a little more modern…
…and then you have one that was created this year, which depicts the crash of AI171, the deadliest plane crash we’ve seen in around a decade. This pandal shows an Air India plane that crashed into a building, with strobe lights and fake flames. In the sky, there’s even a “plane” moving toward the crash site, so that you can see its trajectory before crashing into the building.
This seems to cross some major lines, no?
Obviously I’m no expert on all religious festivals, which is why I’m asking a question here rather than making a statement. Certainly as an outsider, this kind of a display seems highly distasteful… but is there something I’m missing here?
I understand the concept of wanting to honor a tragedy, but there’s a fine line between doing that and… creating what almost looks like a haunted house party plane crash scene with flashing lights, no?
I imagine that constructing this was no small task, and that a lot of time and money went into it. So did no one express concerns about that? Or they knew it would be controversial, and went with it anyway? I mean, I suppose that people seem to be flocking to this pandal, based on the video posted online, so it seems those people have no issues with this? But oy…
Bottom line
During the Durga Puja festival, it’s standard to create pandals, which are intended for gatherings. A lot of work goes into these temporary structures, and they can be beautiful in all kinds of different ways. However, one recent pandal in West Bengal got a disproportionate amount of attention, given that it depicted the crash of AI171.
What do you make of this display “honoring” the Air India Dreamliner crash?
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