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Vijayadashami 2025 Rituals, Traditions: The 9-day Shardiya Navratri coincides with Durga Pujo festivity which is a 5-day long affair filled with devotion, rituals, bhog prasad and greeting people in pandals. For North India, Navratri festivity culminates with Dussehra and for Bengalis across the nation, Bijoya Dashami or Vijayadashami marks the closure of Pujo. Names and customs might vary as India is a diverse land but the essence of celebrating Maa Durga in different forms remains the same. Navratri and Durga Puja celebrate the victory of good over evil. Today, let’s understand why only married Bengali women play ‘sindoor khel’ with vermilion on Shubho Bijoya:
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Decoding Sindoor Khela Ritual – Meaning
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Sindoor means red vermilion and Khela refers to play. Right from Dhak Beats, Sandhi Pujo, and Dhunuchi Dance to Sindoor Khela—each and every ancient ritual holds great significance. If you happen to attend the Pujo on the tenth day i.e on Dashami (Vijayadashami or Dussehra), before the mother goddess is prepared for Visarjan, Bengali women play with red colour and the ritual is known as Sindoor Khela as part of her farewell.
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After the Visarjan Puja is conducted, the practice known as Devi Baran or Devi Boron begins where married women, dressed in white saree with red border perform goddess Durga’s aarti and then apply sindoor over Maa’s forehead and fee.
The goddess is also offered sweets and betel leaves.
Then, the women smear sindoor on each other’s forehead and that’s called Sindoor Khela. They apply the sindoor on each other’s Shankha, Pala, Noa, Conc Shell, Coral and Iron bangles worn by the ladies.
After Sindoor Khela Tradition…
After playing with the sindoor and smearing each other’s faces with it, sweets are distributed as prasad. It is believed that if a woman performs the Sindoor Khela ritual properly then she will never be a widow.
Sindoor Khela celebrates the power of Durga—a form of Shakti in her married avatar. Just before she prepares to go back to the heavenly abode with her children—Laxmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartikeya—Sindoor Khela hails the spirit of womanhood where women pray for the longevity of their husband and family.
Dugga Dugga!
