In Search of the Divine by Debleena Das
I would like to introduce Debleena Das and her first photographic story, In Search of the Divine.
Having witnessed her approach to this project just days after picking up a camera, I have been genuinely impressed by her curiosity, visual sensibility, and the way she approached her subject. For someone at the very beginning of her photographic journey, she has shown a commendable instinct for observation and a willingness to look beyond the obvious.
At Progressive Street, we believe emerging voices deserve the chance to explore their perspectives and share their stories with a wider audience. I am glad we can offer Debleena that space as she takes her first steps into photographic storytelling.
Every photographer starts somewhere, and I look forward to seeing how she develops her eye, voice, and practice in the years ahead. Wishing her the very best as she begins.
Shubhodeep Roy
In Kumartuli, the heart of Kolkata’s traditional pottery community, the divine truly comes alive through the skilled hands of dedicated artisans. From humble bundles of straw and rich river clay, magnificent figures of gods and goddesses are born, a process rooted in generations of knowledge, meticulous craftsmanship, and deep devotion. Here, crafting an idol transcends mere creation; it’s a journey transforming raw materials into profound significance, bridging the earthly with the sacred.
This artistry finds its most vibrant expression during Bengal’s Durga Puja, an extraordinary festival that beautifully intertwines faith, artistic creativity, and a robust cultural heritage. Long before the goddess graces the city’s spectacular pandals, her essence originates in the intimate workshops of Kumartuli, where artisans carefully sculpt her likeness, fine-tune her emotions, and prepare her for a joyous homecoming cherished through the ages.
The project, In Search of the Divine, captures this mesmerising transformation. It showcases the artisans' movements, the clay's rich textures, and the silent beauty of unfinished idols, encouraging us to look beyond the dazzling finished forms and appreciate the human effort behind this enduring spiritual legacy. It invites us to ponder the powerful connection between belief and creation, as we explore how an object crafted by human hands can embody something much greater than itself.
Ultimately, perhaps the divine isn't merely in the final idol, but within the skilled hands that create it, the traditions that uphold it, and the faith that imbues it with meaning. In Kumartuli, the sacred truly begins with the human spirit.
Debleena Das (b. 2001) is a professional graphic designer and a visual artist with a background in painting. Her journey into photography emerged from an enduring curiosity about the visual world and inspiration drawn from the people, places, and creative expressions around her.
Approaching photography with a designer's sensibility and a painter's eye, she sees the camera as an extension of her artistic practice—a way to paint with light, observe the subtleties of human experience, and find visual narratives in everyday life.
Her work explores the intersection of culture, craftsmanship, faith and tradition, with a particular interest in the stories embedded in Bengal’s artistic heritage. Through In Search of the Divine, she turns her attention to the artisans of Kumartuli, documenting not merely the making of religious icons, but the human process through which clay, culture and devotion converge to create something sacred.
