Bengali belt
BengaliThe Bengali belt belt is early. We haven't cleared the depth floor here yet — help us map it, rather than reading a listicle dressed up as knowledge.
Contribute what you know →The Sundarbans honey collector wears a mask on the back of his head so the tiger sees a face and turns away.
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The Sundarbans honey trade
A month of masks and prayers to Bonbibi.
From April, mouli honey collectors enter the mangroves for three-week stretches, wearing face masks on the back of their heads. Bonbibi is the forest goddess both Hindu and Muslim villagers ask.
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Bishnupur's terracotta temples
A dynasty that built in brick because there was no stone.
The Mallas raised twenty temples in Bishnupur between 1650 and 1750, each panel telling a Ramayana scene in fired clay.
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Baul, the singer with a one-string dotara
A wandering philosophy with a rhythm section.
Bauls in Birbhum sing about the "man of the heart" — a devotional practice that predates and outlives every organised religion nearby.
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Puja pandals as pop-up architecture
A five-day museum in a lane.
Kolkata's Durga Puja is now UNESCO-listed. The pandals are built and destroyed in about six weeks by architects paid in reputation.