KOLKATA: A group of Hindu men and women, mostly middle-aged professionals from central Kolkata, observed Muharram by offering water and sherbat to those took part in the procession. They offered glasses of sherbat to the mourners as they walked through the city roads in the hot and humid weather.
On Tuesday, residents of areas in and around BB Ganguly Street-Bowbazar, Brajalal Dutta Lane, Chuna Pukur Lane, Ramkanai Adhikari Lane, gathered at a decorated stall by the roadside waiting for the mourners. For the past three days they had been pooling money and planning how to cater to the procession attendees. "The biggest challenge was to provide sherbat and water to so many attendees in a very short time. When the procession passed through the area, many of them would want to quench their thirst. We needed a big team of volunteers," said Sharmistha Ghosh, a homemaker.
