To the beat of the dhaak, Kolkata set to welcome goddess Durga

The annual festivities of Durga Puja are set to start and the City of Joy is gearing up for it. Photographer Sayan Dutta offers us a peek into the preparations.

At pandals across Kolkata, artistes work, around the clock, painting murtis and constructing pandal props.

Meanwhile, for most Kolkatans hectic shopping is the main pastime in the days before Durga Puja. Gariahat is one of the biggest spots for Puja shopping in Kolkata.

The city's police force does an amazing job handling the crowds during the Puja, days and nights, when millions of people -- including tourists from faraway towns and villages -- take to the streets, pandal hopping.

In the days preceding the festivities, photographer Sayan Dutta aims his camera at the city and lets it do the talking.

We start with this image of artisans who arrive by boat from the Sundarbans into Kolkata to work on pandals.

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An incomplete sculpture of Goddess Durga waits to be completed. In the background West Bengal's Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee looks on from a photograph behind a plastic sheet.

Young artisans carve out designs on a sheet of Styrofoam under the watchful eye of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

A street in south Kolkata readies itself to welcome its most famous deity. The bamboo framework will soon be decorated as the goddess will arrive in an open vehicle accompanied by hundreds of her followers.

Hoardings litter the shop fronts along a busy Kolkata street announcing the arrival of the festival.

Durga Puja is to West Bengal what Ganesha Chaturthi is to Maharastra. Thousands of people pour out on the streets only to pay their obeisance to the goddess in pandals decorated lavishly and creatively. Seen here are some pandal decorations on display in a shop.

A local artisan prepares identical pots that will be used for decoration during Durga Puja in his workshop.

Another striking feature of the festivities is the annual collector's issue magazines filled with features, stories and colourful photographs. In most other parts of the country, this trend is followed during Diwali when local publishers release their special editions.

Do you have pictures of Durga Puga too? Post your photographs here and we will carry the best images on Rediff.com!