India, May 4 -- In Bengal, every festival weaves food into devotion. Durga Pujo, the grandest celebration, is not just the worship of a Goddess - it is the homecoming of strength, love and renewal.

The spirit of the pujo shines through in the bhog - a sacred meal of ghee-scented rice and golden moong dal cooked into a hearty khichuri, served with labra (a warm medley of spiced vegetables), crisp beguni (batter-fried eggplant), tangy tomato chutney, and creamy, cardamom-scented gobindobhog rice payesh.

Rare delicacies like chhanar dalna (cottage cheese curry) or dhokar dalna (spiced lentil cakes) occasionally grace the feast, enriching it with warmth, nostalgia, and reverence.

During Narayan Pujo, the humble shinni - a rustic blend of w...