Kolkata pandals struggle to find sponsors
Corporate funds elude Durga Puja despite a better show than 2020 with retail and F&B recovery
The revellers are back on the street and traffic has come to a crawl. Pubs are overflowing with patrons and the queues at pandals are getting long. But it’s a mixed bag for the business around Durga Puja, the biggest festival of West Bengal.
The season, according to most puja committees of Kolkata, is faring much better than last year, but it’s still a way off from the prepandemic levels of 2019. Retail and food and beverages — a large part of the business around the festival — are however, seeing some recovery.
A research commissioned by the British Council on behalf of the department of tourism, West Bengal, pegged the total economic worth of the creative industries around Durga Puja — from retail and food and beverages to sponsorships and idol making — at an estimated ~32,377 crore annually (figures estimated around Durga Puja 2019). Retail accounted for the largest chunk at ~27,364 crore.
Puja sponsorship
Corporate sponsorship and outdoor advertisements are the twin pillars for most pujas in the city as they rely less and less on door-to-door collection from the neighbourhoods.
But organisers rue that companies have been tight-fisted even this year.
Unlike last year, the number of stalls, banners, pillars and gates are at pre-pandemic levels (last year, it had seen about a 30 per cent drop). But the advertising rates are nowhere near 2019 levels.
“Median rates are operating at 50-60 per cent of 2019 levels,” said Amitava Sinha, president, Ballygunge Cultural Association.
“Response from the companies is much better. The ones that stayed away last time are participating. But at the same time, everyone has curtailed budgets,” Abhijit Mazumder, president, Singhee Park Durga Puja Committee, said, while corroborating that rates are down 50 per cent.
According to Forum for Durgotsab, an umbrella organisation that represents 400 pujas and four other clubs, compared to 2020 sponsorship is up 30-40 per cent and compared to 2019 it’s down 20-25 per cent.
From banks to companies that deal in fast-moving consumer goods and consumer durables, all have a budget for advertising during the pujas. The rates, Sinha explained, are typically linked to footfall and it was anticipated to be less.
More or less, the template for last year is being followed. The Calcutta High Court has continued with the ban on entry into pandals, though there are relaxations on “pushpanjali” and “sindoor khela” for the fully vaccinated.
Keeping the pandals out of bounds means lower footfall even though, prima facie, the crowds look to be back in much larger numbers than last year. But it’s still a lot less than the normal levels, according to organisers.
Companies and puja committees had seen this coming.
The committees that had slashed budgets by 40-60 per cent last year have either kept it at the same level or increased somewhat.
At least one organiser said that the money-spinning corporate stalls — that are used for sampling products — are a lot fewer and food stalls are occupying more space.
Retail picks up
The footfall at Quest Mall — which houses luxury brands like Burberry, Gucci, Canali, Emporio Armani and Jimmy Choo — is yet to reach 50 per cent of the prepandemic levels.
Sanjeev Mehra, vice-president of Quest Mall, said, “At least for these few months, business is better than the pre-pandemic levels. People are coming less, but buying more.”
But he also points out if footfall doesn’t increase then incremental business doesn’t happen.
At South City Mall, the footfall is 40-50 per cent lower than normal, but business is at par or 1015 per cent higher than 2019, said Man Mohan Bagree, vice-president of South City group. South City has retailers like Zara, Marks & Spencer and Calvin Klein, among others.
Boost for restaurants
At the porch of the iconic Peter Cat on Park Street, there is the usual crowd — youngsters standing, sitting on the steps, leaning against the wall — giving a semblance of normalcy.
“Business is very good. We are almost back to pre-pandemic levels,” said Nitin Kothari, owner of Peter Cat and Mocambo.
A big boost for restaurateurs is a recent government relaxation on timings. Restaurants, shops and bars have been allowed to remain open as per normal operational hours.
“Before that everybody had to leave by 10.30 pm. So we lost two hours of peak business time,” said Anand Puri, a third-generation partner at Trincas — once a symbol of nightlife in Kolkata.
But business across segments expects that with vaccination picking up, footfalls will also increase.