15 Dazzling Durga Puja Crafts for Kids
We’ve got some Durga Puja crafts that are perfect for the upcoming Puja/Dussehra festival! Get ready to create some gorgeous projects at home!
Festivals are always fun. There are usually interesting stories behind them, the food is amazing, and it’s a great opportunity to meet with friends and family. But when a festival has made it to UNESCO’s cultural heritage list, you know it’s something truly special!
We’re talking about Durga Puja, a major Hindu festival that was featured on UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list in 2021. The festival celebrates Durga, a Hindu goddess, who’s believed to protector for her devotees.
What’s the story behind Durga Puja?
There was a demon named Mahishasura, who had shape-shifting powers. He was also given a special boon – that no man could kill him. With so much power, he went around terrorizing everyone around him.
Tired of his evil ways, the devas decided something had to be done. They combined their divine energies into a new form – the goddess Durga. Durga mounted a lion and went into battle with Mahishasura, ultimately slaying him.
Many depictions of the goddess during Durga Puja feature her in this form, seated on a lion with the dead demon at her feet. As a result, the goddess is considered a symbol of feminine power, while being an amazing warrior as well!
The Durga Puja festival is a ten-day event, comprising the nine nights of Navratri and the tenth day of Vijaya Dashami. On the last day, idols of the goddess are carried on a procession and immersed in a water body.
If you do get a chance to visit West Bengal, be sure to catch the Durga Puja celebrations there! If you can’t right now, no problem – we’ve got a bunch of dazzling Durga Puja crafts that you can celebrate with!
15 Dazzling Durga Puja Crafts for Kids
1. Shukto – Bengali Durga Puja Recipe
Bengali cuisine is well-known for its subtle flavors and sophistication, and the special recipes for Durga Puja are simply delicious! This one, Shukto, is a festive favorite. It features 9 vegetables and is served with steamed rice.
It is believed that the goddess Durga has nine manifestations or avatars, known as Navadurga, where Nava means nine. Check out the printable from our October Bundle to find out what each avatar is, and what it represents.
3. DIY 3D Paper Durga Puppet
There are sculptors and artists in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, who spend their lives specializing in creating Durga idols. If you can’t manage to find an idol this time of the year, you can make this beautiful printable version!
4. Durga-Themed Upcycled CD Coasters
If you’ve got old CDs lying around, we highly recommend turning them into these gorgeous coasters. Maybe you could create a Navadurga set of Durga Puja crafts, featuring the nine avatars of the goddess!
5. Fall Leaf Durga Craft
Durga Puja is celebrated in the month of Ashwin as per the Hindu calendar, which corresponds to September or October in the Gregorian calendar. This means that the festival comes during Fall, which makes this fall leaf project from Little Ladoo apt for the season!
6. Durga Puja Durgotsava Poster
Durga Puja also called Durgotsava or Sharodotsav – utsav means festival or celebration in most Indian languages. Gurzaib Art shows us how to create a poster for this festival using poster colors.
If you are teaching your kids about Durga and her avatars, this printable pack from Little Ladoo will be useful. It features beautiful illustrations and a fun circular pattern to learn the names of the different forms of the goddess.
8. DIY Durga Puja Wall Hanging
In Bengal, Durga Puja celebrations are held both at home as well as in public places, on temporary stages called pandals. All the locations are beautifully decorated, and you can do it too, with this DIY wall hanging from Sharing Our Experiences!
9. Maa Durga Wall hanging from Matchsticks
It is amazing how you can create Durga Puja crafts from just about anything – including matchsticks! We love the creative genius of this project from Kalyani’s Corner – watch the video to learn how to do it!
10. Multimedia Durga Sun Craft
Since the goddess Durga represents feminine energy, she is often portrayed with features to match – like having large eyes or wearing jewelry. We love how Stitch Art’pedia has captured the spirit of the goddess in this multimedia project.
11. Free Printable Durga Idol
The best place to find Durga idols is Kumortuli, a potter’s quarter in Kolkata. The sculptors spend all year making idols for the Durga Puja festival and also export some of them. As for now, you can try this free printable paper Durga idol from Fevi Create!
12. Mini Dhak/Dholak Craft
Durga Puja is one of the most enthusiastically celebrated Indian festivals, and as with all such celebrations, there is a lot of music! The most common sight is that of men beating a drum called dhak, along with the kanshor and dhol. The Little Crafties shows us how you can make your own cute little dhak craft!
13. Durga Mural Clay Art
Some depictions of the goddess Durga show her as having three eyes, where she is referred to as Triyambake, or the ‘three-eyed Goddess’. The third eye is supposed to represent infinite knowledge. Kanya Art and Craft beautifully brings out this concept in this mural art using clay.
14. Craft Foam Durga Puja Craft
Yes, you can make Durga Puja crafts out of clay and paper, but you can also make them out of craft foam! The Little Crafties uses craft foam in multiple colors to create a stunning depiction of the goddess Durga.
15. Durga Puja Tabletop Lamp
Need a classy piece of decor to celebrate Durga Puja this year? Check out this DIY lamp from Fevi Create, which will add a lovely glow to your festive evenings.
Durga Puja coincides with the Dussehra celebrations, making this a truly exciting time in India! We hope these Durga Puja crafts give you a little insight into this festival, as well as into the culture of Bengal. Nothing like crafts to learn more about a distant place and its people!
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