There is a common saying that when three Bengalis are assembled, a Durga Puja will not be far behind. The festival has crossed the oceans to all those continents wherever we Indians have made our presence felt. With the gaining popularity, the festival is been celebrated at more than 150 places across 36 countries beside India and Bangladesh, in all five continents. In the America, Europe and Africa, Durga Puja was initiated back nearly half a century ago.
Online Directory, an exhaustive one, gives us an idea – 11 Durga pujas in eight African nations, nearly 60 Durga pujas in 19 European countries, eight Durga pujas in two countries of Oceania, three Durga pujas in the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Denmark and Sweden, one Durga puja each in three Arab countries of Bahrain, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates, seven Durga pujas in Myanmar, two Durga pujas in the South American countries of Brazil and Argentina, two Durga pujas in Japan, one Durga puja in South Korea, three Durga pujas each in Singapore and Sri Lanka, two Durga pujas in Thailand, one Durga puja in Malaysia, one Durga puja the in Caribbean island of Trinidad and more than 50 Durga pujas across all the states in the US.