MUMBAI: With the commencement of grand festivities of Bengal - Durga Puja, Red FM is back with the Season 3 of Ticket to Durga Puja, which celebrates the essence of the festive season by bringing everyone closer. Red FM, India’s most awarded radio network has created a niche space amongst the audience, with its constant effort to connect with them through various innovative properties. Ticket to Durga Puja is one such exclusive property. It is a Red FM IP solely committed to reconnecting people with their loved ones during the festival of inclusion and compassion. It is a benchmark campaign deeply rooted in its belief of bringing people closer and sharing the joy of festive times.

Speaking about the initiative, Red FM and Magic COO and director Nisha Narayan  said, “Undeniably, little joys of life increases when we share them with our near and dear ones. Festivities are best enjoyed when families are together and when people who matter most to you are closer. With Ticket to Durga Puja, we want our audience to celebrate this bond of love with family, friends and dear ones. Whenever we have bridged the gap between the separated family members, we have seen how they have always craved to be reunited all along and yet couldn’t do so due to various reasons. We are glad that we act as that mediator that brings people closer. Like the last season, this year too the winners of Ticket to Durga Puja are ordinary people with extraordinary life stories.” 

Both the Season 1 and Season 2 of Ticket to Durga Puja: Pardes to Swades received massive success as the whole city rejoiced, when the disjointed family members and loved ones were reunited. Red FM brought back family members who were away from their families & the city for years and couldn’t come back due to financial crisis or emotional distance. Red FM team along with their RJs Praveen, Neil and Nilam, took it upon themselves to curb the differences among these detached family members and let their hearts glow with love & happiness during the most loved festival of Bengalis. This year Ticket to Durga Puja was held at Acropolis mall, Kolkata where the winning families got the beautiful surprise.

• Bhanu Buduk is a transgender and three years back when his family got to know about his relationship with Deepak Kumar, he was asked to leave the house. Now they are married and live in Kota. Pankajini, Bhanu’s mother has registered with Red FM’s campaign requesting to get Bhanu and his husband to Kolkata this Durga Puja and resolve their issues for once and all.
   
• Kajal Bose residing in Sonagachi (red light area of Kolkata) got her daughter Chaya married at a very young age fearing that if she stayed with her longer she might have to lead a similar life. They have not met each other for years and somehow have never celebrated Durga Puja together. This year Kajal has decided to change that as she wishes to meet her daughter after years.
   
• Sandip Ghosh hopes to bring his mother Dipali Ghosh from Jamshedpur this year to celebrate Durga Puja. His mother has been wheel chair ridden for over 20 years and only recently she has gone through a knee operation and started walking. It was difficult convincing her as she didn’t want to be a burden on her son and grand-children during Durga Puja. However, Red FM convinced her and after 20 years she will enjoy Durga Puja with her family in Kolkata.
   
• Shantanu Bhunia hadn’t seen his brother Tarun Bhunia for years, who lives in Singapore. Tarun is a plumber in Singapore and has not been home for over six years due to financial constraints. This year Red FM will ensure that two brothers are reunited to enjoy the festivities together.
   
• Maya and Sita are sisters and had not met each other for 10 years due to financial reasons. Maya, a homemaker stays in Kolkata and her husband works in a factory. Sita’s husband is a cook in a small food stall in Delhi. This year thanks to RED FM’s initiative, Sita will get to meet her sister Maya and celebrate the festival with her.

As the third leg of Ticket to Durga Puja saw a roaring start, Red FM witnessed an auspicious start with the ‘War of the Dhaakis’ where best dhaakis of Bengal indulged in dhaker lodai and took away some amazing prizes. Special guest actor Vikram Chatterjee awarded the Winner’s trophy to Chorebagan Sarbojanin while Hazra Park Durgoutsav was the first runner up and Dhakuria Sarbojanin took away the second runner up trophy. War of Dhaakis gave the much-needed platform to the maestros this year where they conjured up the magical beats for Durga Puja. Actors Parambrata Chatterjee and Rudranil Ghosh also joined the revelry along with the entire Red FM family.  Taking the celebration of bond a notch higher, Red FM has planned a series of activities for the family members which include a pandal hopping session with VIP passes and joint lunch. Red FM has tied up with more than a hundred puja associations this year, which is an exceptional feat. With the blessings of Goddess Durga, Red FM looks forward to spread more love and warmth in the city of joy.