WEEKEND GETAWAY - CITY OF JOY

Victoria Memorial

WEEKEND GETAWAY - CITY OF JOY

Ranchi University's students' issues and strikes often gave us plenty of opportunity for unplanned vacations, Calcutta became one of my favorite weekend getaways. It was just an overnight journey by train. It was easy on the pocket. I had a place to stay that was almost like home and yet with the freedom that I would not have if it were home. My first cousin - a family man - had a flat in Alipore, one of the posh areas of the city. He would give me a spare key during my stay there, allowing me the freedom to come and go at any odd time.

I had also spent four years of my schooling in Calcutta during childhood and was perfectly at home with the local Bengali language as well as the city. As I loved the city, it would be in order to tell my readers a bit about my background and that of the city. Even our college had a sizable Bengali speaking population and Calcutta was as important to us as Ranchi or Ramgarh towns.

My father was in the Central Government. In the year 1955 – when I was just 10 – we moved to Calcutta from Delhi. We found a decent rented accommodation in Lake Place – which was close to the famous Dhakuria Lake in south Calcutta. It was a quiet neighborhood, predominantly a Bengali dominated area. All the youngsters around spoke only in Bengali, and I was totally unfamiliar with the language. It was then I discovered that “bone” means ‘sister’ and not the rigid organs that form our skeletal system. A young Bengali boy almost fainted with shock when I told him I have 32 bones – as I had only studied about the vertebra of the human body till the time. In spite of the language barrier, I found the young Bengalis quite friendly and acceptable, especially after I defeated another youngster of my size, in a freestyle friendly wrestling match. They slowly accepted me in the fold and I was a boy belonging to the “pada” (neighborhood).

Calcutta – now Kolkata – is likened to a mysterious lady, with many colors and hues. One either loves Calcutta or just finds it deplorable. There is no middle path. Any person who has lived in the city for at least a few months or a year would invariably fall in love with it, a strange love that remains for life; whereas a visitor finds it a terrible place. Sweaty in the summer, slushy in the rains, no winter as such. Filth, stench, urchins, traffic jams, rallies are what is the essence of the soul of Calcutta. Calcutta is the only Indian city where the tram service – a legacy of the British – is still operational.

The aura of Calcutta is evidenced from a book - "City of Joy" a novel written by Dominique Lapierre (1985) and in a 1992 film directed by Roland Joffe has been made based on the book. A very popular song “The Ladies of Calcutta” had hit the top of the charts in the early sixties. Cliff Richard has made a notch for himself in the western world. He was an Anglo-Indian born in Lucknow, spent some childhood years in Dehradun, was in Calcutta (Howrah) before his family moved to England after the Independence of India. Mother Teresa, Sourav Ganguly, Satyajit Ray have all been associated with this strange love.

Bengalis have a passion for football – not just cheering for Mohan Bagan or East Bengal – but also playing the game from childhood in the nearest patch of open land they would find. Rain, sun or clouds – whatever be the weather – football was a regular game with the young “pada” crowd. There was no park nearby. An empty plot of a house was enough for us and it was transformed into a football field. Every Bengali in Kolkata was a supporter of either of the two teams mentioned above (excluding the Muslims – who supported Mohammedan Sporting). They would not ask which team you support or root for; merely ask “Mohan Bagan or East Bengal?” I became a supporter of Mohan Bagan right away – before even knowing the name of a single player in the team. It sounded more palatable to me than East Bengal – and one cannot feign ignorance unless you want to be banished from the pada forever.

Every Bengali household has at least one singer or a person learning Rabindra Sangeet. One could find a harmonium in every middle-class household and could listen to strains of songs and music wafting across in the evenings. Around dusk, you could also hear the conch shells being blown – puja time. The shops would burn a sweet-smelling incense – the smell and smoke would permeate in the atmosphere – and this scent was as much a part of Calcutta as anything else.

Fish. That is another thing found everywhere in Calcutta. Every pada market will have a section for fish. You will find an abundance of freshwater fish like Rohu and Ilish. Smaller variety like Bata. And of course, Bengalis are also fond of the shelled varieties of seafood, viz., prawns, crabs, and lobsters. Sea fish are less popular however these days they have also invaded Kolkata, especially Bombay Duck and Pomfret. So it goes without saying that the smell of the fish market is also much a part of Calcutta. If you are in a Bengali neighborhood – the smell of cooking of fish will be pervading the atmosphere between 10.30 and 11.00 in the night. The Bengali bhadralok (gentlemen) or the elite of Calcutta generally return home to the family quite late, after midnight. Calcutta has a very colorful nightlife. Bars, night clubs are in abundance. In fact even today its one of the best places in India of nightlife for the young. Pubs and discotheques remain alive till early hours – 4 a.m. is not considered late. The old rich lot – the landlord type – had huge palatial houses with their own natural pond – called “pukur” in Bengali. Having your own pukur on your property, along with your supply of fish from it, was a status symbol in Calcutta.

It would be in order to mention the famous jhalmuri, non-veg. rolls of Nizam's near New Market, and the sweet shops selling rossogolas and sandesh - without which the Bengali folks cannot survive. The New Market itself with its famous pâtisserie shops - referred as bakeries. These are as much the soul of the city as other features. The New Market was established as an architecturally Gothic market-complex crystallized in 1873 and was formally opened on Jan 1st, 1884. Was christened Sir Stuart Hogg Market in 1903. Its a landmark and historically one could buy anything there. Centrally located between Chowringhee and Dharamtala, it is still a must for any visitor.

Duga Puja (courtesy Wikipedia)

Durga Puja. The most important and biggest Hindu festival of the state of Bengal. The entire city has a totally festive look for the 10 day period when the idols Durga, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati, and Kartikeya are placed all over the pandals in the city. Its festive time. Pandals are set up in every small colony or area with the statues (idols) of the gods in all their finery and vying attention. The city is adorned with lights and people flock to the city from all over the country. The evenings are filled with the sound of drums and conch shells and the strong incense smell. Traffic comes to a standstill as people do pandal hopping to visit as many as possible. Stalls for clothes and eating are set up everywhere. Durga Puja in Calcutta is often referred to as the Rio Carnival of the Eastern Hemisphere. After 10 days the idols are consigned to the river - and that is another festival, you will see truckloads of idols and people - with beating drums - going all over the padas before the idols are taken to the banks of Hooghly river for the final destination, its called visarjan.

After staying for a couple of years in Lake Place – my father got government accommodation in Belvedere Area, a very upmarket colony for Central Government Officers – newly built, in the heart of the city, in the very compound of the famous National Library. So I moved out of the pada life to the sophisticated English speaking crowd. The library used to be the house of the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal during the British Raj. After the independence of the country – it was converted into a Government Library, in 1953 when it was shifted from its location at Metcalfe House, to the present location at Belvedere. It is the biggest and the best library in the country containing about 2 million books and half a million documents. It is also the second-largest public library in Asia.

According to popular belief, this building was not built by the British. Azim-Us-Shaan is believed to have constructed it in 1700 A.D. After the Battle of Plassey, Vanceytart got charge of this Bhawan. He was an Italian who named this mammoth building 'Belvedierre', giving the present-day name of Belvedere to the colony. The word connotes 'the queen of beauty'. Lady Hastings was also the owner of this house for a short while. It was sold to Major Tulley in 1780. The modern-day 'Tollygunge' in Calcutta bears memoirs of Major Tulley. However, this building was put to auction after the demise of Major Tulley in 1802. In 1850, the Govt. took charge of this palatial house. Some believe that Nawab Meer Zaffar had once stayed in Belvedierre Bhawan. Tollygunge has become synonymous with Tollywood – like Bollywood – Kolkata was home for the Bengali theatre and films (Tollywood).

Once I moved to Belvedere – it was another culture. The Senior Government Officials were nowhere near the Bengali culture that I was exposed to at Lake Place – it was more of the Raj Culture. All children would speak in fluent English – studying in English medium schools or convents. The Bengalis were in a minority. We were from all over – Punjab, Delhi, Bombay, Pune, Karnataka, Madras (now Tamilnadu), Andhra, Rajasthan, U.P., Himachal, etc etc, there were quite a few Anglo-Indians also in the officers’ lot. Football took a back seat, the youngsters played cricket, hockey, and rugby (with a football). It was a complete transition to British culture. In fact, Calcutta was so British even otherwise that at that time there still existed few clubs where Indians (dark-skinned persons) were not permitted. Royal Calcutta Golf Club is the oldest golf club in India and the first one outside Great Britain, it was established in 1829. Calcutta Rowing Club too was the first of its kind outside Great Britain – it was established in 1858. There is a 9-hole Calcutta Ladies Golf Club, established in 1891, the only ladies’ golf club in the world.

In Belvedere there was a club for the Central Govt. Officers – having facilities for tennis, swimming, table tennis, squash, badminton, etc, and of course card tables. One could see young lasses dressed in western attires, skirts, shorts, and the like.

The name Kolkata and the anglicized name Calcutta have their root in Kalikata, the name of one of the three villages (Kalikata, Sutanuti, Govindapur) in the area before the arrival of the British. "Kalikata", in turn, is believed to be a version of Kalikshetra ("Land of the goddess Kali"). Alternatively, the name may have been derived from the Bengali term kilkila ("flat area"). Again, the name may have its origin in the indigenous term for a natural canal, Khal, followed by Katta (which may mean dug). While the city's name was always pronounced "Kolkata" in the local Bengali language, its official English name was only changed from "Calcutta" to "Kolkata" in 2001, reflecting the Bengali pronunciation. Some view this as a move to erase the legacy of British rule. This change has not always been reflected by overseas media. While news sources like the BBC have opted to call Bombay Mumbai, Kolkata remains Calcutta. Many Indians also refer to the city by its British name.

Calcutta is one of the few cities which has a sizable population of Muslims, Chinese, Anglo-Indians, Marwaris apart from the majority of the local Bengali Babu or bhadralok. You have a China Town within the city. It was the only city in India that boasted of original Chinese cuisine till the mid-seventies before it started becoming popular in other places. It was a town where you could buy Chinese hand made leather shoes at prices cheaper than that of Bata and which would literally last you a lifetime. These were made to order to the size of your feet from the designs in the window. You could see the traditional Chinese dentists in Calcutta.

Calcutta also became the hub of the cottage industry in leather. On way to the Dum-Dum Airport, at Tangra – one could see hutments with leather sheets spread on their thatched roofs after tanning, and giving an awful smell to the entire area. Calcutta’s leather goods are still considered good and cheap although the bulk of the tanning industry has had to wind up or shift due to pollution control. Here the bulk of the tanneries were owned by people of Haka Chinese origin. "47 South Tangra Road", maybe the most confusing postal address, as it used to cover the whole of Chinatown Tangra with over 350 tanneries. Most of the standing structures have been built, over many years, by the industrious Hakka Chinese, upon marshy and reclaimed low lying land. Over the past several decades, it has served as the location of Calcutta's Chinatown. Food from Tangra is a distinct variety of traditional Hakka Chinese cuisine adapted to Indian ingredients and the Bengali palate. This has spread to the rest of India, along with the recipes earlier unique to Tangra. Tangra is now the most popular destination for Chinese food. Chinese food sold in Tangra restaurants is now known all over the world as "Hakka Style" Chinese food.

Calcutta served as the capital of India during the British Raj until 1911. Once the center of modern education, industry, science, culture, and politics in India, Calcutta has witnessed intense political violence, clashes, and economic stagnation since 1954. Since the year 2000, an economic rejuvenation has spurred in the city's growth. Like other metropolitan cities in India, Calcutta continues to struggle with the problems of urbanization: poverty, pollution, and traffic congestion. Because of the British legacy – we can see massive buildings with beautiful colonial architecture. One walk of 3 km along Chowringhee, will leave you thirsting for more. As a matter of fact – any of the older areas of the city will reveal to you the ancient beauty of the colonial and Victorian architecture. The famous Victoria Memorial is a marvel of architecture by itself.

Now Kolkata is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located in eastern India on the east bank of the River Hooghly. When referred to as "Kolkata", it usually includes the suburbs, and thus its population exceeds 15 million, making it India's third-largest city and urban agglomeration.This also makes it the world's 14th largest metropolitan area.

Bengal is noted for its revolutionary history, ranging from the Indian struggle for independence to the leftist and trade union movements. We have names like Subhash Chandra Bose, Bipin Chandra Pal, Chittaranjan Das, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Khudi Ram Bose, Sarojini Naidu, etc. Also, there were well known social reformers who shaped the history of our country - most notable being Rajaram Mohan Roy (He is best known for his efforts to abolish the practice of sati, the Hindu funeral practice in which the widow was compelled to sacrifice herself on her husband’s funeral pyre) and Swami Vivekananda (considered to be a major force in the revival of Hinduism in modern India).

Calcutta is also known worldwide for its many bridges that link the city to its sister city of Howrah. The Calcutta Bridges include Rabindra Setu (Howrah Bridge), Vidyasagar Setu, Vivekananda Setu, Nivedita Setu, and Jubilee Bridge (India). The railway station that served the city was on the west bank of Hooghly river and the only connecting bridge - the iconic Howrah Bridge was the only link. It was known for its traffic jams and one had to add a couple of hours for the journey for that stretch of just half a mile of Howrah Bridge. The invention is the mother of necessity if you are going to catch a train and are stuck in a traffic jam - no worry - you could get coolies anywhere on the entire span of the jam to carry your luggage to the railway station.

Calcutta has also been the hub of culture. With Rabindranath Thakur having won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, he became a household word. Theatre had strong roots in the city too and the famous CLT (Children's Little Theatre) had world-class histrionics. Bengali movies were also a class apart, most Bengali movies were art and not commercial – with doyens like Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, and Utpal Dutt who have achieved international fame for art cinema. I never met the former two, but Utpal Dutt used to teach the English language in my school (South Point School) and I had the privilege of learning the language from him. We had quite a lot of teachers who were associated with the CLT and our school used to be a showcase of talent in the theatre world.

The sea is not too far either. If you like beaches move to the nearest one - the Digha Beach and en route catch a glimpse of the Diamond Harbour as well.

The famous Botanical Gardens on the west bank of the Hoogly at Sibpur in Howrah. Known for its famous Banyan Tree more than 330 meters in circumference, the largest of its kind in Asia, it is considered more than 250 years old. The Gardens have a large variety of plants - more than 12000 - spread over about 130 hectares.

The place has a history in its churches & temples also. Of the better-known places, we have, on the banks of Hooghly river that snakes through the city – the Dakshineswar Temple. It was built in 1847 by Rani Rasmoni the place where Ramakrishna attained spiritual vision while working as a priest of Kali temple. On the banks of Ganges, north of Belur Math (the headquarters of Rama Krishna Mission), Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa lived and offered his prayers here.

The mall culture has pervaded the city and the old traditional shopping and the soul of the city is disappearing. I left Calcutta in 1959 when my dad moved back to Delhi, but the magic of the place had gone into my blood & I am still in love with the old lady. At present, one can see a reasonable blend of the old and the new. The Metro is another feather in the cap.

Calcutta is now being often referred to as a 'dying city' – more than the earlier popular name of the City of Joy. However – in spite of it, my love for the city remains and I still always want to go there.