Oh Calcutta!

Visiting Calcutta over Durga Puja after thirteen odd years was a treat beyond imaginations. From discovering my class photographs from Grade 10 and 12, finding out that I was once contemplating poetry as a form of expression (thankfully for a very short time!), to getting a good old flooding in front of my parents house on the first evening of our arrival....I truly felt like I never left Calcutta or is it that Calcutta never left me?

This post is about images....its about snippets of Calcutta that have been captured from my phone's camera and recorded forever....to keep my Calcutta alive for my children.   


There is something about this city that each time I step outside the airport, the air, the atmosphere, the yellow ambassador taxis....they all start making me itch to head towards the nearest sandesh shop and order the "notun-gur" sandesh....to see if I can douse my thirst by drinking "lassi" from the old Sharma's shop in Ballygunj....to eat without a care.

So what is a girl supposed to do for her first morning breakfast in the city that was made for foodoholics? Head to "Bhupendra Mansion" for their amazing idli,vada and dosas of course. The charm of this hidden gem is matched well by the simplicity of their service and the flavor and texture of their food!!

Did I happen to mention that a good cup of tea from "Sardarjee" is another morning must....the pictures on the top and bottom left are all captured while standing at one cross junction of Harish Mukherjee Rd. Truly, where else in India will you find the simple act of sitting under a tree transformed into a portable shaving spa for the men; the white uniformed traffic cop sitting in his station and people sitting on sidewalks after their "morning walks" around Victoria Memorial and savoring some of the best tea in terracotta "kulhars"?

Vegetable shopping at the streetside has its own benefits when you get a beautiful and smiling vendor who just adds some extra green chilies when you request a discount and who thinks its important to remind you that the cilantro is very fresh and may not be around tomorrow...so take the extra bunch :). This is truly the original "farmer's market"....

My father asked me what dessert I would like to have for lunch (yep...I am one of those who needs a dessert after every meal!!!) and of course my answer was "Ganguram's misti doi". There is nothing that can surpass its smooth and sweet taste.

This bit is debatable....however, if someone were to ask me where to go for "Calcutta Chinese"...I will only point them towards the Bengal Club's Oriental Room. There Chopsuey, spring rolls, ginger fried rice, parsley vegetables etc. are all so delicious that we always over order and over eat!!

I did mention that I was in Calcutta over Durga Puja. It was early yet and the Durga idols were still being transported from the potters to the pandals and I happened to be behind one such open truck. How could I resist? Specially when you read the message below? "Awaz Deen"...."Call out". 

Freshly fried and crispy immartis from Gupta Brothers, the sandesh from Balaram Mallick and the pastries from Kookie Jar....are your salivating as yet?

Various images of pandals lit up to showcase the true creativity of Calcuttans....its mesmerizing.

And then there are the quintessential Calcutta images....so varying that it boggles the mind. From lotus flowers available at the vegetable vendor...to the colonial British buildings...to a spider man hanging from atop a city market...to the village drummers who come from far off places to showcase their talents and hope that some pandal organizer will take them for the length of the puja celebrations....

And then I got my first sighting of the ten-armed Durga Ma riding a lion and killing a demon. It was in a breath-taking pandal completely decorated with myriad colored bangles. What a sight!!

And then of course, we did the "pandal-hopping" :). What fun!! Kids were awestruck and would keep wondering about the demon...the lion...the decorations...the beautiful facial expressions of Ma.

I did take some time from the pandals to sit at the BRC lawns and savor the best jalebis in town.

Tried a new restaurant in town....called Jhaal Farezi and was very impressed by the interesting manner in which the seating had been set up. A bungalow with rooms converted to provide a more intimate dining experience. I of course ordered the "Bengali platter" :).

The greens of Tolly Club, the children's play area, the stables...the ice cream shop...this one was for the kids :). We also ate at Kwality's on Park Street, The Tasting Room in Ballygunj and tons of other places.....

And this captures everything about Calcutta that I consider iconic. The Victoria Memorial, the Tram, the human rickshaw pullers and the Howrah bridge over the Ganges.

There is something so special about Calcutta......and that is even more apparent when you visit it during the pujas...you wake up to the sounds of Rabindra Sangeet blaring over loudspeakers, you visit a pandal and someone unexpectedly hands you a beautiful red stole blessed by the Goddess  Durga, your children are spoiled by their loving grandparents and aunts....and so much more!!

Oh Calcutta! Need I say more?