’’I was eight years old and running with a dime in my hand
Into the bus stop to pick up a paper for my old man
I’d sit on his lap in that big old Buick and steer as we drove through town
He’d tousle my hair and say son take a good look around this is your hometown
This is your hometown .............
Bruce Springsteen
Well , my father didn’t exactly own a Buick and maybe I had a few coins instead of a ’dime in my hand’....but the emotions that ran through Bruce are exactly the ones I feel when it comes to talking about ’my hometown’ . Everytime I hear that song I stop and think about Calcutta , recently rechristened Kolkata , which is my hometown . I don’t want to do a review on Calcutta as , it’d be a totally biased one . Rather this is a travel guide in case you think of visiting this place or are just curious .
A Brief History :In 1690....Job Charnock came to the bank of the river Hooghly (it’s a part of the Ganges) and took the lease of the three villages- Sutanuti, Govindapur and Kolikata(Calcutta) as a trading post of British East India Company. The city became famous in 1756, when Siraj-Ud-Dawlah, the last independent nawab of Bengal, captured the city . But the British regained their power in 1757 and the city was recaptured under Robert Clive. Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of India, made it the seat of the supreme courts of justice and the supreme revenue administration, and Calcutta became the capital of British India in 1772. By 1800 Calcutta had become a busy and flourishing town, the center of the cultural as well as the political and economic life of Bengal. In the post - 1947 period Calcutta has gone through numerous changes . For the last couple of decades it is been governed by the Leftist Govt .
Why would you come here :If you just want to take a trip to spend your vacation and want some peace of mind ..... at the risk of being hated by the tourism ministry, I’d have to say its not a good idea . However , this city has a lot of heritage structures and landmarks and if these are your kinda stuff....welcome to Calcutta . Other than that , people come here due to job transfers , to study (there are a few institutes here which belong to the 5 star category, like the IIMC , St Xaviers College , etc. The later being my alma mater ) . What the hell , how am I supposed to know....geez !! so many people are seen walking down the street , each one of them must have some purpose or other .
Where to stay :This kind of depends on your budget . If that is not a constraint I’d straightaway suggest names like The Park , Taj Bengal , Oberoi Grand , Hotel Hindustan International (HHI) , Kenilworth or the new-born Hyatt Regency....all 5 stars and the best at that . However , if you cannot afford ’the best’ , there are innumerable guest houses , lodges and hotels that range from moderate to inexpensive to virtually nothing . If you are planning a longish stay , you could also keep your eyes open for Paying Guest accommodations , these things are pretty common over here.
What to do : This kind of depends on your interests . If you want to check out the landmarks , there are quite a few like Victoria Memorial , Shahid Minar , Indian Museum , Birla Planetarium , Asiatic Society etc.or if you haven’t lost your faith yet, you could pay a visit to various places of worship like Belur Math , Dakshineshwar Kali temple , Kali Temple(Kalighat) ,
Nakhoda Mosque , St. Paul’s Cathedral Church etc.
If you are a party freak like me , good news guys , the discs and the pubs have undergone tremendous modernization , or should I say westernization , over the years . So go ahead and shake a leg at Tantra , London Pub , Winning Streak , Incognito , Equinox , Big Ben and the likes . Or just hang around and chat with friends while the music plays at Someplace Else , a personal favourite of mine . Or if you are in the spending mood go shopping at Pantaloons , Westside , Landmark , Planet M , Musicworld or the ever popular New Market . If you’re game , you can shop at the stalls and roadside vendors , but before you do make sure to master ’’The Art of Bargaining’’ . If none of the above suits your restless soul , go for a game of pool or bowling at Flight Ten , Superbowl or Sparkz . If you like art , pay a visit to the numerous art galleries like Academy of Fine Arts , CIMA , Bizalliance , Domus etc .Or take the easy way out , go see a movie at Globe , Priya , Lighthouse , New Empire , Nandan etc . I guess there are a thousand other things you can do but for starters that was enough. Oops ! I almost forgot the essential . What trip would be complete without eating out . I recommend Sabir , Petercat , Bar-b-Q , Oasis , Marco Polo , Pepper Chino , Mainland China etc. Although , the talk of the town at the moment is Grain of Salt set up under the supervision of master chef Sanjeev Kapoor .
Do pay a visit to Swabhumi if you want to get a dose of the Bengali heritage .
How to go Places : Conveyance is not that easy . There are Buses(avg. rate Rs. 2 - 4) , but during peak hours they are crowded like hell . Autos(avg. rate Rs.3 - 10) , are an imperative mode of transportation in Calcutta . but of course , they run between specific destinations and are not always suitable . Much like the underground Metro(avg. rate Rs. 4 - 8) , fast and economical , but doesn’t go everywhere . So if you can dish out a few extra bucks , take a cab(avg. rate starts at Rs.12 and then goes on depending on the distance covered and time taken ) . Or else , buy a car for god’s sake (avg. rate starts at Rs.3/4 lakhs)
Sons of the Soil:There are a number of people from calcutta who have made it big in the world arena . Satyajit Ray , Rabindranath Tagore , Amartya Sen , Leander Paes to name a few . And of course at the moment , with apparently cricket being the only relevant topic to discuss , who can forget our dearest ’boy next door’ Sourav Ganguly , the skipper of the Indian cricket team . Talking of cricket , Eden Gardens is one of the very best cricket grounds in the world.
That was all the information I could furnish within the provided space . If you want to know more give me a call when you get here or just ask anyone on the streets . The people are very helpful over here . If you have any specific inquiry , just drop in a comment and I’ll be sure to redress it ASAP .