Aesthetic North Calcutta in black and white lense

Kolkata is not just the city of art and culture. Kolkata is also the city of endless debates, like the ones between Ghoti and Bangal, East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, Ilish Maach and Golda Chingri (well, you get the drift) and the list goes on. North Kolkata remembers the city’s glorious past and the lost heritage. The northern part of the city is full of ancient buildings that stand testimony to the colonial influence. The people of North Kolkata are more connected with their roots and look forward to preserving the Bengali culture. A typical North Kolkata girl will be comfortable in wearing ethnic outfits and take pride in deftly draping a sari and don’t forget the red bindi too. 

                           Shelter in home 

Narrow alleys of North Calcutta habitually filled with people, tell different stories. It is here that you find Calcutta shedding her metropolitan skin. The lanes are dotted with fascinating islamic stucco work, and Nam Soon Church, at the end of Damzen lane, is breath-taking - a bewitching Indo-Chinese Taoist church that captivates the senses, and leaves you speechless. The average North Calcutta mansion carries with it a major distinction compared to the European style manors of Dalhousie. 

                        This city will have us 

These houses are all now crumbling. Calcutta has a problem. It spreads like a tumour. Malignant, malformed. The walls come down, brick by brick. Heritage is but a buzzword thrown around by hoteliers. It is difficult to blame the owners. The city is not what it once was, and neither are the families that built (or rather paid for) it. It is difficult to afford upkeep. The main problem, and a reason why Kolkata still hasn’t received the World Heritage Site moniker, is the lack of Governmental care. If one were to go to the official website for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, and find the list of Graded Heritage Buildings, you’d notice that the disclaimer is dated 25th February 2009. It is a 14 year old list, and for no good reason. The list gives us a total of 915, which seems incredibly low.  

                           A alone afternoon 

North Kolkata encompasses the northern part of Kolkata, including the city's oldest neighbourhood. Because of its rich cultural heritage, it is commonly referred to as Babu Kolkata. In 2015, author Amit Chaudhuri started a movement to preserve ordinary Bengali homes in Kolkata. He said, “The aristocratic mansions of North Calcutta built by Bengali landowners. But the houses I’m speaking of were built by anonymous builders for middle-class Bengali professionals: lawyers, doctors, civil servants and professors.” Chaudhuri also notes that a lot of these houses have in common, the presence of Art Deco elements such as “semi-circular balconies; a long, vertical strip comprising glass panes for the stairwell; porthole-shaped windows; and the famous sunrise motif on grilles and gates”.

                              Door to faith 

In terms of design and architecture, the traditional houses reflect Mughal, Portuguese, Armenian, and British styles. An investigation into the present condition of some of these houses being used for residential purposes brings forth an important but forgotten aspect of the city – its lesser-known heritage that needs careful conservation, as much as the iconic structures that are synonymous with Kolkata. Many of these houses face diverse problems at present in the face of competing land uses, rising land values, and pressure from real estate developers. 

                          Home with a soul