Posts in Category: Kolkata
Window
This window has seen better days. Days of galore and splendor when it was an item of beauty and covet by many. Today it stands broken, listless, dilapidated and in a state of despair asking for attention and love. I took this in my recent trip to Kolkata. The state of the window today epitomizes the state of many parts of the city of joy…….. desperately longing for some interest to be shown its way. While politicians continue to look the other way, the city slowly deteriorates to a state of fossilized oblivion. The only change that can happen will have to come from the dhoti clad bangali babus on their hand pulled rickshaws. The question is will they take cognisance of the current state of affairs or continue to revel in the glory of the long forgotten bygone Raj.
You don’t really need rabindra sangeet playing at every corner of the road to brighten a person’s day rather a constructive effort to employment generation that will give the youth something to look up to and give the city a fresh new perspective…… a new leash of life. A New Life that is what the city needs to get over its current deteriorating state!!!
Bylanes of Kolkata
I took this picture in one of the bylanes of Ballygunge in Kolkata. It was a bright and sunny day and these deserted narrow lanes between the houses looked spooky and ethereal. The shadows cast by the trees on either side added depth to this pic. I took this pic with my cell. These little narrow lanes seem to go nowhere but in reality they are the major connecting roads and very common here. In Fact, they define the city. Walking is the only way to go unless you have a cycle or a hand pulled rickshaw which is very common here. The cycle rickshaws can’t pass through these lanes. Also it is very easy to get lost here. I was lucky to have a good guide to guide me through these roads…… else considering the inverted compass in my brain this would have been the perfect maze to get lost in.
Tea stalls in Kolkata
This is a pic of a tea stall in Kolkata. Interestingly this pic was taken at the pinnacle of general election and has the posters of two political leaders waving at you from the corner of the pic. Kolkata is a politically charged place. Anybody and everybody there has an opinion on the political scenario….. The three topics that everyone there talks about over a cup of tea at an ADDA (get together) is weather, politics and their wide range of illnesses…… and ohhhh I forgot Football!!!
Tea stall like this one is a predominant feature in the corner of most streets of Kolkata. The tea stall owners also sell biscuits, chocolates, mint, cigarettes and sometimes some fried eatables to accompany the tea and a paraphernalia of eatables.
This tea stall is close to my mum and dad’s home in Kolkata. I like this pic especially because as a kid i used to love going to this shop. They had these sweet and sour lollipops made with tamarind and jaggery and cumin which I used to love. In my vacations my aunt would buy me two biscuits from this shop every evening. Sometimes she would give me a coin and ask me to get two biscuits for myself.
The shop has since then changed hands a lot of times. The initial owners I remember were my mother’s childhood friend so I would get lots of freebies.
Going to Kolkata during holidays was fun. My mum and dad live closeby so everybody who lived in and around mom and dad’s place were related to me from either side. Either that or they were my mum or dad’s friends. So as soon I would go there people would ask me when I had come for my visit. I was known to all by face. This was a contrast to living in the city where nobody knew you. I resemble my mom too much…… so much that in that place I needed no introduction.
Things have changed these days. The entire demographics of the place has changed. The oldies have either passed away or they have moved for better opportunities in other cities. It is not the same anymore. When I was younger I could knock on any door and just have a glass of water or be welcomed in their home….. made me feel I belonged there. Not anymore….. it doesnt feel like home anymore…… nor do I long to go back there…… in the instances that I have held on to memories and gone there, I have returned disillusioned. My grandparents have passed on and my uncles who were close to me have either passed away or are too old to understand my presence. But yet the place holds the first memories of my childhood…… and all of them happy. So it will remain close to me.
I recently read a beautiful quote by Dalai Lama which I must share.
“I’m now nearly 79. At 16 I took responsibility for Tibet and lost my freedom. At 24 I lost my country and became a refugee. I’ve met difficulties, but as the saying goes: ‘Wherever you’re happy, you can call home, and whoever is kind to you is like your parents.’ I’ve been happy and at home in the world at large. Living a meaningful life isn’t just a matter of money; it’s about dedicating your life to helping others.”
Cycle Rickshaw on the bylanes of Kolkata
I took this pic in one of the bylanes of my native place in Kolkata. Cycle rickshaw is one the easiest modes of transport in Kolkata. The narrow bylanes make it impossible for huge vehicles to reach these places also it is one of the cheapest modes of transport. With the oust of hand pulled rickshaws from the streets of Kolkata because of it being a human right violation, the rickshaw walas who are out of job are now resorting to the cycle rickshaws as a means to earn their livelihood.
I have very fond memories of this part of Kolkata, my native place. This pic was taken on a very sunny day. It has the humble rickshaw wala probably returning after dropping his passenger to their destination. The election season has the various political parties put up their posters on the walls. You can notice the Congress party leader waving from the poster. The monochrome effect gives the pic the old world charm something I always associate with Kolkata.
Hand pulled rickshaw, Kolkata
I took this pic in one of the very narrow bylanes of Kolkata. The hand pulled rickshaw still runs in some parts of Kolkata. The lanes in these areas are so narrow that it would have been congested with the auto rickshaws. These are pics from my trip to Kolkata last week. With the mercury hitting a high of 40 plus degrees Celsius, it was difficult to venture out to take pics. In the few occasions that I tried…… the camera malfunctioned because of the excessive heat plus I was actually melting in the sweltering heat. The rickshaws that I clicked were too fast to capture on my cell. This pic is of my aunt when she came to meet me. She had hired a rickshaw to take her to and fro. I took this opportunity to take some shots….. Also the rickshaw puller agreed to get photographed as he waited for my aunt.
The third pic I took with my cell. A Bengali babu travels in one of the rickshaws in the bylanes. It has the rickshaw puller in motion and running. They are too fast and in very less light it was difficult to take good shots.
I mono-chromed it to get the old world feel. Kolkata seems so much unchanged every time I visit that the constancy comes alive in the monochrome. The vibrant Bengali colors are of-course missing but the black and white gives the pic a different feel that I like.
Dakshineshwar Temple, Kolkata
For me….. Dakshineshwar Temple is one the most beautiful temple in the world. Not because it is a vital part of my childhood but also because it is for me the beginnings of my belief in the Almighty. My childhood memories of going to meet my family and grandparents at my native place in Kolkata has always included a trip to the temple.
My family is a strong believer of Kali to whom the temple is dedicated. In fact she is our family Goddess and this temple is the epitome of the belief. Going to the temple is actually homecoming for me. All my holidays in Kolkata or for that matter even all trips to the city of Kolkata have never been complete without a visit to Ma.
Dakshineshwar temple is dedicated to Ma Bhavatarini. It was built in 1855 by Rani Rashmoni the then Zamindar of Dakshineshwar. The temple is built in the nav-ratna architecture, a Bengal form of architecture. You can see many forms of this architecture in the terracotta temples in Bishnupur and Bankura districts of West Bengal.
In Hinduism any Kali or Devi temple cannot be complete without a Shiva temple. Dakshineshwar too is flanked by the 12 Jyotirlinga Shiva Temples and the best part is….. it opens up to the Ganga (or the river Ganges). There is something really peaceful about the Ganga. I am not wildly spiritual but the mere dipping of feet in the Ganga calms you. The bathing ghat at Dakshineshwar is where numerous people take a dip at the Ganga before offering their prayers at the Kali temple.
You cant really talk of Dakshineshwar and Ma Kali without mentioning Ramakrishna Paramhansa and Swami Vivekananda. They are almost synonymous. Dakshineshwar was the grounds which helped to Gadai (Ramakrishna) reach heights of spirituality.
For me this temple is most peaceful, most cleanest and the most spiritual of all temples. Too many superlatives ehh :D……… but its just the way I feel.
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| The main temple built in 1855 |
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| These are 6 of the total 12 Shiva Jyotirlinga temples. |
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| People taking a dip in the Ganga ghat…… across the Ganga is Belur. |
Kolkata street (2)
Another pic taken on the streets of Kolkata. This is the corner of a building. The pic was taken at magic hour (dusk). The details of buildings with their wooden shutters, the street lights, tube wells which are a prominent feature of the city, the corner tea stalls present in every corner…. bengalis love tea 😀 …… are some of the details I tried to capture.
Kolkata street
Took this pic in the lanes of kolkata. The cycle rickshaws and absolutely clear skies makes this city unique.
