This is the first of a two-part piece on how standalone movie theatres are fading from our lives, interspersed with insights from theatre owners and personal anecdotes by the writer. No Presents Please is a collection of short stories by the Kannada writer Jayant Kaikini. The
AIt is a narrow street in Central Calcutta, yet it bears a strong connect with a flourishing trade that Calcutta boasted centuries ago, even before the arrival of Job Charnock. This is also the street where in 1688, the Armenians built the Armenian Holy Church
'Who says organic pesticide-free paddy and vegetables record less production compared to so-called high-yielding crops treated with chemical fertilisers and insecticides? Do you have any data to compare? Any survey done by your department or university?" The sharp questions of Dr Debal Deb had unnerved
An all girls’ school was set up in Calcutta’s ‘King Parish’ just a year before India achieved independence. What was interesting about the school is that it was named after the Queen. And today, it celebrates 75 years of education and social engagement. Our Lady Queen
Afghanistan’s troubled history has been stained with bloodbath, but this is again a nation that had caught the attention of legendary Bengali author Syed Mujtaba Ali, who saw this country from a different perspective. An intrepid traveller and a true cosmopolitan, the legendary Bengali author,
A collection of intriguing pictographs on seals, on shards of pottery, on tablets, on ivory rods. Clearly indicating a pattern, but tantalisingly out of reach when it comes to decoding what they meant. For decades, this has been the status of the inscriptions found on
Two mat (madur in Bengali) artisans from Paschim Medinipur, Gouri Bala Das and Gouri Rani Jana, have been selected for the National Handicraft Award this year for outstanding contribution to handicraft, courtesy their work with the Maslandi Madur. The awards are traditionally handed over by
Very near to the trade hub of Kolkata, Chandni Chowk, lies a narrow lane called Gumghar Lane. Many city dwellers are not even aware of this dingy lane that is often packed with pillars of cartoons and small shops. But in the annals of history,
Remember the Bengali film Sharey Chuattor? The unfurling of that love story behind the walls of a ‘mess bari’ and the hilarious consequences it leads to? Or the Byomkesh Bakshi story in which the murderer runs a mess bari? Well, once upon a time, a
Indrajit: Where and how did you first meet Rituparno Ghosh? Prabuddha: I remember the first time he called me was on July 18, 2011. The date stands out because I had lost my mother just two days earlier. He told me he had started a project