If rural Bengal has been practising alpona designing for decades, they have their roots in the first civilisation of India --- Indus Valley Civilisation. Parallel in motifs seen on pots and vases of Mohenjodaro and Harappa made historians and archaelogists believe Bengal’s alpona art has
Beginning this week, we will be looking back at a few groundbreaking Bengali films and books for review, and we start the journey with Saptapadi, one of the most memorable films of Uttam Kumar’s glittering career. Aconservative Hindu boy falls in love with an Anglo-Indian Christian
Was there really a Portuguese traveller named Diego Alvarez as depicted in Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay’s "Chander Pahar"? Well, this Portuguese explorer who was also thought to be a gold and diamond prospector and befriended protagonist Shankar, was in reality, afictional character. The way Bandopadhyay ropes the two men and sets them on to explore
Remember the gramophone pin fired that used to be fired from a bicycle bell, in Byomkesh series Pather Kanta? This story is a popular Sarandindu story that had mesmerised readers because of the unusual weapon used when most people would think Gramophone is only used to listen
The earliest evidence of wheeled vehicles was somewhere between 3500–3350 BC. The invention was quickly adopted across parts of Europe and Asia. It was after James Watt’s steam engine in 1705 that the concept of powered vehicle was considered. Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot of France developed a
Bengal has always had a rich legacy of musical forms since ancient times but one classical form introduced in Bengal had its roots in the musical journey of caravan travelers of north and northwestern India. An extremely niche form of music that found its place in
Palanquins (Palki) being used as a medium of travel was a new concept to the British when they landed in Bengal. The palanquin was a covered mode for the transportation of one passenger inside it. There was a bed or a seat, it had curtains so
Wilford E. (Bill) Deming. A name that ought to be familiar to every Bengali cinephile, but probably isn’t. The son of a Los Angeles real estate tycoon, Deming remains an inextricable part of the history of Indian cinema in general, and Bengali cinema in particular.
See brother! The wretched victims of tyranny! The Crown Court was not surely established before it was needed. I trust it will not have been in operation six months before we shall see all these poor creatures comfortably clothed in shoes and stockings.” Thus reportedly
Opportunity Café, India’s First Non-Profit Café, DumDum, Kolkata Hard to believe right? We usually associate cafes with profit-making businesses, huge franchises and capitalist mindsets. However, India’s first non-profit café is here in town, founded by Sumanta Singha Ray and Siddhant Ghosh. This café is an outlet of