Calcutta of 1960s to 1980s. The sight of tall well-built Pathans in baggy suits waiting outside a building or office apartment was a common sight. They were the Kabuliwalas of Kolkata, who either acted as moneylenders or sold dry fruits and spices they brought from
Phulia in Nadia district is the hub of handloom weaving of Bengal and its exquisite taantsarees are household names across India. This time though, the small town is eyeing for greater glory and around 1,500 locals worked overnight to draw the longest recorded alponain the
‘What is great in the realm of art might not be equally acceptable in the realm of morality; similarly, what morality finds laudable might fail to satisfy artistic thirst’ – this observation, articulated in the course of Annada Shankar Ray’s essay collection on Tolstoy, reflects
Sister Nivedita’s historical book Cradle Tales of Hinduism was published in 1907. Though many think the stories are more like folklores that children tend to listen to from their grandparents and parents while in the nursery, the stories in reality have a deeper essence. And
Debapriya Adhikary and Samanwaya Sarkar, two young film-makers from Bengal shot to fame in 2016, with their docu-film Girija. The film that explores the life of Girija Devi, right from her years in Banaras to her unique contribution to Indian classical music, won the best
Just imagine Bengal’s humble mussels and snails, popularly known as geri/gugli, that were used by our mothers and grandmothers, to make delicious dishes, finding their place on the international dish list! Well, they soon will. Bengal government has zeroed on unique edible produce of the
The Spring of 1971 brought the greatest geo-political realignment in a generation. After twenty-two years of antagonism, China and the United States suddenly moved towards a détente --- instigated not by politicians, but by ping pong players. Ping Pong Diplomacy proves that the dramatic shift can
Most Bengali contemporary school students are familiar with Ranur Prothom Bhaag, a short storythat is part of school curriculum. When asked about the author’s name, most tend to say ‘Bibhuti Bhushan Bandopadhyay’ instead of Mukhopadhyay, though Bibhuti Bhushan Mukhopadhyay was one of the most widely-read
Films have portrayed love, affection and bonding between families in the most beautiful way. Though we find bonding between mother-son or brother-sister,tales of father-sons are rare. There are exceptions though,three cult films of this genre were Charlie Chaplin’s masterpiece, The Kid (1921), Vittorio De Sica’s
Jesuit Father Christian Mignon, a Belgian missionary who translated the Bible into Bengali died recently in Kolkata. He was 93. Father Mignon translated the Bengali Catholic Bible, popularly known as the Mangalbarta Bible. This Bengali Bible was widely read by Bengali Catholics, both from West