Kolkata (কলকাতা)
Kolkata stands on the east bank of the Hooghly river, a branch of the Ganga. It grew from three villages, Sutanuti, Gobindapur and Kalikata, where the East India Company set up a trading post in 1690.
It was the capital of British India until 1911 and the heart of the Bengal Renaissance, a burst of new ideas in literature, science and social reform. Every autumn the whole city turns out for Durga Puja, on UNESCO's list of the world's living heritage since 2021.
- River: Hooghly, a branch of the Ganga
- Durga Puja: UNESCO list, 2021
- First metro in India: 1984
- Language: Bengali
Inside the letter
- Victoria Memorial. A huge white marble hall, opened in 1921 in memory of Queen Victoria. It is now a museum, surrounded by gardens and ponds. Source
- Howrah Bridge (Rabindra Setu). A giant cantilever bridge over the Hooghly, opened in 1943. It is held together with rivets rather than nuts and bolts, and carries a huge flow of people and vehicles every day. Source
- Indian Museum. Founded in 1814, it is the oldest museum in India, with fossils, an Egyptian mummy and ancient sculptures. Source
- Dakshineswar Kali Temple. A riverside temple built by Rani Rashmoni and opened in 1855. The saint Ramakrishna served as its priest and taught here. Source
- Kumartuli. The potters' quarter on the river, where families of artists shape the clay idols of Durga every year by hand. Source
- College Street (Boi Para). The "book neighbourhood": a long stretch of second-hand bookstalls beside famous colleges and the Indian Coffee House. Source
- Durga Puja. Kolkata's biggest festival. Artists build thousands of themed pandals (temporary shrines) for the goddess Durga. In 2021 UNESCO added Durga Puja in Kolkata to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Source
- Dhunuchi naach and sindoor khela. During Puja, dancers swing clay pots of smoking incense, and on the last day married women smear each other with red sindoor. Source
- International Kolkata Book Fair. Started in 1976 and held almost every year, usually in winter, it is one of the biggest book fairs in the world by number of visitors. Source
- Rabindra Sangeet. The songs written by Rabindranath Tagore, more than two thousand of them, still sung across Bengal. Source
- Kalighat painting. Bold, quick-brush paintings that began in the 19th century near the Kalighat temple, showing gods and everyday city life. Source
- Rosogolla. Soft cheese balls in sugar syrup. In 2017 West Bengal received a GI tag for "Banglar Rosogolla"; in 2019 Odisha received one for "Odisha Rasagola", and both states claim the sweet. Source
- Mishti Doi. Sweet yoghurt set in clay pots, which soak up extra water and make it thick. Source
- Phuchka. Kolkata's version of pani puri: crisp shells filled with spiced potato and tangy tamarind water. Source
- Kathi Roll. Kebabs wrapped in a flaky paratha. It is usually traced to Nizam's restaurant in Kolkata and is now eaten all over India. Source
- Shorshe Ilish. Hilsa fish cooked in a sharp mustard sauce, a Bengali favourite during the monsoon. Source
- Kolkata Biryani. Lighter than other biryanis and famous for its potato, linked to the cooks of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, who settled in the city in 1856. Source
- India's first metro. India's first metro railway opened in Kolkata in 1984. In 2024 the city also opened India's first underwater metro tunnel, under the Hooghly. Source
- Trams since 1873. Kolkata's trams began in 1873, pulled by horses, and became electric in 1902. It is the only Indian city that kept its trams into the 21st century, though only a couple of routes still run. Source
- A first for Asia. Rabindranath Tagore, born in Kolkata, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, the first for anyone from outside Europe. He also wrote India's national anthem. Source
- An Oscar for Ray. Kolkata filmmaker Satyajit Ray received an honorary Academy Award in 1992 for his lifetime of work. Source
- Yellow taxis. The yellow Ambassador taxi became a symbol of the city. Old ones are now being retired under a 15-year age limit. Source
- Kadambini Ganguly. In 1886 Kadambini Ganguly of Calcutta and Anandibai Joshi became the first Indian women to qualify as doctors in Western medicine. Kadambini was India's first practising woman doctor. Source
- Begum Rokeya. The writer and educator Begum Rokeya wrote Sultana's Dream, an early feminist story imagining a land run by women, and argued that girls must be educated as boys are. Source
Through the years
- 1690: A trading post on the Hooghly. The East India Company sets up a trading post among three villages, Sutanuti, Gobindapur and Kalikata. Kalikata was already a named village, mentioned in a poem of 1495, and in 2003 the Calcutta High Court ruled that Job Charnock should not be called the city's sole founder.
- 1757: The Battle of Plassey. Helped by the betrayal of Mir Jafar, Robert Clive's East India Company army defeats the Nawab on 23 June 1757. From Calcutta, Company rule over Bengal begins.
- 1905: Bengal is split. Lord Curzon divides Bengal on 16 October 1905. Protests spread from Calcutta, and the partition is undone six years later.
- 1911: No longer the capital. At the Delhi Durbar, King George V announces that the capital of British India will move from Calcutta to Delhi.
- 1913: A Nobel Prize for Tagore. Rabindranath Tagore, born in the city, wins the Nobel Prize in Literature, the first for anyone from outside Europe.
- 1943: Howrah Bridge opens. A giant cantilever bridge, held together with rivets instead of nuts and bolts, opens over the Hooghly.
- 1984: India's first metro. The first metro railway in India opens in the city. Forty years later it also gets India's first underwater metro tunnel.
- 2001: Calcutta becomes Kolkata. The city officially changes its name to Kolkata, the way it is said in Bengali.
Sources: Kolkata (Incredible India) · Durga Puja in Kolkata (UNESCO) · Kolkata Metro · The three villages and 1690
