For Kolkata to improve, the greater part of the city must be involved.
There's a strange urge to define Kolkata — to bring the city down to a phrase, an epithet, a word — of which Gunter Grass's “a bloody great mess that was dropped by God and called Calcutta” is perhaps the most flamboyant. Collectively, they refer to the city's stagnant economy, poverty, squalor and civil disarray. But what exactly is meant by the claim made recently by Amit Chaudhuri that Calcutta as a city is fast vanishing? Certainly what is feared disappearing is not the physical city itself, the gross fact of the city, the place that within a space of certain square kilometres manages to assemble in the peak hours of the day a population not much less than the entire population of Australia. What is the city that disappears even as this city in which its inhabitants live continues to spread and breed, assert and resist?
'Vanishing city' argument
It is not the same order of claim either as the one made by Mike Davis in his book, Planet of Slums, where he maintains that Mumbai in all possibility will become biologically and ecologically unfeasible by 2030. Davis is indicating to certain first order necessities for the maintenance of human life itself — like water, minimum space for habitation, etc. — that he thinks would be in short supply as the city's population exceeds the 30 million mark. In contrast, what is at stake in the ‘vanishing city' argument is a certain investment in the city — an investment in taste, in built environment, a certain style of life and living (that honours among other things, the life of the mind), respect for public space and ‘publicness', a certain cultivation of comportment and a mode of presenting the self. This is what is feared is being depleted, if not completely erased, in the Kolkata of today. A manifestation of such depletion (or erasure) — the most visible as well as the most painful — is the venality with which the city's beautiful and perfectly functional structures (mostly houses for living in the once aristocratic quarters built a few decades back) are torn down to make way for pigeonhole apartment constructions or office spaces. What is vanishing is a time, a style of life, a mode of being.
At one level, this is not Kolkata's problem alone. And certainly the question, ‘is the city vanishing?' is as old as the phenomenon of city itself. In a way, this very question (and the anxiety and threat to which it indicates) constitutes the city — the modular city, I mean. Tanquam dissoluta — ‘as if it were dissolved' — is how Thomas Hobbes at the dawn of modernity phrased the constitutive fear that works at the heart of the city, securing it from the very people whose labour maintains the city but who need to be kept under constant vigil. In this register of thought, there is a difference between contributing to the city and constituting its essence; respecting that difference secures the ‘city-ness' of the city, its essence.
Londoni metaphor
What I would like to question is not the sagacity and wholesomeness of the urge to preserve the beautiful houses of our city, the few remaining that is (though, I must say, Chaudhuri displays a charming, diasporic naïveté in suggesting that if properly packaged, expatriate Bengalis or for that matter even Europeans may be encouraged to buy up these endangered places of dwelling.) What is worrying is the unruffled to and fro between Calcutta and certain metropolises of the West — particularly London but also New York, Berlin, Madrid and others on the way — in Chaudhuri's and quite a few other recent discussions of what is desirable and not, what works and doesn't work in this city. Like the ‘Londoni village' in Sylhet of Bangladesh, it seems there is a Londoni metaphor hanging in the airs of Calcutta these days, functioning as a glib shortcut to magical transformations of existing realities, no matter how dire.
As part of this magic realism, certain characters are regularly evoked, the principal of which is one called the NRI. Originally an acronym for expatriate Indian, it has now become a trope for absolute holiness of being. Right from bringing an academic institution back to its earlier glory (erstwhile Presidency College, now Presidency University) to buying up houses living perilous lives at the hands of real estate sharks (coupled with sarkari callousness) — the NRI in this genre of thinking is more of a deus ex machina than a human properly speaking, for no worldly calculations can reveal why this character will perform such a wide spectrum of benevolence and bestow all these goodies other than an imagined compulsion of nostalgia, albeit resplendent in hues of dollar, pound, euro, yen or what have you. And much like magic realism again, Calcutta's (not Kolkata's) becoming London follows no cause-effect linear course, but is plotted along a series of targeted actions of ‘fixing' the city (we might even say, ‘spot-fixing' of a different order): the seamless traffic and neatly done floral wayside from the airport to BBD Bagh where investors will flock, the riverside development keeping Thames as the model, the office-areas, designer street-lamps (part of which has already been achieved in the form of a three-prong aluminum structure and planted across the city), ensuring aquatic life in the canals just as it has been done successfully in London — the list is somewhat long.
What makes the London metaphor seem feasible at all, the specific mixture of neoliberal gloss and postcolonial populist sweep, is not clear. But two real sources of Calcutta's magic realism are missing in this fiction. First is a character called the promoter, or better, the phenomenon previously known at least in common parlance as ‘promotery', now rectified to ‘promoting'.
I don't know if a Londoner would have any idea of the rhizomatic nature of this phenomenon, but it is a real pity that Calcutta's own homegrown magic realism leaves it out, for any investigation into this hydra-headed being would have made bare the ground realities of the city long strangled for jobs and investment. Like the tortoise-on-tortoise-on-tortoise trope of origin mythologies, like the city's unemployment and poverty (and selfishness of those who have something to fall back on), this phenomenon — each instance of it — has no proper beginning or end; its long shadow falls everywhere.
The other missing source of the city's magic lore is the story of the ordinary humans and the absolute magic of how they manage to keep on providing the city. The morning newspaper that gets tucked to the door knob at a particular hour, followed (or preceded) by a packet or two of pasteurized milk in a thin plastic bag, the garbage man at nine, the maid who has travelled all the way from Sonarpur in the adjacent south 24 Parganas by auto rickshaw and train after perhaps fending a drunken husband at night and preparing the family's breakfast at dawn (no perhaps here) and who on return well past midday will cook the family's lunch: the rhythmic existence of city life that goes on unabated is a miracle of sorts — and the occasional hiccups are much less than what they are made out to be — only if one thinks of how many lives from how many disparate corners and in what precarious states are hinged successfully to make it moving at all. These lives are of course not entitled to the city's culture and taste, to its intellection and leisure; these are gross lives, meant to be like this.
Venom, violence, generosity
This is the other city where brawls break out past midnight; this is also the city that came out recently, as it invariably does, one and all — men, women and children — at predawn hours, staking lives through poisonous bellowing fume to help save lives stuck inside the labyrinthine callousness of a private hospital that prospered on greed and to which, no matter what the emergency was, they would have nothing to do apart from working as sweepers or ayas. This is a city of venom and violence within itself and, mysteriously, of generosity and honesty for the other city — the city of privilege — based on nothing better than age-old, mythical narratives of elementary ethics. This is a city that the definitional city has to keep out as part of its definition taking it as surplus, though this is also the city that will allow the definitional city to define itself in the first place by providing its regularity, services and circulations — in other words, by allowing it to be a city at all. Kolkata cannot change — and change it ought to and radically — without tapping the creative potentials of the bulkier part of its existence. You can call this socialist piousness or, if you prefer, sheer liberal cunning.
(The writer is a Fellow at Kolkata's Centre for Studies in Social Sciences. He can be reached at manas04@gmail.com)
Keywords: Kolkata, urban development
An exceptionally incisive article. I have also left Kolkata 50 years ago but keep coming back every five years or so to immerse myself in its charm. Its people, language, literature, intellect, political thoughts, food, drama and a never-say-die attitude never cease to amaze me. The Kolkata of Bidhan Roy is long gone. However I would like the cleanliness, civility, rule of law and ambition of those days to return. Poverty, pollution and violence have increased much more during the past 34 years. This is not the shining Bengal of the past. Punjab was also divided by the British with maximum economic/social dislocation. But Punjab is shining now. If Punjab can do it, West Bengal can. Germany and Japan have developed dramatically since the devastation of the World War. So there is hope for Bengal among the ruins. But we must not become another Greece but emulate South Korea or Japan. Cheer up and work hard. I have sponsored several NGOs from abroad and will continue doing so.
3 months back,I spent only 20 hours in Kolkata ..but this "city of Joy" and also "city of Hope" is very liveliest of all cities i have seen with people and their activities...political will and good governance are the requirements of the day..more articles are required on this city's different angles.
I have been away from Calcutta for two years now. In this time I have
lived in Ahmedabad and Madras. I have friends from the City living in
various parts of India - Delhi, Bombay, Bangalore, Hyderabad, you name
it. From what I have experienced and heard it seems that Calcutta is
the only place in India where things that really matter in the end
still matter. It is also an incredibly practical city. The public
transport is better than any city I know. The food is delicious,
everywhere. It is also the cheapest city. The markets have not all
been gobbled up by malls. Buyers can still buy from farmers and every
transaction is a personal affair. The best restaurants still pride
themselves in 'being the only branch' compared to the chain stores and
home delivery networks everywhere else. I am coming back to Calcutta
this year. I think it's time we all did. I will do my part to make it
a better place, I promise.
"Oh Calcutta!" has become an epithet in western world designating decadence, filth and dirt resulting from the utter disregard for the rule of law or respect for law or enfocement of law. May be the name of Calcutta was changed to provide a better image for the great city, but the city is worse now and the epithet has changed to "Oh Kolkota!". Kalkota is named as the filthiest city in the world. Kolkota is the biggest slum in the world. Most of the buildings are inhospitable and the streets are owned by hawkers, goodas, street vendors, rikshawalas, shopkeepers, politicians, dogs and cattle. The Bengalis can be proud of their heritage,language and culture, but no Bengali can be proud of Kolkata. Is there hope for Kolkota? Yes, if politicians in Kolkata and West Bengal give attention to demolition, cleaning, infrastructure improvement, rule of law and development of Kalkota. They can recover the old glory of Calcutta to the greatness of new Kolkata. Best wishes to Kolkata!
It is passe to lament and denounce Kolkata. I wonder what drives these intelligent
men to flog a dead horse? Is it because they have nothing better to do? Could it be a ritual self-flagellation? Do these eminent writers and
columnists, by their words, embody everything that they denounce? Are they what
is really wrong with the city?
I had left Kolkata a long time ago but returned a few years back. My absence made
it clear to me that I love this place. There are many people living here and working
hard to make it a better place.
A Good Article . What Kolkata and Mamatadi needs is not day dreaming of converting city into London but to make effort to make it a vibrant and equitable city in which its resident both rich and poor can see their future.
The article is well written and points out how city defines itself by keeping the unorganized working class on the outskirts who have to work hard to eke out their living. The cities cannot accommodate all the people coming from nearby villages. Then why not developing the villages as Kalam suggested through providing Urban facilities in Rural areas (PURA)?. Kolkata has contributed to the rise of Indian nationalism, change and passion for survival, like Mumbai. Let us cherish it rather than wishing for its vanishing which means the vanishing of people.
1. Kolkata has one of the best connected public transport systems I have ever experienced. It is however neither necessarily safe at all hours nor easy to use (the bus signs are in Bengali, the auto stands are confusing) -- in other words, it is not stranger-friendly.
2. As a resident I think what our city needs urgently are more underground car parks, green spaces where children can play (why are the parks locked up? Who are they meant to keep out and why?) and dare I ask for decent roads? We need more free drinking water fountains and public toilets.
3. Most of all though we need to revert to earlier, cleaner habits. Spitting and littering will be the death of us and most of us, educated though we may be, appear to be ignorant of such basic hygiene.
As someone born and bred in Calcutta, I keep in regular touch with my
friends and classmates, most of whom have migrated abroad, for more than
30 years. Every one, without exception, has an affinity for the city.
Yes, there was an economic decline, no doubt, but there is no way to go
but to bounce back, even with the "bhadralok" or "adda" culture that
Calcutta is famous for.
Really enjoyed this, thanks. I would very much like to see more by the
same author, on this subject. Far too much rubbish gets written (and
taken seriously) on the subject of this very alive, and vibrant city,
and too little that points out some of the significant things that this
piece does. Encore, please.
The defect lies in the attitude of the people itself. They like sleepig wrapped in the cocoon of their own ignorance. You can never compare kolkata with other cities, because people in other cities work hard and party harder, whereas these calcuttans are still basking in the pleasure of "cha-biskut" and their evening carom game!
Calcutta is a city that has insisted on resting on its laurels and
basked in the glory of intangible plaudits likes its hospitableness,
its aversion to money-mindedness, its capacity to celebrate
intellectual activities, its human dimension and secular values. Such
paeans have been sung ad nauseum by patronsing and often condescending
writers, though a cheer by Dominique Lapierre has occasionally been
rubbished by writers such as Günter Grass.
It has also been known for its volatile political culture bordering on
self-abnegation, a culture of sloth and incompetence, a breakdown of
law and order and many such vices. The Left who ruled it for over 30
years – a long enough tenure – must be seen responsible for the
pathogens that gripped the city and for the rise of an agitpropist
political dispensation that stalks the city now.
The city – but for a languid past that is too soaked in nostalgia, a
quixotic present that prides on defacement – seems to have no future.
It would be nice if some practical suggestions were offered on developing kolkata vs. these theoretical discussions written in nice english. What would have the most impact on people lives and economy? What are the strengths of the city and how can they be used to attract capital and employment? What about a more effective bus system that connects local travel with metro and suburban trains?
Enjoyed reading about my 'Eternal City'. "The morning newspaper that gets tucked to the door knob at a particular hour,..". The one thing that has never failed to amaze me in Calcutta is the way the newspaper boys sit on their moving bicycles and throw the rolled up paper in such a way that it lands unerringly where it is supposed to land - be it on the ground floor or 3rd floor! Our cricketers can take a lesson or two from these guys and am sure they will then hit the stumps effortlessly from all corners of the cricket field!
I have been to Calcutta and absolutely love it! But it seems to me, you write only for those who have a Ph.D. in English. I would strongly urge you to write in a manner where people from all walks of life can appreciate what you have to share, especially when it's for my darling Calcutta.
A splendid essay! A touch of Deleuzian thought glimmers in relation to the
rhizomatic nature of the city.
Lovely article - tender to the point of tragic, tinged with an irony
bordering on satire! This essay is indeed an archaeology of the
vanishing, writing that traces out the ruins of a beauty. I have never
been to this city; never have I known its beauty or its squalor! Yet it
appears this article is born out of an experience that is profound,
because it traces what is disappearing! Another article is awaited from
the same writer!
I think the comment by Mr Tapas Bandyopadhyaya summed it up all in one
sentence so beautifully. There could have been no better statement than
the one made by one of the senior resident (close to 40 yrs in this
city).
I am staying in this city for the past 8 yrs and I had felt at every
moment the way Mr Tapas felt, the painful fact is with passing time one
tends to get a feeling that the democracy of the hooligans would
cannibalise the bhadralok culture......sooner or later. It's extremely
disturbing.....
Kolkata can still be a dream city - not just a clone of 'Lon-don' for populist slogans but a modern and unique one, as some of us professionals have tried to envision. But it's a very long haul and none of our netas are capable of it.
Kolkata has been able to match London in one respect, crime! Of course the difference is London's police are far more professional and efficient than Kokata's flatfooters. Murder, robbery, kidnapping, snatching - you name it - Kolkata has seen a rapid increase in these over the past few months. Our poor cops remain totally at sea and perhaps should be replaced by private security agencies! Truth to tell, an earlier CM of West Bengal who ruled the roost for some two and a half decades till he got thrown out by his own constituency, has been responsible for the total destructon of our law and order machinery. He ruined the police by unionising it and his express instructions were to the effect that those policemen who did not look after his political party's interests would have their careers finished. Thus one of India's finest police force was made redundant.
I am a Calcuttan who has lived in this city for over 40 yrs. These days, getting back to the city from Mumbai or Delhi feels like landing at a communist Russia airport coming from London or New York. For me the defining difference is not the dust, grime, dirt of the city (no CNG yet) compared to the gloss of Mumbai, where the luxury on the street is enough reason to turn capitalist, but the difference in attitude to the rule of law. Kolkata is the city where the auto-rickshaw wallah, the pavement hawker, the urchin from Bihar, is the law. It is their democracy and to hell with the law whereas in Mumbai and Delhi the law is feared and respected.
Why this difference? Thirty four years of communist rule, which politicised the police and gave them bangles to wear.I don't want it to become London. I just want it to get back to the city of the bhadrolok that it was in my younger days. I don't want to take it away from the auto-wallah or the Bihari. Just let them become bhadrolok too.
Jai Sen's essay "The Unintended City", written in 1976 made the same point. Some things never change. Calcutta is dead! Long live Kolkata!
The city of Joy,is definitely vanishing,dearth of oppurtunities has forced Kolkattans to quit the city and look for greener pastures in other states.Not only a greater part of the city,but also the government has to whole heartedly support development and think about the fate of the lakhs of people living here.Brushing off its hand,and claiming it has no stake in any major accidents,or claiming that victims of violence are concoting stories to belittle the government's image are just hasty actions to conceal its inefficiency.Only when certain attitudes are changed,can the city reclaim its title.Only then can the "style of living" be restored.
Dream caricature showing the Howrah bridge attached to a manual hand pulled Rickshaw shows the dream of Kolkata in this down to earth article..In the recent past Mamata banerjee the failed ex- railway minister sold the promise to her voters to convert kolkata to London.What she missed in her London selling dream was the team work with nuts and bolds as pointed by the writer of this article.For details of how the missing links cannot fulfill a kolkata role model dream read my article in internet title:Key to Safe Hospital & Zero Disaster lies at the Top:Rakesh Manchanda
This London dream indicates a mindset afflicted by a lingering colonial
dominated mindset. One cant be sure of Kolkata becoming London but what is quite possible is London soon becoming like Kolkata as Britain (Old Blighty) tumbles into perennial decline and its roads and infrastructure crumble on the road to market utopia.
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