North Kolkata Calling !!

Being in Hyderabad for quite sometime we were missing Bengali Movies .However after coming back we took the very first opportunity to watch Sanjhbati by Saibal Banerjee and Leena Gangopadhyay.  The story of the film circulated around the prevailing situation faced by two generations.    An old lady whose son was settled abroad lived alone at their house in Salt Lake. She had two helpers or caretakers who took good care of her. A relation of of faith and understanding developed between them. She also had close relation with an old friend and a lady advocate. However a local goon (promoter's agent) was after the prime property. Her son and daughter-in -law repeatedly asked their mother to come and stay with them.  But the lady depending upon her husband's pension & friend decided to stay back . Sweet memories of her husband & growing up child etc. chained her . She found their touches in every corners of the house. ...

Anger is a much used weapon against making changes.  It maybe for good or for worst - depending upon the idea or ideology.  Youths are suscsusceptible to  protest at the drop of a hat-and I agree- it's a very natural phenomenon.  That's the way it has been and perhaps that will be the only way always.  But the question remains : Should the seniors get involved in such a predicament ?

We were in school and probably studying in Standard 3 or maybe in 4- as far as I could remember. We became very fond of Jug who used to entertain us in various ways. During those days Jug Suraiya used to work in The Statesman Calcutta ( not Kolkata ) and write in The Junior Statesman.  After a long time I found him in his column in TOI Hyderabad which brought back a lot of nostalgia.         However our Jug seems to have developed- well a kind of forgetfulness - probably forgetting the present while recollecting the past clearly -as he himself confessed in his account . Dear Jug let me tell you that not only you but we too are facing similar forgetfulness problem nowadays. 

Never have I seen a cat eating a crow ! I have often seen them devouring pigeons and other birds including parrots, sparrows etc. but never a crow ! Hence it was a rather surprising sight to see -with my own eyes- a cat eating a full grown crow. I am not sure whether she caught it alive or dead- but the way she she was tearing it apart while feeding , gave me the idea that she was quite hungry.    But the question still arise whether a cat- hungry or not- would ever become a scavenger ! Especially when it's food source isn't scarce !!

While finishing my morning walk I met my senior friend   & neighbor Siddhartha Ghosh. After a bit of chitchat I  enquired about a framed photo that I have seen a few months ago in his house. The said picture was hung just at the entrance  so that whoever comes may have a good look at it. Hence I too have not failed to notice it. The picture showed Kapil Dev (the famous Indian cricketer )  putting a shwal around my friend's shoulder as an act of feli- citation.  My friend who was the Chief Accountant of Ananda Bazar Patrika has retired and was in extension-as far as I know.  The felicitation was for his long service towards the ABP Sporting Club he claimed.  "The next time if you have the opportunity-please tell him about me." In fact it was probably me who produced the only cassette on the cricketer's achievement in winning the first World Cup for India. The song's lyric & mus...

She is around forty or maybe forty five years old. I met her or rather she met me around the corner of a Kolkata street. It was an unexpected meeting while I stood there just  for few moments to smoke a cigarette. I was absorbed in my own thoughts when I saw the lady crossing the street right ahead of me. She was a foreigner and she seemed quite at ease with the large number of vehicles passing around her.  After crossing she went straight towards a small shop selling cigarettes, soft drinks etc and said something to the owner. The owner however did not respond and then she decided to come straight to me. Without a word the lady started pointing towards my fingers repeatedly. One doesn't expect such expression from a foreigner-I mean pointing fingers! or so towards a stranger. I asked her( in english ) to explain herself for such behavior. She finally told me to throw away the cigarette. Somehow she gave me the impression of.....

The name of the shoe shop was probably ' Bhattacharya &Co' and it was situated on the important crossing of Hatibagan of North Calcutta. I used to frequently visit the shop for my requirements of foot wears. I was around 38/39 years of age when I had the opportunity to meet the proprietor of the shop who was eagerly showing varieties of shoes according to my choice. Somehow we got down to a casual conversation when I asked him about the age of the shop. I don't remember the actual words that he had spoken but I could still recollect that he suddenly became sentimental. Soon I realized that he was too attached to the shop and went on and on to convince me that it's  old -perhaps the oldest footwear shop in Hatibagan. Finally when he stopped I asked him an impertinent question. " And how long do you expect the shop to last -I mean do you expect the next generation to stick to it ?" He looked exasperated and thought ...

       "Art is strong wine and it needs a strong head to keep it." I have read the above line somewhere and since then kept it in my inner dictionary-for a long long period- unaware of its  use or relevancy. I often dwelled upon the said line on various phases of my life and wondered what had inspired the Author ( probably it was Maxim Gorky or Fyodor Dostoevsky) to have penned out such a line.  Myself, being somewhat bent towards the Art World, I take this opportunity to relate some facts about a friend of mine. He was a young musician trying to establish himself in the music world. Of course he had all the requirements & trainings to become a successful Harmonium player (both as a soloist and an accomp- anist ) yet the Artist within him gave him no respite from his uncertain & unpredictable mood swing. He went along  the world according to his terms. I could still remember the day when he brought alon...

It was an American or a British car Prefect Ford. And before that it was Austin and God knows what else. The fact was that we were used to cars.   We had several drivers - among them Murari was the one whom I still remember. He used to take us to school & back. He was a  die hard fan of Bade Gulam Ali Khan and loved to play the tabla too.  On occasions our father used to come too. On those occasions we were sure to end up at The Great Eastern Hotel for some titbits.    During those days there were few cars on road in Calcutta and  we were never late to school or wherever we had to go. It was through these drivers that I finally learnt driving at the tender age of 15/16. After the demise of my father (we were merely teenagers then) friends started pouring in- they were all sorts of young men with various motives. Some among them weren't that bad while few others had their own agendas. I stil...

Previously it was mostly carried out by Kabuliwallas who came from Kabul- I mean lending money to the needy. Now however we could find moneylenders from every strata of the society. Balveer Kharol , being a moneylender himself, unfortunately got himself caught in a debt trap. To get rid of his constraints he plotted his own murder so that his family could claim Rs 50 lakh in insurance money. He used to pay an annual premium of Rs 8, 432. He waited for the cooling-off period and finally decided to get himself killed by Sunil and Rajveer -the contract killers! They were paid a sum of Rs80, 000 as advance. On the cursed day they put a polythene bag over his head and tightened the noose. The police however found out the plot from his cellphone details.   The man sold his entire property for Rs 20 lakh and lent out the money to various persons . He could neither get  interest nor a part of the principal amount. Henc he hatched such a plan which ...

Yes Ranudi has stirred us all. In fact it was a much awaited idea -a kind of a Great Awakening for the present India if not the World ! Hence we should try to dig deeper and deeper and find out  the cause and consequence of such a thought provoking idea ! At least it has jerked us out of ' The present unthinking  and un aspiring rut'!

 Is the Titanic destined for oblivion in the near future ? The ship that sank on the icy North Atlantic seabed on April 15, 1912 and along with it took 1500 lives- is in its last leg. It is slowly & certainly breathing its last breath-succumbing to corrosive salts, rust etc. The crow's nest from where the  first signal ' Iceberg right ahead !' came literally vanished.  The captain's cabin has collapsed. It was here that the naval officer Edward John Smith was resting when the ship struck the iceberg! One could not but feel sorry for the ongoing circumstances that will soon leave no trace of the historical ship ! (Thanks to TOI for the news )

We recently had the opportunity to visit a nearby forest from  Hyderabad. We decided to spend few days at the forest camp since the long weekend holidays encouraged the idea. My son along with his old school friend made the necessary plans and it was they who decided to take their cars and make it a Long  Drive program as well. Of course they took their families too. Finally after a lot of excitement we reached the camp and were given our required cottages (3 Nos). Well to make a long story short I would like to mention one little incident while we were having our breakfast the next morning.     The canteen was nearly full and we were eagerly waiting for  our Idlis & Badas. A family was just beside us relishing the food served. There was a little girl -around 5/6 years old- with them who-as  usually happens- was looking around & enjoying the situation. She was approximately my granddaught...

This reminds me of a lady about 50 years of age who got  trapped inside a Bank's vault. The lady was busy inside the vault when suddenly she heard the noise of a big door being closed. Before she could react she found herself trapped inside the vault and -of course- darkness prevailed. She was completely at a loss when she became aware that she would have to stay there for three days as the bank would remain closed for that period. She tried every means to get out -shouting at the top of her voice, knocking at the vault door etc. Finally she recognized her situation and sat down quietly for some moments.  She thought and thought for a way out but failed.  At last she remembered  about Meditation which she usually practiced but not very seriously. She knew that she would have to remain there for 3 days without food and water.    To make matter worse the season too went against her since it was the hot ...

Her name was Mrs. Flaming. She was a part time teacher in a school just opposite my house. She was an Anglo Indian lady.  She was tall with dark complexion but the most remarkable part were her eyes. They were the softest eyes that I had ever seen. She used to impart spoken english lessons to that Hindi  Medium school.  She was usually accompanied by her husband who probably lost his job or was unemployed -I am not sure. Mr . Flaming was terribly in love with his wife and he followed her in her every  steps. He had a peculiar expression of disappointment all over   his face and seemed to be living just for her sake. I was newly married then and my wife was not accustomed in speaking english fluently-though she had a Master Degree in Philosophy. I decided to call upon Mrs.Flaming for the sole purpose of making my wife speak the language comfortably. She immediately agreed and we made the necessary arra...

I am really at a loss to understand why certain thoughts invades me for no known reason.  Today while I was sitting on the balcony of my son's flat in Hyderabad I was suddenly  overpowered by such bizarre thoughts. Bizzare in the sense that there was no immediate situation that could provoke such unimaginable sense of emotion. However it prevailed and I was simply carried along with the waves that beckoned- further and further-away from the realities of the present world. I thought  but failed to connect myself - wonder why ?  I suddenly remembered a Tagore song sung by Babul Supriyo while casually watching the TV. 'Tumi kon kanoner ful   Kon gogoner tara' The song engulfed me completely and kept on and on reverberating within me with a strange consistency. Being a musician myself with sufficient knowledge of Indian Classical Music as well as Rabindrasangeet I failed to come to  a reasonable conclusion to my predica...

    Ramdulal Niwas was built by Ramdulal De(Deb) a pioneer in         Indo-American Trade Relation ! Chatu Babu and Latu Babu     were his two sons. Chatu Babu was perhaps the first Bengali      Sitarist. The building is well maintained and gets a fresh coat      of paint every 8 years. However the inner building gets it     every year before the Durga Puja!

Wonder why we are trying to live within a small space -Earth ! Probably that is the reason for all problems faced by us !

Cooking for the Sanyasis at Thakurbari. Sanyasis breaks their fasting after a month.(File pic)                                    

Picture of Charak Tree & Mela of 2019.                                             Sanyasi swings round the Charak Tree

Fire dancing Sanyasis at Chatu Babu Latu Babu's Bari.

Like every 8/9 years Ramdulal Niwas is once again getting a face lift. The house built by the pioneer (Indo-American Trade Relation) is around 249 years old. It is well maintained. Sofi mistiry has been doing the job quite satisfactorily for several years. He stands proudly before the camera ! Ramdulal Niwas before the new face lift !

     Kolkata's only Gajan & Charak Puja is                                            held at Chatu Babu's Bazar.                                                    PROGRAM                       9th April : 7.30pm- Ghot sthapon & Puja.                                 10th -- : 8am -Mahadeb's Puja                                   Evening -7.30pm Puja & Jhul Jhanp.                      11th ---8am-Mahadeb's Puja.     ...

From the age of 23/24 I have been organizing functions. During those days I had a large number of friends who gave me support in my endeavor. Being a musician myself I used to get involved in such activities at the drop of a hat.     However I seriously began Basanta Utsab around 1980 or so.  The private passage before my house, my own house and our Ancestral Thakurbari (I prefer to call it Natmandir ) were my usual venues.     After my marriage in 1981 my wife became my main supporter. She was always at my side though heavily engaged in household affairs-especially bringing up our children Mausam & Surela.We belonged to a joint family ( which has it's merits as well as demerits) but she never hesitated to give herself completely to  the welfare of the Sansar.She endured my whims at every step    at the same time devoted herself fully towards her children- especially toward...

Today while taking my morning walk I suddenly remembered my father. He was the only son among four daughters. I am not sure how to describe him since there was always a line drawn between him and our brothers and only sister. The eldest among us however had easy access-in fact his favorite. We have often seen him sitting by his side reading out 'The Statements' for him.  Occasionally my father stopped him and said things-still not known by us.  As far as I know father was a student of Presidency College and later-due to unknown reason- shifted to Vidyasagar College. He even had a Medical Certificate in Homeopathy (Distant course ).    It was according to his wish that we were sent to renowned English Medium schools -very rare during those days. We were from a very big family- though we lived in our separate houses side by side-yet none studied in english. Once father told me that we brothers and sister should divert in...

It may sound very irrelevant but the fact remains that the Bank of Baroda ( J.M.Avenue , Kolkata ) gave me a pleasant  surprise when I was received with Music ( A  Tagore song) which helped me a lot to refresh myself after spending frustrating time at a nearby Post Office ! Thanks for such refreshments after hours of Dull Moments!! Probably more and more establishments are using this method to give relief from the daily monotony of life ! Hopefully this works !!

I was always baffled by Sarees worn by the ladies of our house as well as our country. It will be probably true for all husbands -I mean the husbands of our country at least ! I was watching a TV show and was completely unaware about what was happening behind me . Later I recognized that I got involved in an unwanted situation-without knowing or caring to know.  My wife was busy near the almirah and she was accompanied by my brother's daughter ( aged around 23/24 years ) who is a school teacher. I was remotely aware of their activity though  too occupied with the TV show  to pay much attention. The outcome however was probably not very agreeable as I presumed later. Saraswati Puja was just ahead and it is always expected that ladies-specially school teachers-were expected to be present before their students in sarees.    Well to come back to the point- yes I probably made a great mistake unknowingly. I decided to ...

Anjan Dutta is a very good director- and there is no doubt about it. However I was baffled a bit after going through his latest film "Finally Bhalobasha" Here is my reaction after watching the film today. ÷×¥€$/(())××#@ Bob Dylan^=₩££%%%==÷×Park Street /÷×@×$^ John Lennon ×££=&^$#@ Ahiritolla&£=÷×_@# St Pauls Dargeeling &€%/$@##()!the shadowy photography etc ?/#€ Am sure I couldn't understand the film or whatever message he was willing to convey ! Is it about love in various forms- father/son, homosexchual, adult/young etc ? It simply flowed quietly along with the audience. "And quite flows the don" kind of feeling ! Sorry probably I failed to justify the film. 

I was around 40 years of age. I was in business but as it happens was also interested in Music too. I was in the habit of closing my office within 7 pm as I was the proprietor of the concern. I gave strict orders to my staffs never to disturb me after the closure of my office.   My manager whose name was Dilip Babu too was a Sitarist and   was well aware of my habits. He followed my orders very well and I on my part relied upon him too much. He was a very nice man being an artist himself. In fact on my request he used to teach Sitar to my wife too. However I would like to relate an incident which could throw some light on my state of mind during those days. Like every day I was busy with my Music after office hour. I was in the middle of Raga Jogkosh with my Tanpura accompanying me. My eyes were closed in a meditative mood and I was in  a different world. (am sure Artistic minded persons  will be able...

Wonder why I always prefer to watch Animal Planet among  all other channels ! I usually go through the News channels but somehow get bored within few minutes. Sorry to say that almost all the News channel's shouting finally gives me a sort of headaches which forces me to switch over to the Animal Planet channel.  Probably this is due to my age- when one sees and feels a lot of things. However I also enjoy watching Discovery, National Geography & History channels too.  Well probably each according to his or her age-perhaps !

 The song was written, put to music  and sung by Saibal Deb. However studio recording is regretted.

Who has not heard of the legendary singer Asha Bhonsle ? How many of us would bother to find out her present state of living ?      Maybe the same question goes for tthe legendary queen Lata  Mangeshkar ! It is very painful for us to know about their present private lives.        A picture shared by Asha Bonsle on social media shows her sitting among few others who are busy with their smart phones.  She laments about her loneliness though among good company  (No one to talk to').    Alas we are spending too much time with our gadgets and less with fellow human beings! 

Most bengali TV serials are not worth viewing. Wonder why we even sit before our set to watch these absurd serials day after day.    Under such circumstances we are however surprised to find worthwhile serial like 'Irabotir Chupkotha.' It is like finding a  a needle among haystack. Till now the said show is the best among other bengali serials. Kudos to whoever is responsible for allowing us this benevol- ence. In every aspects-be it the story-be it the environment- be it the music-be it the choice of artists etc seems perfect and praiseworthy. Let's hope that the show will be able to maintain its standard as it is still maintaining! There is no dearth of talented artists -hence let us further hope that more and more good serials will be produced.

Kudos to Rachana Banerjee for the good job she is doing in Didi No.1 Zee Bangla. It is a very popular TV show and like me-am sure-many wouldn't deny that she is doing a wonderful job for the society as an anchor. Her every expression her every words speak for themselves-hence I would not try any further to describe her acumen in the said field.   Yesterday (15th January 2019) her words touched a deep chord within me when she uttered the words in the heading. There was something in her tone-iin her expression-that completely bowled me out. It steered my 'thoughts too deep for tears'. The young man and his disabled wife to whom she addressed were in a desperate situation.  The man even after knowing his wife's pitiable condition (she fell from the 5th floor of a building and broke nearly every bones of her body and she was always in pain) decided to marry her. From thereon he has taken complete care-even when his wife was admitted in a h...

Yes the present world indeed has become very tiny for us. We are craving for space. .space. .and more space for sane living.  Let us hope that our generation-next would give it a real thinking-I mean a real real Good Thinking. Hoping for the best !!

Sundays are always special. However for our age who  have witnessed men like Ritwik Ghatak, Satyajit Ray,  Mrinal Sen etc doing excellent jobs in film industries and have tried to engage in several discussions about their acumen over cups of tea & coffee -usually prefer to ignore present day directors.  I for myself would however like to differ from those so called intellectuals -with due apology.  Yesterday I had the opportunity to watch 'Bijoya' a film by Kaushik Ganguly which , I believe, could be compared to some of the movies made by the Legends! Of course these comparisons are useless when several circumstances by this time have changed.  Yet I would like to appreciate the good works done by many such directors - without comparing or trying to deprive the the past masters ! Thanks Kaushik Ganguly for the wonderful work that you have done !

Mothers are not willing to leave their rights towards  their children's food habits-whives too are not. Then why not the restaurants take the opportunity ? We are all tied up in the controversy !!

I was out for my morning walk. I usually start my walk in the wrong way - leaning upon the roadside railings- finishing my first cigarette of the day while watching series of vehicles passing by.  Today I was doing just that when suddenly I was overpowered  by ' thoughts too deep for tears' (quote). My mind began circling around my entire life-from childhood till the present state. I was overwhelmed and 'a drowsy numbness pains my sense as though of hemlock I had drunk '(quote) kind of feeling took me far..far.. where I roamed alone- completely alone on my thoughts.    Who am I ? was the philosophical question that encircled around me. It first took me to my childhood days-the non  caring days full of fun and frolics. The very first person-my  brother, my only friend with whom I spent numerous good and meaningless but worthwhile days. The bonhomie between us was the talking point of our locality. With hands on ea...