Calcutta: A Cultural and Literary Companion

Krishna Dutta

Signal Books, 2003 - Calcutta (India) - 255 pages

Signals Cities of the Imagination series is an unsung glory of smart travel publishing. These stylish, readable cultural guides elegantly fill the gap between history and handbook. With Calcutta (or Kolkata, since 2001), Krishna Dutta splendidly overturns Western clichs of mass poverty and Mother Teresa. From politics to poetry, cricket to cinema, Dutta delivers a fine account of her native city. - The Independent This is the place where the West first truly encountered the East. Founded in the 1690s by East India Company merchants beside the Hugli River, Calcutta grew into both India's capital during the Raj and the second city of the British Empire. Named the City of Palaces for its grand neo-classical mansions, Calcutta was the city of Clive, Hastings, Macaulay and Curzon. It was also home to extraordinary Bengalis such as Rabindranath Tagore, the first Asian Nobel laureate, and Satyajit Ray, among the geniuses of world cinema.

What people are saying

User Review -

an excellent overview of Calcutta and Bengali cultural history.

Review: Calcutta: A Cultural and Literary History

User Review  - Mitchell - Goodreads

A good overview of the history of Calcutta. I wish it had a little more focus on the post-independence period, but it still prepared me well for my visit to the city.

Contents

• COMPANY CALCUTTA: 9
• Job Charnock and the Early Settlement: 11
• The Black Hole: 15
• Robert Clive: 20
• The White Town and the Black Town: 22
• Orientalism: 25
• Cultural Mixing: 29
• The Permanent Settlement: 32
• CITY OF THE BABUS: 33
• Kalighat Paintings: 37
• Babu Dwarkanath Tagore: 39
• Young Bengal: 42
• The Cult of the Book: 44
• Coffee House Culture: 45
• Chitpur Road: 47
• Images of the Divine: 52
• Durga Puja: 54
• CITY OF THE SAHIBS: 58
• Teachers and Missionaries: 62
• A Day in the Life of a Sahib: 64
• Belvedere and Alipur: 67
• The Race Course and the Clubs: 69
• Fort William: 71
• Armenians and Anglicans: 73
• Cemeteries: 79
• CITY OF REFORMERS: 84
• Rammohan Roy: 85
• Iswarchandra Vidyasagar: 90
• Michael Madhusudan Dutt: 94
• Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay Chatterjee: 99
• Swami Vivekananda: 104
• IMPERIAL CITY: 113
• The Beginnings of Nationalism: 116
• Victorian Viceroys: 120
• Romesh Chunder Dutt: 123
• Lord Curzon: 124
• Curzon and Bengal: 127
• The Victoria Memorial Hall: 129
• Partition Swadeshi and Terrorism: 135
• THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE: 140
• Religious Divides: 141
• Spiritual Visitors and Secret Societies: 142
• The Revolutionaries: 144
• HinduMuslim Confrontation: 150
• The Marwaris and Barabazar: 151
• Communal Riots and Noncooperation: 154
• The Rise of Subhas Chandra Bose: 158
• The Bengal Famine: 163
• The Great Killing: 165
• CITY OF STRIFE: 169
• Refugees from East Bengal: 171
• Mother Teresa: 172
• The City in Crisis: 175
• Under Western Eyes: 178
• The Rise of the Left: 185
• Marxism Calcuttastyle: 191
• Salt Lake City and the Metro: 192
• CITY OF LEARNING: 195
• Schools and Colleges: 197
• Sport: 200
• Science in Calcutta: 201
• A Love Affair with English: 206
• Indian English Fiction: 209
• ARTISTIC CALCUTTA: 215
• A City Made of Words: 216
• Theatrical Calcutta: 221
• Music Old and New: 224
• Painting and Sculpture: 228
• Cinema and Satyajit Ray: 234
• Calcutta Spirit: 238
• FURTHER READING: 241
• APPENDIX: 245
• INDEX: 247

Bibliographic information

• Title: Calcutta: A Cultural and Literary Companion; Volume 12 of Cities of the imagination
• Author: Krishna Dutta
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Signal Books, 2003
• ISBN: 1902669592, 9781902669595
• Length: 255 pages