Category Archives: Records, All

Bloodline Bengalie

Close to three centuries after Nawab Siraj ud-Daula lost the fabled Battle of Plassey, research reveals how a branch of his descendants became Hindus

The Khoshbag cemetery is located on the west bank of the Bhagirathi river, about a mile upstream from Murshidabad, the erstwhile capital of undivided Bengal. A perpetual pall of gloom hangs over the place whose name means garden of happiness and where sleep two nawabs of Bengal and their relations.

The modest mausoleum at the centre of the compound shelters the grave of Alivardi Khan, who was nawab from 1740 to 1756. Close to him lies buried his grandson Siraj ud-Daula, the nawab who ruled for 15 months (1756-1757). Siraj is remembered as the last independent ruler of the subah of Bengal, Bihar and Odisha and India’s first freedom fighter. He was the one Robert Clive routed at Plassey and opened Hindustan up for occupation by the British.

The grave adjacent to Siraj’s belongs to his wife Lutf-un-nisa or Lutfa. The grave beside hers is Heera’s, also known as Aleya Begum — another wife of Siraj’s. Not much is known of Heera except that she was the sister of Mohanlal, Siraj’s trusted friend and official.

In the Battle of Plassey, Mohanlal fought valiantly. An ace cavalryman, believed to be of Kashmiri origin, he was grievously injured on the battlefield. Says Amit De, professor of history at Calcutta University, “There are no records about what happened to him and Aleya after that.”

This hiatus in history intrigued Amit’s father, the late Amalendu De, a historian and former head of The Asiatic Society, Calcutta. Says Amit, “Until his death in 2014, my father continued his research.”

De Sr frequently travelled to Murshidabad, and different parts of Bangladesh. De Sr’s daughter, Tapti De, also a historian, remembers him interviewing members of the Lala Dey family.

De Sr’s book Sirajer Putra O Bangshadharder Sandhaney (In Search of Siraj’s Son and Descendants) was published in 2012. According to it, the Lala Dey family actually descended from Siraj and Aleya’s son. De Sr wrote in the fore-word to his book, “My research revealed that Aleya gave birth to Siraj’s only son. Their marriage was solemnised following Islamic rituals by Nawab Alivardi.”

After Siraj’s defeat in the Battle of Plassey on June 23, 1757, Mohanlal, rode away with the boy to Mymensingh, now in Bangladesh. Later, he convinced a zamindar to adopt the boy and escaped to north Bengal in disguise. De Sr writes that Siraj’s only male descendant was renamed Jugal Kishore Ray Chaudhury.

Lala Ajay Kumar Dey, who lives in Delhi and is the CEO of Global Concierge India, says, “Our family lineage was a closely guarded secret. We knew we were somehow related to Mohanlal. Prof. De helped us join the dots.”

Ajay, a sixth-generation descendant of Siraj, came to know of the family secret from his grandfather Lala Bijoy Kumar Dey. “This happened in Shillong when I was nine.” He says, “The British, along with Mir Jafar, had laid a trap to catch Mohanlal; they kept Aleya in a safe house and expected Mohanlal to come to rescue her. But when Mohanlal did not come, she was tortured and hanged to death.”     

Bijoy Kumar, an advocate, moved from Sylhet to Shillong in 1927. One of Ajay’s cousins is writer Bijoya Sawian, who grew up in Shillong in her maternal grandmother’s home in a “secular, all-embracing atmosphere where indigenous Khasi culture is firmly entrenched”.

Says Bijoya, “When I was growing up, my father talked about Sylhet with great affection. Mohanlal was often mentioned as a great nobleman and soldier, friend and confidante of Siraj and an ancestor.”

Lala Shyamal Dey, who works in Abu Dhabi, is a fifth-generation descendant of Siraj. He has himself researched the family lineage; his “Heera’s Legacy” is a comprehensive document. According to it, Jugal Kishore was adopted in 1758 by Mymensingh’s zamindar Krishna Gopal Ray Chaudhury, following Hindu rituals. Some years later the zamindar died. His widows wanted to deprive Jugal Kishore of his rights. They started threatening him, saying they would reveal his birth history to British officials and Mir Jafar’s spies. That is when Jugal Kishore left Mymensingh and went to Sylhet.

Years later, shortly before his death in 1811, Jugal Kishore revealed his secret to his son Pran Krishna and asked him to bury his body instead of cremating it. Later, Pran Krishna’s son Sourindra Kishore changed his name to Lala Prasanna Kumar Dey to escape the prying eyes of the British.

Atiar Dey, a barrister based in London, is a seventh-generation descendant of Siraj. He says, “I think at some point in life each of us would like to know who we are and where we come from.”

After the publication of De Sr’s book, Lala Shyamal Dey, along with his siblings and other members of the extended family, travelled to Murshidabad to pay their respects to their ancestors. He says, “As part of a general exercise outside India, a family member’s DNA was tested and it was found to have affinity with those who have origins in the Arabian Peninsula; if tested, all family members should have remnants of the DNA.” Siraj ud-Daula’s paternal grandfather was a mercenary of Arab origin in the Mughal court, he explained.

Bijoya recently finished writing a book about her ancestry. In the book, which is yet to be published, she writes about the Siraj connection. The family feels relieved that after so many years they might now be able to claim their illustrious heritage and help rewrite India’s colonial past.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> Culture / by Prasun Chadhuri / August 22nd, 2021

Olympic gold-winning hockey legend Keshav Datt dies

Hockey player Keshav Chandra Dutt   | Photo Credit: Rajeev Bhatt

He was part India’s historic feat at the 1948 Olympics where they beat home team Britain 4-0 at the Wembley Stadium in London to win the first gold post Independence.

Two-time Olympics gold medallist Keshav Chandra Datt, the last surviving member of the Indian hockey team in the historic 1948 London Games, passed away here early on Wednesday, according to a Hockey Bengal (HB) statement. He was 95.

An HB official said Datt’s last rites would be performed after the arrival of his daughter Anjali from abroad in a few days’ time.

A product of the famous Government College, Lahore — which also produced Olympians like Syed Jaffar, Commander Nandy Singh and Munir Dar — Datt, born in Lahore on December 29, 1925, participated in the 1948 London and 1952 Helsinki Games respectively.

Some claim that he could not take part in his third Olympics, in Melbourne in 1956, due to “professional commitments with Brooke Bond”.

Datt — who migrated to India after the partition and played in Bombay and then in Bengal — was part of the Dhyan Chand-led Indian squad that toured East Africa in 1947. As a half-back, he played in 22 matches and scored two goals.

In 1949, Datt had the honour of playing against hockey wizard Dhyan Chand, who led the Rest of India squad, in two exhibition matches here.

First, Datt was part of the 1948 Olympics squad and in the second he was a member of the Bengal team.

In his autobiography Goal, Dhyan Chand rated Datt as one of the finest half-backs of that time.

Best moments

Defeating host Great Britain 4-0 in the final at the Empire Stadium, Wembley, London, to win Independent India’s first gold in 1948 on the British soil and then thrashing the Netherlands 6-1 four years later in Helsinki to bag the second consecutive Olympic Games title were the finest moments of Datt’s career.

By the age of 26, he had the prized possession of two Olympic gold medals.

He was among the last ones to witness India’s monopoly in the Olympics as it faced some challenge in the 1956 Games where it experienced tight matches — including 1-0 wins over Germany and Pakistan in the semifinals and final respectively.

Datt shone in his club career as well.

“While playing for Calcutta Port Commissioners, he impressed famous actor and Mohun Bagan Hockey secretary of that time, Jahar Ganguly. He joined Mohun Bagan in 1951 to respect the wishes of Ganguly and played till 1960.

“In 1952, Mohun Bagan achieved the first double in hockey when it lifted the Beighton Cup for the first time along with the Calcutta Hockey League (CHL),” the Bagan website said.

Datt won CHL six times and the Beighton Cup three times in his 10-year Bagan career. He was the first non-football sportsperson to be conferred the Mohun Bagan Ratna, in 2019.

Datt represented Punjab (in undivided India), Bombay and Bengal in the National championship.

Badminton player

He was also an accomplished badminton player and was Bengal No.1 of his times.

Datt’s passing away snaps the only living link with Independent India’s first sporting glory.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport> Hockey / by Y.B. Sarangi / Kolkata – July 07th, 2021

Anubhav Mukherjee, Founder of “The Kolkata Buzz” shares how he fell in love with City of Joy

Kolkata, the City of Bongs that has stood the test of time, has much to offer to anyone who has been or lived there. Just when you enter the place you feel a kind of warmth that you may not have felt anywhere else. This applies to anyone and everyone irrespective of where they come from. If you have an open heart or are trying to open your heart, this is the city where you should be. 

Despite the political unrest and slow pacing developments, the City of Joy still attracts almost everyone who visits Bengal or India at large. 

One such person is Anubhav Mukherjee, founder of The Kolkata Buzz who came to the city from Chhattisgarh. Though he intended to learn filmmaking, the city’s charisma turned him into a wanderer who would try and capture the bursting streets on his camera and post it on Facebook. He had no idea that people will fall in love with his content and that he would create an entire platform based on Kolkata. 

“When I came to Kolkata I was an outsider despite being a Bengali. So, to explore the city, I would often set out on foot and take pictures and videos. I found a lot of subjects to capture that looked ordinary but had a Bong connection. Then I started to post them on Facebook. To my surprise, it was received well by the audience and thus was born, ‘The Kolkata Buzz’ “, shares Anubhav.

In 2016 during Durga Pujo, the page was all over the place and this made Mukherjee pursue a full-time career in digital media. And all that he could do had only one USP – Kolkata and Bengali culture.

“Kolkata has been the soul of all our content. When I started the platform there was no one else who was so focused on Bengalis. So, I always made sure that my content was attractive and connected with what the public loved and I guess that is what has clicked,” explains Mukherjee.

Initially, the page had all original pictures taken by Anubhav but gradually he found and showcased pictures and quotes by several other Bengalis on his page.

“While I was working on my page, I started to spot others who were posting some great content on our theme. Although my growth mattered to me, I wanted to showcase what others tried to narrate in their posts and give them a shout-out,” says the platform’s founder.

Also, Anubhav felt the need to bring some changes to the work culture in Kolkata. Having studied the market, he knew the worth of digital and wished people to join him. So, he started pooling freelancers and professionals who now work under him to make the page even more amazing.

“I wish that Kolkata’s youth is directed towards the new age, shedding the traditional opportunities. There’s a lot to do out there other than what we are taught to aim as kids. Also, the city needs to build its startup culture and professionalism. I am doing my part and also trying to inspire my colleagues,” said Anubhav.

On today’s date, The Kolkata Buzz has 215k Followers on Instagram, and 1 Million + on Facebook. They are also into videos and are starting a website. The page’s success propelled Anubhav to start his agency – Buzzaffair ventures (OPC) Pvt. Ltd. The company is into brands, Influencer marketing, event promotions, and social media management. They have covered 1000+ brands till now.

www.facebook.com/thekolkatabuzz 

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Brandspot> PR Spot / April 27th, 2021

The Radio Star

One little Santhal girl was sent away to the city for a better life. Years later, she returned to her roots, astride air waves.

Shikha Mandi / Courtesy – Shikha Mandi

Shikha Mandi was barely four years old when she came to Calcutta from Jhargram’s Belpahari village. Her parents, both farmers, sent her to the city in the hope that she would get a better education, be safer than in a region routinely in the news for Maoist activity.

“My paternal uncle lived in north Calcutta’s Ariadaha with his family. I was told that my elder sister and I were going for a vacation. I was very eager to see a big city. The next thing I knew was that we would be living with them and not return to the village,” recalls Mandi.

Shifting from a village wasn’t easy, not in the least because of the language switch. Mandi, now 27, grew up in Calcutta among Bengalis but retained a love for her mother language, Santhali. Santhals are the largest tribal community in Bengal and Santhali is spoken by over 70 lakh people across Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar and Assam.

At the city school, Mandi had to speak in Bengali. She says, “In our village we barely knew Bengali. Even in Calcutta, we would speak Santhali at home. But to fit in with the rest I had to prioritise another language over my own.”

But bigger struggles lay ahead. Mandi changed school when she was in Class V. She says, “Nobody wanted to be friends with me at Ariadaha Sarbamangala Balika Vidyalaya. I looked different and I was from a different community. They didn’t know much about Santhals. But they would associate tribals with certain things. They would say, ‘Look at her, even a buffalo is more fair-complexioned in comparison’ or ask ‘Do your people wear clothes made of leaves and eat raw meat?’ I would feel hurt. I kept thinking if only I was like them, I wouldn’t have to face all this.”

In hindsight, she wishes she had made a clean breast of her feelings to someone. She says, “My chacha would tell me we are different from the rest but we should not pay attention to anyone who slanders us. He is a government schoolteacher and he too had his fair share of struggles as a Santhal. Now when I talk about my experiences, I hear others say that they too have gone through similar things in life, because of their tribal identity.”

College was comparatively better, but it was difficult to be comfortable in one’s own skin, especially when compounded with her gender, it became an othering factor. “In the city, people seemed to believe that girls should be pretty and fair only,” says Mandi, and for the first time I hear her soft voice break into a laugh.

When Mandi arrived in Calcutta for the first time, she found a friend in the radio. Over the years this friendship endured. Every evening, there would be a Santhali programme on Akashvani and Mandi listened devoutly. “It had Santhali songs and chat shows. Listening to them was my home away from home. It made me miss my village and parents less,” she says.

“I would wonder what it might be to become someone like those people inside the radio — as I imagined them to be. I didn’t even know how it worked, what one needs to do to be on air, but I knew that I wanted to grow up and talk on the radio,” Mandi says.

After school, while the other kids played ghar-ghar, Mandi would pretend to be a news reader and a radio jockey. She would sing Santhali songs too. Over a call, she hums a song she says was her favourite: Hane biti Ganga gada dak do biti nel me, bai bai bai te, bai bai bai te atu kana. She says the song is by Lal Susant Sorenji from Dumka in Jharkhand. “It is a very old song and I’ve grown up listening to it.”

But when she spoke to her parents about her ambition, it didn’t go well. Mandi continues, “My parents were clear they couldn’t afford to spend much on me and insisted I complete my education and get a government job.”

After her school-leaving exams, Mandi joined an Industrial Training Institute in south Calcutta and after training, started preparing for an apprenticeship exam for Garden Reach Shipbuilding and Engineers Ltd.

And then, the tide turned and her ship changed direction.

Mandi saw an advertisement for a radio jockey for an upcoming community radio station in her hometown, Jhargram. Radio Milan 90.4 was starting a Santhali programme and she put in an application. She says, “My parents were not pleased with my decision.” Yet she appeared for the interview, gave a voice test and finally took up the job in December 2017.

Shikha Mandi thus became one of India’s first tribal radio jockeys, commanding the attention of thousands of listeners through her evening talk show Johar Jhargram.

For Shikha, shifting from a village wasn’t east, not in the least because of the language switch / Courtesy : Shikha Mandi

The programme was all about making Santhals feel connected. Says Mandi, “Everyone wanted to listen to their language on radio and television, it doesn’t happen very often for us. So people were very excited.” But years of living in Calcutta had had its impact on her fluency in Santhali. She adds, “People complained that I used Bengali words.”

Mandi spent the next many months brushing up her Santhali. She learnt the Ol Chiki script, re-acquainted herself with tribal customs, culture, rituals, songs. She started reading up about ground realities of Santhals. She would scour around for socially relevant topics for her show. “Every day I’d choose a new topic that people could relate to. I would invite guests for expert opinions on these topics. I even got Santhali callers on my show from other cities. There were conversations about love, friendship, tragedy, everyday struggles of being a Santhal, it was all about us,” she says. Mandi is soft-spoken, but I sense a firmness in her tone.

Mandi wrote her own script and made playlists. Broad themes were festivals, religion and gender, but everything was in Santhali. There was no place for any other language. If someone called in with a request for a Santhali song but spoke in Bengali, Mandi urged the caller to speak in Santhali, assuring that it was okay not to be entirely fluent. Soon from being a daily hour-long show, her show became so popular that it became a three-hour show.

Says Mandi, “I didn’t just want to become a radio jockey to indulge some personal aspiration, I wanted to do something for my people, keep the Santhali language and culture alive among the youth. The pride for the language is fading among people of my generation and those younger to me. When they move to the city, they pretend they don’t know the language and don’t speak it even if they do know it. I wanted to change that.”

When Shikha arrived in Calcutta for the first time, she found a friend in the radio… After school, while the other kids played ghar-ghar, she would pretend to be a newsreader and radio jockey

Sometime during the pandemic, Mandi quit her job of a radio jockey. She seems to think that the channel had strayed from its initial commitment. She says, “It wasn’t doing what actual community radio centres do — work with the locals.” These days, Mandi runs her own podcast on Tumdah, an app to discover, stream and share Santhali music.

But from the sound of it, radio continues to be the love of her life. She cannot stop talking about her radio jockey days. She tells me, “I used to love the fact that I could connect with so many people through this medium… I couldn’t reduce anyone’s pain in life but I could always say two words of hope.”

She is sure that this is not the end of RJ Shikha Mandi. She says, “I want to start my own community radio centre where we will involve more tribal people and I am working towards it.”

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> Culture / by Manasi Shah / April 25th, 2021

Centre announces ‘Satyajit Ray Award’ ahead of West Bengal assembly polls

Well-known director Satyajit Ray | File  

Javadekar made this announcement at a programme organised by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in Kolkata.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday announced a national level film award after legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray.

Mr. Javadekar made this announcement at a programme organised by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in Kolkata, according to an actor who was present at the event.

At the programme in which the media was not allowed, the Union minister interacted with leading actors and directors of West Bengal where the Assembly election is due in April-May.

No detail is available on the ‘Satyajit Ray Award’.

Senior actor and BJP leader Roopa Ganguly, who was present at the function, said that it is great that an award is being instituted after Ray.

“It has been under planning stage for quite some time,” she told a news channel.

Director Arindam Sil said that discussions were held with the Union minister on how to develop the Bengali film industry.

Actors Paoli Dam, Abir Chattopadhyay, Ritupana Sengupta, director Gautam Ghosh, classical singer Rashid Khan, singer-turned-Union minister Babul Supriyo and others were present at the programme.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Other States / by PTI / Kolkata – February 23rd, 2021

First philatelic club for all ages opens

To be run by the West Bengal circle of the department of posts

Chief postmaster general, West Bengal, Mervin Alexander (right) shows department of posts secretary P.K.Bisoi (centre) around at the philately museum on Friday as postmaster general, Calcutta, Niraj Kumar looks on (Sanat Kr Sinha)

The country’s first circle-level philatelic club, to be run by the West Bengal circle of the department of posts, was inaugurated at the General Post Office on Friday.

“We started school philatelic clubs across the country last year before Covid to spread the hobby among students.  This would be the first for philatelists across age groups,” said secretary, department of posts, P.K. Bisoi after inaugurating the club.

“Our idea is to create a meeting ground which can be used for training and exchange of ideas. The members will include nominated representatives of government institutions like libraries, museums and universities other than young philatelists and winners of our philatelic contests. We will encourage members to suggest subjects for commemorative stamps which we will forward to Delhi,” said Niraj Kumar, postmaster general, Calcutta. The department plans to hold workshops and talks by eminent philatelists. Membership will cost Rs 500 per month.

A philatelic museum was also opened. “While we have a postal museum next door which chronicles the history of the postal system, this will be a temple of philately,” said Kumar. The museum houses a library of books on stamps that club members can use. 

The central exhibits showcase how stamps relate to our lives. Thus. a baluchari sari hangs next to a stamp on baluchari. Next to a stamp on Lalan Fakir hangs an actual ektara while a sarod, a violin and a shehnai are exhibited with stamps on Ustad Bismillah Khan, Ustad Allauddin Khan and V. Lakshminarayana.

A touchscreen kiosk has information on select stamps. A trumpet is heard if one touches a 1951 stamp on elephants. Similarly a Hemanta Mukherjee stamp issued in 2016 is linked to his song Runner, on the predecessor of postmen.  Touching a screen with Netaji stamps plays the Indian National Army marching song Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja.

Debasish Sarkar, a postal employee, has contributed pastel drawings of some of India’s earliest stamps that look as life-like as photographs.

A gold-plated replica in silver of a stamp from India’s earliest series, Jai Hind, dating back to 1947, was released on the occasion.

“We plan to make smaller and affordable versions available soon,” Kumar said.

A two-day exhibition on Netaji and the freedom movement is under way at the GPO Rotunda, showcasing the collection of Raunak Dutta.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> West Bengal> Calcutta / by Sudeshna Banerjee / Calcutta, February 27th, 2021

Gandhi – The Calcutta Connection

Yesterday marked 72 years since a man fired by bigotry and hate assassinated the Mahatma. We bring you excerpts from a little known but painstaking work on his trysts with the city.

The Mahatma visits Subhas Chandra Bose’s bedroom at Netaji Bhavan in 1945. File Picture

South Africa calling

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi reached Calcutta by the S.S. Pangola on July 4, 1896, after leaving Durban on May 6. He did not stay in Calcutta… After visiting Rajkot, Bombay and Madras, he returned to Calcutta via Nagpur on October 31. He stayed at the Great Eastern Hotel from October 31 to November 14… Gandhi had no friends in Calcutta. He wanted to meet Sir Surendranath Banerjee to get him interested in South African affairs. He met Banerjee at the Indian Association Hall, and he told Gandhi, “I am afraid people will not take interest in your work. As you know, our difficulties here are by no means few. But you must try…” The editors of Amrita Bazar Patrika and Bangabasi — leading Bengali newspapers — whom Gandhi met did not take interest in the South African problems. But the Calcutta-based English dailies, The Statesman and The Englishman, showed interest and published his interviews.

A Growing Acquaintance (1901-1921)

Gandhi did not want to miss the 17th session of the Indian National Congress held in Calcutta in December 1901. He reached Calcutta on December 24 and stayed at the India Club (6 Bankshall Street) at Dalhousie Square. The session, under the presidency of Dinshaw Edulji Wacha of Bombay, was held at Beadon Square.

Gandhi visited Calcutta in August 1920 to attend the Congress session presided over by Lala Lajpat Rai. His wife Kasturba and son Devadas accompanied him. All of them stayed with Gandhi’s eldest son, Harilal, at 4 Pollock Street.

Gandhiji at a meeting in Calcutta / File Picture

He was in Calcutta four times in 1921… Foreign cloth was burnt at five venues: Harish Park, Mirzapur Park, Halliday Park (or Mohammed Ali Park), Beadon Square and Kidderpore. Gandhi was in Calcutta on September 9 and 10, when he held discussions with the Marwari Association and the Chambers of Commerce about the burning of foreign cloth and picketing of shops selling them.

Subhas Bose

On April 28, 1939, Gandhi had prolonged discussions with Subhas Chandra Bose and Jawaharlal Nehru. Sarat Chandra Bose called on Gandhi after his prayer time. Gandhi visited Maulana Abul Kalam Azad’s house at 19A Ballygunge Circular Road, accompanied by Kasturba and Nehru for discussions with Congress leaders. On April 29, he held discussions with Bose who was the Congress president. On April 30, Bose resigned making room for Dr Rajendra Prasad.

Gandhi visited Subhas Chandra Bose’s house at Elgin Road (on December 17, 1945) and saw the bedroom from where he escaped. Haridas Mitra took Gandhi to different rooms of the house. Sarat Chandra Bose and other members of the family were present. 

1947

Gandhi stopped at Calcutta while returning from Noakhali on March 4, 1947, on his way to Patna. He returned to Calcutta on May 9 and went to Sodepur… Central Calcutta Congress leaders led by Kalipada Mukherjee and Debendra Chandra Dey discussed the effects of Partition of Bengal with him. Sitaram Seksaria, member, AICC, called on Gandhi. On May 11, S.H. Suhrawardy, premier of Bengal, accompanied by Mohammed Ali Bogra (minister of undivided Bengal) and Abul Hashim (general secretary, Bengal Provincial Muslim League), called on Gandhi and discussed the idea of United Sovereign Bengal… After listening to Suhrawardy and his companions, Gandhi said a new Bengal could not be born in utter disregard of the past. When the past was so full of wrongs, how could people believe in the sincerity of the new proposal unless past wrongs were set right? Suhrawardy broke into an eloquent defence of his government… Gandhi was of the opinion that this was not different from the argument of British imperialists.

May 14.

A massive report was presented to Gandhi by a number of journalists containing a detailed description of the riots that were continuing in Calcutta and of the failure of the police and the administration in this connection. Gandhi expressed a desire to visit the affected parts of Calcutta. Necessary arrangements were immediately made and he was driven to all the affected quarters along with the acting chief minister, Mohammed Ali, and also important persons such as Debendranath Mukherjee, who was the secretary of the Bengal Provincial Hindu Mahasabha. The journey was over 50 miles and when Gandhi returned home he expressed the opinion that there was exaggeration in the description of damage in the report. August 9. Gandhi returned to Calcutta from Patna… Riots had once more broken out in Calcutta. This time, apparently, the initiative had come from the Hindus. The latter felt that the power of the League Ministry was now broken and the police could therefore no longer encourage the Muslim goondas. Under the new regime of the Congress, the time had therefore come for the Hindus to strike back. This was perhaps the reason why, on the present occasion, the targets of attack were certain slums in Miabagan or Paikpara that had been known to harbour gangs of Muslim goondas in the previous phase of the riots… Gandhi called on Governor Burrows at 3.30pm at Government House. Burrows requested Gandhi to stay over in Calcutta and help quell the riot-like situation.

Gandhiji with Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy and others at the Beliaghata Camp in 1947 / File Picture

Syed Mohammad Usman, a former mayor of Calcutta, called on Gandhi at Sodepur and requested him to postpone his trip to Noakhali and save Calcutta… It is interesting to note that at a later stage, at one of Gandhi’s prayer meetings, in reply to a question Suhrawardy practically confessed that he was responsible for the great Calcutta Killings of 1946… Gandhi refused requests by the Information Department of the Governor of India and BBC to broadcast a message on August 15… On August 11, Gandhi conducted a tour of the riot-affected areas of Calcutta from 2.30 to 4.15pm accompanied by Dr P.C. Ghosh, chief minister designate, and Mohammad Usman. Suhrawardy, the outgoing Prime Minister of Bengal, met Gandhi at 9pm and stayed till 11pm.

The next day Suhrawardy agreed to Gandhi’s condition that they should stay together and quell the riots in Calcutta. Mahatma Gandhi left Sodepur in the afternoon of August 13 and took up residence in a house owned by a Muslim family in the disturbed area of Beliaghata in northeast Calcutta. Gandhi fasted all day on August 14. On August 15, all day long unending streams of people proceeded to Beliaghata to see Gandhi. Gandhi broke his fast after his afternoon prayers in observance of Independence Day. His face beamed with joy when the West Bengal premier, Dr Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, told him about the unique demonstrations of Hindu-Muslim unity seen in connection with Independence Day celebrations.

Gandhi made a tour of Calcutta at night and witnessed how the city was observing Independence Day and how the communities were fraternising… At a press conference at his Beliaghata residence on August 20, Gandhi met the representatives of Calcutta Press. In his advice to them he said: “Let the past be buried. Do not rake it up. Think of the future. Analyse. Do not exaggerate. The country has often suffered from exaggeration.”

AUTHOR’S INFO:

Parameswaran Thankappan Nair is known as Calcutta’s barefoot historian. He has written A Tercentenary History of Calcutta: A History of Calcutta’s Streets and among his other books are Calcutta in the 19th Century: Company’s Days and Calcutta: Origin of the Name. This piece has been excerpted from his 63rd book, Gandhiji in Calcutta, published by Punthi Pustak in 2019

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> Culture> Books> Big Story / by P.T. Nair / January 31st, 2021

Joynagar moa makers offer an authentic sweet deal

The moa is a popped-rice ball held together with fresh date-palm jaggery that is extracted during the winter months.   | Photo Credit:  Special Arrangement

The famous GI tag holders tie up with Kolkata shops to check imitations.

The makers of the famous Joynagar moa are, for the first time, tying up directly with popular sweet shops in and around Kolkata in a bid to check imitations that cash in on their name.

The moa is a popped-rice ball held together with fresh date-palm jaggery that is extracted during the winter months, and its manufacture is so synonymous with the town of Joynagar near Kolkata that it earned the Geographical Indication (GI) tag of Joynagar Moa in 2015.

The moa, even though highly popular, is said to have made its appearance as recently as in 1904, becoming synonymous with Joynagar over the decades.   | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Also because of the synonymy, almost every moa sold in Kolkata is palmed off to the customer as Joynagar moa — and that is what the manufacturers’ association in Joynagar wants to prevent by reaching out directly to popular shops and confectionery chains.

“If a customer buys moa believing it is made in Joynagar when that’s actually not the case, not only is he deprived of the real taste of Joynagar moa but he also forms a bad impression of us. This is what we want to check,” Ashok Kumar Kayal, founding secretary of the Joynagar Moa Nirmankari Society, told The Hindu.

The society earned the GI tag and a logo from the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry in March 2015, and so far 26 of the 46 manufacturers registered with the society have received the certificate to make Joynagar moa — the remaining 20 applications are still under process.

It is these manufacturers with certificates that will send their moas to shops in and around Kolkata, packaged in boxes that will display the logo and nutritional facts. “There’s plenty of fake Joynagar moa in the market. The real moa is available only during the winter, for about two and a half months, when you get jaggery. If someone sells you moa outside of these months, it’s fake,” Mr. Kayal said.

The moa, even though highly popular, is said to have made its appearance as recently as in 1904, becoming synonymous with Joynagar over the decades, even though many other adjoining settlements specialise in it. The sweetmeat is made of aromatic khoi — popped rice — mixed with jaggery, sugar, cashew nuts and raisins. Today it is an organised business; the manufacturers’ society even has a constantly-updated website that lists the shops offering the authentic moa.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kolkata / by Bishwanath Ghosh / Kolkata – December 07th, 2020

Stadium in Bengal’s Barasat named after Maradona

The football legend had conducted a clinic for schoolchildren at that facility three years ago

A stadium near Barasat, where Diego Maradona was last seen in action in India, was on Friday named after the football legend.

During his last visit to Kolkata three years ago, Maradona had conducted a football clinic with school children at the Aditya School of Sports in Kadambgachi on the outskirts of Barasat, about 35 kilometres from here.

“The stadium has now been converted into a full-fledged cricket stadium and we have named it ‘Diego Maradona Aditya School of Sports Cricket Stadium’,” chairman of Aditya Group Anirban Aditya told PTI.

“This is the first-ever cricket stadium in the Argentine football legend’s name. We also have special Maradona memorabilia in the changing room. The seat and the cloth hanger that Maradona used would now be preserved with his autographed No. 10 jersey.”

Intense session

Maradona was last seen in action in India on December 12, 2017 when he turned up in shorts on a humid afternoon playing with 60-odd school kids. He was seen drenched in sweat, pouring water on his head during the gruelling session.

He also crooned Spanish songs and inaugurated a seven-a-side exhibition match featuring former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly.

He was slated to feature in a match billed as ‘Diego vs Dada’ but by the time the match began, the 1986 World Cup-winning Argentine captain was completely drained out after the session with school kids.

Anirban said the stadium was built in four months and Maradona was the first sportsperson to step into it. “I remember taking Maradona from his hotel. He was tired but when he saw the crowd he became full of life. Initially, it was to be a 45-minute affair but it went on. He had promised he would be back and train the kids. So as a tribute to him we have named the stadium after him.”

Students heartbroken

Some of the students who had interacted with Maradona at the school were heartbroken.

“I had always heard of Maradona but never thought that we can touch him and play with the ‘God of Football’. It was completely magical.

“I will always remember the workshop that he took as the most remarkable event of my life, said 17-year-old Avita Sarkar of Aditya Academy Senior Secondary School.

“I was one of the lucky ones who got the football pass from Maradona. It was unbelievable,” said 18-year-old Aritra Sarkar.

Built on a 30-acre campus, the school conducted grass-roots programmes for Indian Super League franchise ATK Mohun Bagan.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News< Cities> Kolkata / by PTI / Kolkata – November 28th, 2020

Joynagar Moa earns branding mojo

Manufacturers create product adhering to original recipe with distinctive aroma, feel and taste.

Joynagar’s Moa / Telegraph picture

Joynagar Moa has managed to get for itself a logo that signifies its unique local identity and a recipe that defines what moa is supposed to be all about.

Six years back, in November 2014, the delicate sweet made of khoi (popped rice) had bagged a geographical indication tag for its uniqueness that would be only found across two blocks of Joynagar in South 24-Parganas.

Over the last few years a section of moa manufacturers have managed to do what rasogolla manufacturers are still struggling with the “Banglar Rasogolla” GI tag — create a product adhering to the original recipe that would offer a distinctive aroma and mouthfeel.

With these manufacturers finally ready with their produce, a unique brand of Joy-nagar’s Moa would sell this winter.

Over 20 such manufacturers from different parts of Joynagar — who have bagged the “authorised user certificate” — have come together and tied up with almost all the best selling mishti shops across Calcutta to sell Joynagar Moa, the authentic one.

“Anyone can challenge the manufacturer for the authenticity of the moa that will be sold in packs of six, 10 and 12 pieces,” said Ashok Kumar Kayal of Joynagar Moa Nirmankari Society, the one that had pitched for the GI tag with the Union ministry of commerce and industry. “It’s not easy producing this moa abiding by all the norms that have been laid down by the GI council. It’s a strict mix of human skill and hygiene while following the prescribed flow-chart.”  

A moa to be truly of Joynagar has to be between 50 and 75 gram in dry weight and must be made from Kanakchur khoi and should have at least seven ingredients including nolen gur , ghee, cardamom, khoya kheer, sugar, dry grape and cashew nut.

“Anything else that sells as Joynagar Moa is not the one that has been certified by the GI council,” said Dhiman Das, director of KC Das Private Limited. “Some sweet-shop owners have come together to save this product in its original form and hence, this initiative to sell original moa.”

Dhiman was among the many who had fought for the “Banglar Rasogolla” GI tag certification that came in 2017 and has now created a platform of sweet sellers known

as Mishti Udyog, who would sell the branded moa from their outlets in Calcutta and beyond.

Just like the uniqueness of “Banglar Rasogolla” lies in being spongy, fluffy and its smooth texture “with less chewiness”, the speciality of Joynagar Moa is the Kanakchur khoi.

Kanakchur variety has a slender grain and is scented, short and bold, everything that makes it particularly suited for the uniqueness of Joynagar Moa.

The origin of Joynagar Moa dates back more than a century. The year 2004 was the centennial year of ‘Moa of Joynagar’.

Ashutosh Das, a resident of Das Para of Sreepur village in Joynagar had first started the moa industry in the Bengali in 1904. His son, Jawaharlal Das, used to visit the house of Rani Rashmoni at Janbazar carrying moa.

Over the years, moa found acceptance as a delicate sweet and gained popularity across the globe.

But the moa that would be sold across Calcutta or Bengal would not rarely meet the standards that were set down some six years back.

Why? Primarily because of the detailed process that would be involved in preparing an original moa was missing. Here is how the process goes.

Ten litres of nolen gur, for instance, would have to be boiled to get a litre of pure gur. Then comes preparing the khoi. There are male and female khoi. Female khoi, which are bigger in size, is not preferred for moa. They are separated out. Good male khoi are only mixed with hot nolen gur in a big iron pan.

Next the khoi has to be immersed in nolen gur. The stirring has to be done with a wooden ladle. It’s a long and tedious process. 

Artisans would allow the mix to cool before using their cleaned hands to give the shape after smearing their palms with pure ghee.

Finally, flavouring agents are added. That would in-clude sugar, cashew nuts, cardamom, ghee and dry grapes. Average weight of each moa would be between 50 and 75 gram.

Know your sweet

Area: The area of production of Joynagar Moa lies between Joynagar Block I and Joynagar Block II of the Joynagar-Mazilpur municipal area, which is around 53km south of Calcutta in South 24-Parganas

Raw materials required: Khoi of Kanakchur paddy, nolen gur, ghee, cardamom, khoya kheer, sugar, dry grapes and cashew nuts. 

Colour: Light yellowish. 

Weight: Average weight of each Moa is between 50 and 75 gram. 

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> West Bengal> Calcutta / by Kinsuk Basu / Calcutta / November 29th, 2020