Kolkata exemplifies timelessness

Have you ever wondered what it might be like to step into a land where time stands still, where history exudes from every nook and crany, and where each resident has an eternal bond with the city? If so, a visit to Kolkata will most likely satiate your curiosity and leave you, like it did me, impressed, enlightened and touched. I spent 3 days meeting with family and friends in the city a week ago and I am already yearning to be back!

Kolkata first strikes home its historic charm--though many may validly classify this as a menace--via its clumsy, yellow Ambassador taxis, eagerly awaiting hapless travelers outside the airport. The city too is overflowing with these ugly, smoke-belching machines, usually driven by happy-go-lucky drivers with the yogic attitude to care little for material things, human or machines, in their line of sight. Ambassadors are one of India's oldest automobiles, extinct in all parts of the country save Kolkata. It is said that the car manufacturers struck a clever deal with the city's Marxist rulers: Use Ambassador cars! I am unsure of what the government received in the bargain, however, and I wonder if any prize would be large enough to forego the freedom of safety and adornment that these cars compromise.

Next, the city's traffic flow also suggests that fellow drivers in Kolkata share a psychic connection with each other--for even as a rickshaw swerves dangerously towards a hurtling truck in order to avoid a pedestrian, the truck driver calmly steers his vehicle into a calculated turn, avoiding a catastrophe. The scene, which repeats itself hundreds of times each day, is akin to an airshow where two fighter pilots smoothly move in unision while flying extremely close to each other. This spirit of camraderie and mutual understanding makes Kolkata even more special.

Approaching the city, hundreds of historic buildings greet a visitor, lending Kolkata an unmistakable air of both importance and neglect; for where many well-maintained sites such as Victoria Memorial underscore the roots of power present in the city, others like the sagging Tata Steel building suggest that Kolkata might simply have lost its influence since the British Raj. Yet, it would be premature to classify Kolkata as a waning star. The seamless integration of a modern culture into the ancient infrastructure of Kolkata is truly awe-inspiring and testifies the spirit of ingenuity and creativity the Bengalis are renowned for. Residents have converted charming old cottages into modern mansions. Merchants continue to rent commercial space in medieval structures of the but have installed air-conditioning systems in their shops. The government has not torn down British era alleys and galis, barely wide enough for a modern car to pass through, but has implemented one-way driving regulations to keep traffic smooth. It is no wonder then that Kolkata finds precedence in the itineraries of history lovers while attracting contemporary artists and entrepreneurs alike.

More than anything else, it is the people of the 'City of Joy' that makes Kolkata such a special place. Unlike those of New Delhi or Mumbai, the residents of Kolkata maintain their ageless cultural identity despite embracing the winds of modern and liberal thought. Consider the Indian director who writes his notes while observing by-passers from the windows of Floury's, a colonial-era cafe; or a student who reads classic literature and particular physics while attending La Martinere School, a school founded in 1836. Even among the friends and family I visited, there is an ineffable sense of reverence for family values in the face of independent thinking and liberalism. There is my Western educated and corporate minded uncle who prefers living with his parents and there is my GenX friend who returns home at an appropriate hour even as she attends a late-night get-together. This blend of modernity and tradition, which I had found inconceivable previously, gives Kolkata a characteristic air of warmth.

As India hurtles towards Westernism and individuality, Kolkata's tacit old-world persona reminds us of the country's past, glorious and terrible, and stands as a ready beacon for anyone wanting to call the city home. For travelers in need of fresh perspective, for families seeking reunions or for writers needing inspiration, Kolkata should be high on the list of places to visit next.

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To all those in Kolkata who made my visit there so fabulous: Thank you!