West Bengal
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He elaborates on non-traditional approaches towards humanities and its place in Indian academia. Dr Gupta also talks about the social relevance of Bengali cookbooks and ways of rereading them.
Following is an edited transcript of the interview conducted by Rituparna Das on January 14, 2019, at…
in Interview
Every autumn, Kolkata gets ready to welcome Goddess Durga. It is that time of year when the city celebrates the spirit of love, laughter and life. Thousands of people throng the streets both from within as well as outside Kolkata to visit different pandals and view idols of Durga. However, Durga…
in Overview
In this interview with Aaheli Sen, Mintu Pal talks about the survival of clay idol making in his neighbourhood amid the government’s apathy towards its preservation and propagation, and the measures required to be taken for the art to survive in this modern age.
Following is an edited transcript…
in Interview
Durga Puja is one of the most-awaited festivals for Bengalis around the world in the autumn month of Ashwin (Bengali calender, corresponding to September–October in the Gregorian calendar). In Kolkata this week-long festival is celebrated with much pomp and grandeur—idols of Goddess Durga and her…
in Module
Cookbooks have traditionally received limited attention as artefacts of cultural production. Their pragmatic, manual-like nature dupes us into treating them less seriously than they deserve. In the twenty-first century, with every other channel featuring a food show and numerous food blogs and…
in Overview
Bengali cookbooks presented a strong case for necessitating the maintenance of a clean, properly arranged and well-ventilated kitchen space. The introduction of germ theory in the nineteenth century made notions of hygiene, pollution, dirt and disease matters of immediate concern. Its influence…
in Article
The printing history of cookbooks in India dates back to early nineteenth century. It took few decades for women to move away from anonymity and to step out as authors in the realm of professional food writing. This module examines how the flourishing of print technology in Kolkata, from the late…
in Module
Bhawaiya is a major genre of folk song popular throughout the entire sub-Himalayan belt of northern West Bengal, western Assam and parts of Bangladesh. Drawing its roots from various theatrical and matriarchal ritual folk music traditions, bhawaiya has developed into a socially conscious yet…
in Module