Rapidly erasing memories - latecapital everyday Kolkata

"The city changes everyday rapidly. It changes so fast that it's difficult to keep a track..." says an old taxi driver. Yes, Kaleidoscope sees that everyday. He remembers his father used to teach him mechanisms of remembering a place by creating and memorising landmarks.  A shop, a particular house at a crossing, etc. used to serve the purpose effectively.

Kaleidoscope wonders what would be his advise to his only a few months old son when he grows up?  Surely not to memorise important landmarks because they might change any day.

If these landmarks change so rapidly that even a taxi driver find it hard to memorize what will happen to the very essential character of the city?

Meanwhile as kaleidoscope crosses near Chetla he finds that a new skyrise is on the making. It has displaced the earlier construction. The only mark of past that remains is is the window of a a possible grocery shop. One of the the ends of the shop bears 1990s characteristic style advertisements belong to that of popular brand of a detergent: surf.

The multi hinged shop window and the characteristic 1990 advertisement show a surrender of past to the neo-liberal growth of capitalistic Pursuit.

Kaleidoscope knows like many others do, perhaps less than the taxi driver the city will transform itself to such an extent that the name Kolkata will become just a context without characteristic significations.

Anarchy in the designed Newtown landscapes

Since Kaleidoscope's arrival in his new workplace destination where everything seems to be too perfect. When he first found his college has a landscaping he thought it will soon become anarchic without proper maintenance. He was wrong. It is maintained every once in a while. So does other lawns. Although he has seen lawn being eaten by ghosts of past as cows once in a while come to have crunchy food in lawns (click here). However, the neatly designed place often sees transformation as the past 'infiltrates' within the present build-in neat and clean design of the place.

While the the 'last canal' got a makeover on both of its banks, Kaleidoscope thought it must be one of the last trails of the past (click here). The canal side lanes are getting paved and it might get 'beautified' like it has in some other parts of the city. The convocation center bound canal not only got 'lawned' banks but also have an installation of an artificial boat - quite heterotopic but it remains. However, the canal which passes through Kaleidoscope's college - also one of the only refuge of natural unkempt touch that the college has, remains to be the same. With an exception of the pavement of the lanes beside the canal the rest of the place remains unaltered.

As the lane is paved, Kaleidoscope now avails the lane instead of broad street which passes through the Central shopping plaza decked with flex and late capital consumerist advertisements.

The canal side lane happens to be an interesting contrast to the rest of the designed and neatly bound city.

• It is a space where he has spotted people quietly sharing a drink or two along with cheap side dish - a makeshift picnic arrangement. Indeed, his species is yet to forget the most coveted space for picnic, as many prehistoric sites are indeed picnic spots for many. 
• It is also a space for some of the workers (as there are many construction workers continuously building the city) to take some rest taking refuge under shed in scorching midday sun.
• Usually in the afternoon Kaleidoscope spots a few couples casually walking, holding each other's hands and looking at the trees, shed and the water which passes through the canal. 
• Casual short-cut takers - yes by those who cannot afford to have a car and walk through. You can understand the lane belongs to the past the organically connected folks.

Kaleidoscope does not wonder when he sees disjuncture between the inhabitants of the builtin apartments in the cityscape and the little past of all that is left. The past belong to the people at the bottom - those of the rooted. No wonder the canal carries waste of the haves and is quietly resourceful for the havenots. Kaleidoscope smiles - no wonder power is situational.

Pic: the paved canal road which Kaleidoscope uses everyday.

Hangovers in liminality: Kolkata pubs after they are banned

Let us think about a young person belonging to an upwardly mobile middle class of Kolkata having a headache on the Sunday morning. What would be your perception?

There may be many, but the most prominent one might be the like this "the person might have been to a party and drank till midnight to have the  odd headache." This may or may not be the case but this has increasingly become the popular stereotype of the class Kaleidoscope referring to here

The city too often has headaches after the Saturday nights in numerous popular party destinations. One of which happens to the space surrounding City Center I. Kaleidoscope does not want to mention the region as place because the place is never an 'assured' and 'certain' place, but something quasi-known, always changing and difficult to explain space. The space during the making out nights with party becomes even more unknown and uncertain the flow of people and professionals from a variety of places seldom known to each other. Yes there are known people and unknown specialists including the "one night standers" and "professionals" to the regular tireless selves looking for transcendence of everyday existences. Such interfaces gives a liminal dimension to the space and spatial practices.

While Kaleidoscope had to spend some time for a week at the space he could decipher a changing dimension of the number of vehicles parked over the week and sudden rise in the numbers with the weekends. Meanwhile while commuting from his usual office place through an unusual way he could talk to the auto-drivers regarding the changing dimension of the VIP road with closing of bars following a government order which bans bars and pubs from functioning near national highways. There seems to be an inflow of selves and professionals creating an even strong liminality near the city center I.

Meanwhile, there are remains of the time that crisscrosses through the liminality leaving behind a few marks, few hangovers like this:

Resurgence of religious sentiments

Resurgence of religious sentiments in recent time is formidable. Kaleidoscope experiences the recent transformation in his every day discourses across different sections of his society. He wishes to make a few thematic foundations based on his earlier readings in phenomenology and qualitative research.

Depending on the context and extent of acquaintance he wishes divide these discourses into these broad divisions.

A. Formal sphere with close friends
B. Informal sphere with close friends often after a few shots of alcohol

C. Spheres with acquaintances

D. With complete strangers in public places

A. Formal sphere with close friends

i. Increasing terrorism and Islam association: often referring to the 9/11 incident and numerous other cases.

ii. Lack of religious reform among the Muslims

iii. Issues of internal threat and its association with the Muslim population.

iv. Politics with Muslim voters: mostly referring to congress at the centre and trinamool congress at state thereby justifying BJP - RSS alliance and polarised politics. Therefore, all other issues of bad governance, international relations, fatwa on cultural expressions are legitimised.

CORE FINDING: policy, politics, religious orthodoxy admixture in arguments is noted.

B. Informal sphere with close friends often after a few shots of alcohol

Here often a complete transformation in arguments is noted. It usually begins with much like the formal sphere discussions, eventually the nature of discourse becomes more personal filled with hatred on the Muslims.

i. Personal attack: from traitor to religious enemy are the labellings attached once kaleidoscope tries to place the arguments against the discrimination based on religion.

ii. Good and bad Muslim: usually these people had or has Muslim friends who are 'strangely' good and therefore are exceptions, all the others on the other hand are exceptionally bad in nature.

iii. Partition and riot: are all caused by Muslims and not by Hindus.

iv. Lack of birth control and minority majority issue: there is a fear psychosis growing. They believe that because of allegedly lack of birth control measures among the Muslims soon they will overtake the number of Hindus. Even when presented with statistics from census the argument remains the same - a strong sense of denial prevails.

v. Filthy and unclean living: muslim food habit, dress code and their smell is bad. Completely disgusting. (But of course this discussion over glasses of whisky and kebab continues).

CORE FINDING: us/them division, cultural disgust, fear psychosis.

C. Spheres with acquaintances :

i. Educational issues: since Kaleidoscope is associated with educational industry, he often encounters with views which states the needs to remove Madrasa institutions completely. Some would say it is not the question of Madrasa education system or syllabus but it is more about the way they teach and inject communal hatread among their students. Although the people do not present any concrete evidence not even from their personal experience.

ii. Muslim country and no country for Hindus: there are countries for Muslims but India as a superpower needs to be a Hindu country! To protect their race.

iii. Food habit and cultural sentiments: the difference of food habit and the the like is so prominent that there is no way these two can co-habit peacefully!

CORE FINDINGS: Policy, space and cultural incompatibilities.

D. With complete strangers in public places

i. Sheer number of their children (meaning large family size).
ii. Uncontrolled behaviour and public display of beard face, hijab is disgusting.
iii. There are so many things for them (alia university, minority empowerment centres, OBC status reservation and the like) and nothing for HINDus.
iv. How can they be allowed to have special muslim law?
v. Why should they be allowed to keep more than one wives?
vi. They are uneducated and uncontrolled.
vii. All of them support Pakistan.

CORE FINDINGS:
Cultural difference and intolerance, anti-national sentiments.

Nature of the problem:

Kaleidoscope thinks and thinks for quite some time now, that there has been a recent resurgence of religion based discrimination in the active thought pattern of the people with whom he interacts or listens to when they interact with each other. In his last few months of pseudo bachelorhood he has encountered an increase in frequency of such issues at the informal and intoxicated space. After a careful but quick review of the nature of discourses it is clear that while in formal discussions the underlying disgust which is primarily an outcome of the cultural incompatibility is masked with issues of partition, population problems, policy issues and the like, in informal sphere it is more personal and revealing that people are taking out their primordial hatread and religious sentiments.

Interestingly people with whom Kaleidoscope has a chance of interacting with formally and informally, all belong to educated often upwardly mobile middle class of West Bengal. Whose polished ways of presenting their underlying disgust is shattered with alcohol-in-action in private space. The nature of hatread and disgust is dreadfully same with the passing comments that kaleidoscope encounters in bazaar, public vehicles and other places where every other person is a perfect stranger.

It is quite early and immature to conclude anything based purely on random expressions being noted by a qualitative mind, but the essential nature of discourse that clearly indicates some sort of parallel of thought between the so called educated middle class mind and those of the not so educated mass minds at time of increasing polarisation is a matter of concern!

The Spectacles Called Durga Puja

Durga Puja represents a perfect example of transformation of local festivals into high profile festivals for touristic consumption. Although, the spectacles, as Kaleidoscope is observing since time immemorial is yet to gain touristic attention compared to what even the monotonous evening prayer gets at Varanasi.

Constructed space and spectators in AE (1) block of Salt Lake 2012

There may be two major positions, first, urban festivals gives boom to the city economy as we all see a rise in the consumption habit of Kolkatans. Second, and more importantly there is an element of ethnic pride and we can argue that the puja reinforces the content and meaning of collective identification.

Shibmandir's Puja at South Kolkata. It is classic mix if tradition and modern going hand in hand. The ritualistic part is controlled by the Temple committee and the decorations, etc. by a separate committee.

One must remember Urban spectacles are produced - in the sense of Henri Lefebvre and always include the process of commodification, hence, we see this

Gates with advertisement is one of the most important source of revenue - taken at Ekdalia Evergreen pandal 2012

Competition between different Puja pandals are now sponsored (taken from website)

Aestheticisation: 

The aestheticisation of every day life comes alive a few months before the actual commencement of the puja. Kaleidoscope is no exception. He accompanies the queen to several "good", aesthetically charming stores to buy materials of aestheticisation. It costs huge... but Kaleidoscope and the Queen finds it a pleasureful pursuit to buy clothes in this once in a year indulgence of consumerist selves. 

People taking snaps... one of the major pursuits of the Puja event is to look beautiful, capture them and preserve them.

The construction of spaces for consumption:

The Puja opens up the possibilities for the creative construction and transformation of a space. Most of the big puja pandals starts organising themselves immediately after one puja gets over. Within in a few months, the open space selected for the puja observes a great transformation. There are use of symbols, and material objects that signifies the transformation and makes the consumption possible.

Mudiyali Club 2012: constructed by the Zari and other glittering materials used for the decorating the idol.

Shibmandir 2012: the theme was DNA and human cloning

Hand pulled rickshaw has been aesthetically used by the Kashba Bosepukur Puja PandalL the entire construction is made by Pine wood.

Add caption

Part of the Kashba-Bosepukur Pandal

The essences:

There are almost ritualistic restrictions in experimentations with materials of the idol. There are several experimentations with the forms, but the materials i.e. mud covered straw and bamboo structure with paints. 

A typical "ek-challa" idol, taken at Saltlake AE (1) block 2012

Worshiping of "Bhanga thakur" is done by the Brahmin Professionals: Taken at Saltlake, BJ block Puja 2012

Spectatorship: 

The space that is created in the name of the Puja is lived and relived by the spectators. It reminds kaleidoscope that of Lefebvre's "third space." Each year, with ever increasing energy the space for the puja which constitutes a mix of tradition and experimentations with tradition is lived by the spectators - all with new clothing, aesthetic looks and energies to find a space in over crowded spaces.

Long queue of Pandal hoppers outside the FD block pandal, Salt Lake 2012

Spectators of the Puja at Ekdalia Evergreen 2012

There are late night pandal hopping, eating, spending money in commuting, making plans for spending money with dear and near ones... and so on... the space is relived and consumed as a whole. 

Concerns:

Kaleidoscope and the queen are hopping pandals for last several years. They ritually visit to the thematic pandals and also the pandals with little or no change. They, like many others make plans, fight over plans, save money, spend the savings without regrets, eat, drink, spend days without regular tasks. They feel that the entire city becomes art gallery. Yet, the touristic attention towards Durga Puja is much less. The consumption is still restricted to the Kolkatan's, who in turn gives their savings to the business houses. Apart from the domestic consumers, the city does not earn much concrete stuffs from the outside. There is a huge potential of making festival tourism that can circle around the great transformation of the space. Kaleidoscope and Queen discussed and debated the issue. They worked with The Boss, to make sense of the festival, transformation and consumption. They might write something out of their experience... however, Kolkata till date fails to utilise the tourism potential of urban space transformation.

This article has been referred to by ANGELICA MARINESCU in an article entitled "ETHNICITY AND RELIGIOUS SYNCRETISM: CELEBRATING DURGĀ PŪJĀ IN THE SUNDARBANS OF INDIA" Roman Journal of Sociology (2014): http://journalofsociology.ro/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Full-text.pdf

Durga Puja and transformation of Kolkata: time to think beyond

Kaleidoscope along with the boss is roaming around the city for last couple of days in order to make sense of the greatest festival of Kolkata - the upcoming Durga Puja. He finds the pre-puja works as astonishing especially the ways in which art works are progressing. Kaleidoscope had been a regular spectator of the festival, but never had an insight of the background of the festival.

The beauty is to be found at each corners of the city, from far north, north, central, south and to the far south. Huge pile of materials for construction, dozens of labours working round the clock, and organisers with their excellent management skill are transforming our known Kolkata into a hyperreality and fragmented micro-environments comparable to art works in art galleries. 

Artists from art colleges, their students, labours with acquired skills are working together to make things happen, to entertain the spectators, pursue their creative impulse and often to spread specific awareness through symbols in an abstract way now popularised as theme.

Talking to the organisers, artists and observing the great transformations of the city is unexplainably vivid. There is no patterns in narratives that are coming out of the study regarding the history, thoughts, plans, executions, institutions and institutional structures which is making this study more fascinating.

A few art works. (Courtesy: http://bongfood.blogspot.in/2010_10_01_archive.html)

While Kaleidoscope is observing this great transformation, he is in a quandary... While the city of Varanasi can promote its Sandhya arati which is just a repetition of similar actions over time to pool tourists, why cannot our state do something to promote this art form? Why cannot we show to the world about the nature of art work performed by our talented artists? Why does the Puja restrict itself only to a few localised awards?

Kolkata converts: Kaleidoscope sleeps in a strange bed

Kaleidoscope cannot say that he sacrifices things for the city he likes. First, because kaleidoscope has never abandon anything to live for the city. Second, and more importantly, he never has something to abandon for the city. As a participant (Can he say? well make it clear, he resides about 15 km away from the heart of the city) he has stronger attachment with his city. "His city" means Kolkata in late 1990s and early 2000s.

The inevitable:

While, the market principles dominate Kaleidoscope's world's governance, some say the transformation is inevitable. The question is what is this transformation. Transformation which makes Kaleidoscope feel that he is sleeping in some strange bed.

Principal nodes:

With his dangerously biased eyes, Kaleidoscope finds several nodes speeding up the transformation. First, the software boom - eighty percent of Kaleidoscope's friends work in this sector. "A lot" is the most suitable adjective - they work (a lot), earn (a lot) and spend (a lot). Second, and ever-increasing - the not bengali businessmen - they earn a lot, they chew a lot and their sons and daughters spend a lot. Third, and finally the bengalis who invest so much of their brain in imitation. Therefore, they cannot earn as much as the first two, they try to spend as much as them, and they obviously chew a lot...!

Reflections:

Kaleidoscope finds both material and social/mental reflection of the inevitable.

The material part:

The material part represents monotony. Kaleidoscope finds worlds are becoming world.

Two shopping malls, the first one is from USA (http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/02/online-shopping-vs-driving-mall-greener.php) and second one is Kolkata's south city mall.

The social/mental part:

This segment represents increasing love and faith on brand-names, increasing calculability in every sphere from dot pen refill to relationships. Kaleidoscope finds increasing use of electronic gadgets, a displacement of privacy of body by privacy of the mobile phone!

Come on - sleep on

Kaleidoscope continues to live in this world with increasingly small and yet large number of available alternatives and tries to win over his self which finds this city as a strange bed to sleep on. However, he is also getting a reminder that this rapid transformation makes it easier for Kaleidoscope to grow old!