Shyambazar
Encyclopedia
Shyambazar is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata
, earlier known as Calcutta, in the India
n state
of West Bengal
. The area, under Shyampukur
police station of Kolkata Police
, has been, along with neighbouring Bagbazar
, the citadel of the Bengali
aristocracy, in a part of what was earlier known as Sutanuti
.
Shyambazar-Hatibagan broadly covers Ward Nos. 11 and 12 of Kolkata Municipal Corporation
.
The Japanese had dropped a bomb near Hatibagan market during World War II but it did not explode.
called Charles Bazar. The present designation was conferred upon it by Sobharam Basak, in honour of Shyam Rai (or Gobinda), the attendant of the goddess Kali. The Basaks and the Setts were amongst the first to have settled in Sutanuti
, after having cleared the jungles. Sobharam Basak was one of the wealthiest native inhabitants of 18th century Kolkata.
to Barisha
. Chitpur Road (renamed Rabindra Sarani) was developed along this path. It passed through neighbouring Bagbazar
and Chitpur
. Road construction picked up in the early 19th century. The Lottery Commission (1817) and its successor the Lottery Committee (1836) opened up the native parts of old Kolkata. The main axial thrusts were from south to the north, parallel to the existing Chowringhee
Chitpur
alignment.
The three-mile long Maratha Ditch
was excavated in 1742 as a protection against the marauding Maratha
soldiers then foraging in the countryside but who never came. It was filled up in 1799 to build the Circular Road, that ran from Shyambazar, right around old Kolkata, covering the southern end of the Maidan
. It was metalled in the early 19th century. Around the same time, the most important axial thoroughfare from south to north — Wood Street (portion renamed Dr. Martin Luther King Sarani), Wellesley Street (renamed Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Street), Wellington Street (renamed Nirmal Chandra Street), College Street and Cornwallis Street (renamed Bidhan Sarani) — was built by the Lottery Committee. The new road to Barrackpur (now called Barrackpur Trunk Road and partly Bidhan Sarani) and R.G.Kar Road also converged at the same point. Subsequently, the extension of Central Avenue (the Shyambazar end is now called Bhupen Bose Avenue), which was built by the Kolkata Improvement Trust formed in 1911, also converged on the same point, making Shyambazar five-point crossing one of the busiest street crossings in Kolkata.
Horse drawn tram
cars were introduced up to Shyambazar in 1882 and in 1899, Calcutta Tramways Company Limited
introduced electric traction. In 1902 the entire system was electrified. Subsequently, tramways were extended to Belgachia. In 1941, tram tracks were laid along Circular Road. For many years tram cars were the only form of mass transport in Kolkata. Although the first motor car appeared in Kolkata in1896, motor bus services started only in 1920. Shyambazar tram depot is on Bidhan Sarani, near the five-point crossing. Circular Road had a garbage clearance light railway up to the early fifties.
The Shyambazar station of Kolkata Metro
is also located at Shyambazar five point crossing. Belgachia Shyambazar section, along with Dum Dum Belgachia stretch, was opened on August 13, 1994 and the Shyambazar Shovabazar Girish Park and Chandni Chowk Central sections were opened on February 19, 1995. Services on the entire stretch of Metro, from Dum Dum to Tollygunge were introduced from September 27, 1995 While most of the metro railway was constructed by the cut and cover process, the Shyambazar Belgachia stretch was constructed by tunnelling.
in central Calcutta or Gariahat in south Kolkata. The once famous house of jewellers, M B Sircar of Shyambazar, has given way to numerous shops of descendants using variations of the name, all across the city. In sweet meat, the old favourites of Shyambazar are Dwarik Ghosh and Sen Mahasay. Old timers will remember shops such as sweet-meat seller Jalajog or a popular restaurant like Golbari.
In traditional Bengali families, new clothes are a must for the Bengali New Year. Braving the scorching afternoon heat and drizzles in the evening, people throng at roadside shops for the Chaitra
sale offering attractive concessions. Shyambazar vies with New Market
and Gariahat as the most crowded markets in Kolkata. The Shyambazar Hatibagan area also caters extensively to customers on the eve of Durga Puja
and for weddings, apart from daily necessities. A newspaper columnist wrote, “A formidable matron with husband and children in tow wading through the crowds at Gariahat and Shyambazar is a familiar sight on the eve of Poila Baishakh.
Shyambazar has two regular markets — Shyambazar and Hatibagan. As Shyambazar is a popular shopping area, the footpaths have virtually been taken over by hawkers, who spread out their fare all over the place. It may be recalled that Kolkata Municipal Corporation
had conducted Operation Sunshine in 1996 to remove hawkers from Gariahat and Shyambazar. Following the hawker removal drive, KMC had issued a notification imposing certain restrictions on the movement of hawkers on 21 streets in the city. However, everything seems to be back to the square one. In 2002, a decision was taken by the KMC to keep one-third of the pavement vacant for passers-by.
It is Star Theatre
which had been the focus of attention in Shyambazar. When the land of Star Theatre at Beadon Street was sold, the dramatic group purchased a land at 76/3, Cornwalis Street (renamed Bidhan Sarani), near Hatibagan Bazar, and built a new Star Theatre. It was famous for over 100 years and during the period nearly 250 Bengali dramas of more than 80 playwrights were performed by different producers. More than 12 Hindi dramas were also staged at the Theatre. Unfortunately a fire destroyed the glorious Star Theatre on 16 October 1991. It has again been built but it has failed to regain its old glory. Now, cinema shows are held in the auditorium.
Nandikar
, one of the leading theatre groups in Kolkata is based in Shyambazar.
With five cinema halls — Radha, Rupbani, Minar, Mitra and Darpana — in a row along Bidhan Sarani, Shyambazar was called cinema neighbourhood. The Bengali films that they screened were particularly popular with the housewives, who used to crowd the afternoon shows. Talkie Show House in Phariapikur was an outlet mostly for English films. With the advent of television both theatre and cinema has been badly hit.
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, earlier known as Calcutta, in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state
States and territories of India
India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...
of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
. The area, under Shyampukur
Shyampukur
Shyampukur is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata, earlier known as Calcutta, in the Indian state of West Bengal. As a neighbourhood, it covers a small area but its importance is primarily because of the police station and the assembly constituency.-Etymology:...
police station of Kolkata Police
Kolkata Police
The Kolkata Police Force is one of the two police forces of the Indian state of West Bengal....
, has been, along with neighbouring Bagbazar
Bagbazar
There is also a bagbazar in Kathmandu, Nepal.Bagbazar is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata, in the Indian state of West Bengal...
, the citadel of the Bengali
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
aristocracy, in a part of what was earlier known as Sutanuti
Sutanuti
Sutanuti was one of the three villages which were merged to form the city of Kolkata in India. The other two villages were Gobindapur and Kalikata. Job Charnock, an administrator with the British East India Company is traditionally credited with the honour of founding the city...
.
Shyambazar-Hatibagan broadly covers Ward Nos. 11 and 12 of Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation is responsible for the civic infrastructure and administration of the city of Kolkata. The organization is known, in short, as KMC . This civic administrative body administers an area of 185 sq. km. Its motto, Purosree Bibardhan, is inscribed on its emblem in Bengali...
.
The Japanese had dropped a bomb near Hatibagan market during World War II but it did not explode.
Origin of the name
There was a big market in the area, which HolwellJohn Zephaniah Holwell
John Zephaniah Holwell FRS was a surgeon, an employee of the English East India Company, and a temporary Governor of Bengal...
called Charles Bazar. The present designation was conferred upon it by Sobharam Basak, in honour of Shyam Rai (or Gobinda), the attendant of the goddess Kali. The Basaks and the Setts were amongst the first to have settled in Sutanuti
Sutanuti
Sutanuti was one of the three villages which were merged to form the city of Kolkata in India. The other two villages were Gobindapur and Kalikata. Job Charnock, an administrator with the British East India Company is traditionally credited with the honour of founding the city...
, after having cleared the jungles. Sobharam Basak was one of the wealthiest native inhabitants of 18th century Kolkata.
Five-point Crossing
Growth and development of the neighbourhood and surrounding localities largely followed the construction of roads that opened up the area. Sutanuti had no roads, except the pilgrim path extending across it from HalisaharHalisahar
Halisahar is a city and a municipality under Bijpur/ Naihati police stations of Barrackpore subdivision. in North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority.It was formerly known Kumarhata. It has an...
to Barisha
Barisha
Barisha is a residential locality of Kolkata , West Bengal, India. Historically, it one of the oldest boroughs in Kolkata. It was the abode of the great Sabarna Roy Choudhury family. Barisha is known today for being the home of the Indian Cricket idol Sourav Ganguly...
. Chitpur Road (renamed Rabindra Sarani) was developed along this path. It passed through neighbouring Bagbazar
Bagbazar
There is also a bagbazar in Kathmandu, Nepal.Bagbazar is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata, in the Indian state of West Bengal...
and Chitpur
Chitpur
Chitpur is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata in the Indian state of West Bengal. Sometimes, the entire area along Chitpur Road is referred to as Chitpur, although the various localities have distinctive names....
. Road construction picked up in the early 19th century. The Lottery Commission (1817) and its successor the Lottery Committee (1836) opened up the native parts of old Kolkata. The main axial thrusts were from south to the north, parallel to the existing Chowringhee
Chowringhee Avenue
Jawaharlal Nehru Road , in the Chowringhee neighbourhood, is the arterial road running from the eastern fringes of Esplanade southwards up to the crossing with Lower Circular Road , in the city of Calcutta, India. It is the single most important road of the metropolis of Kolkata...
Chitpur
Chitpur
Chitpur is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata in the Indian state of West Bengal. Sometimes, the entire area along Chitpur Road is referred to as Chitpur, although the various localities have distinctive names....
alignment.
The three-mile long Maratha Ditch
Maratha Ditch
Maratha Ditch was a three-mile long moat excavated around Kolkata in the present Indian state of West Bengal, in 1742, as a protection against possible attacks by marauding Bargis, as the Marathas were known locally. The Bargis, however, never came to the city...
was excavated in 1742 as a protection against the marauding Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
soldiers then foraging in the countryside but who never came. It was filled up in 1799 to build the Circular Road, that ran from Shyambazar, right around old Kolkata, covering the southern end of the Maidan
Maidan (Kolkata)
The Maidan is the largest urban park in Kolkata in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a vast stretch of field and home to numerous play grounds, including the famous cricketing venue Eden Gardens, several football stadia, and Kolkata Race Course. Maidan is dotted with several statues and...
. It was metalled in the early 19th century. Around the same time, the most important axial thoroughfare from south to north — Wood Street (portion renamed Dr. Martin Luther King Sarani), Wellesley Street (renamed Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Street), Wellington Street (renamed Nirmal Chandra Street), College Street and Cornwallis Street (renamed Bidhan Sarani) — was built by the Lottery Committee. The new road to Barrackpur (now called Barrackpur Trunk Road and partly Bidhan Sarani) and R.G.Kar Road also converged at the same point. Subsequently, the extension of Central Avenue (the Shyambazar end is now called Bhupen Bose Avenue), which was built by the Kolkata Improvement Trust formed in 1911, also converged on the same point, making Shyambazar five-point crossing one of the busiest street crossings in Kolkata.
Horse drawn tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
cars were introduced up to Shyambazar in 1882 and in 1899, Calcutta Tramways Company Limited
Calcutta Tramways Company
The Calcutta Tramways Company Limited is a West Bengal, India government-run company which runs trams in Kolkata and buses in and around Kolkata...
introduced electric traction. In 1902 the entire system was electrified. Subsequently, tramways were extended to Belgachia. In 1941, tram tracks were laid along Circular Road. For many years tram cars were the only form of mass transport in Kolkata. Although the first motor car appeared in Kolkata in1896, motor bus services started only in 1920. Shyambazar tram depot is on Bidhan Sarani, near the five-point crossing. Circular Road had a garbage clearance light railway up to the early fifties.
The Shyambazar station of Kolkata Metro
Kolkata Metro
The Kolkata Metro or Calcutta Metro is a mass rapid transit system serving the city of Kolkata and the districts of South 24 Parganas and North 24 Parganas in Indian state of West Bengal. The network consists of one operational line and five lines currently under construction...
is also located at Shyambazar five point crossing. Belgachia Shyambazar section, along with Dum Dum Belgachia stretch, was opened on August 13, 1994 and the Shyambazar Shovabazar Girish Park and Chandni Chowk Central sections were opened on February 19, 1995. Services on the entire stretch of Metro, from Dum Dum to Tollygunge were introduced from September 27, 1995 While most of the metro railway was constructed by the cut and cover process, the Shyambazar Belgachia stretch was constructed by tunnelling.
Shopping
Shyambazar is the focal point of shopping in north Kolkata. In fabrics and clothing, it can match College Street-Mahatma Gandhi Road crossing in central Kolkata or Gariahat in south Kolkata. In Jewellery, it can match BowbazarBowbazar
Bowbazar is a neighbourhood and police stationin central Kolkata, earlier known as Calcutta, in the Indian state of West Bengal...
in central Calcutta or Gariahat in south Kolkata. The once famous house of jewellers, M B Sircar of Shyambazar, has given way to numerous shops of descendants using variations of the name, all across the city. In sweet meat, the old favourites of Shyambazar are Dwarik Ghosh and Sen Mahasay. Old timers will remember shops such as sweet-meat seller Jalajog or a popular restaurant like Golbari.
In traditional Bengali families, new clothes are a must for the Bengali New Year. Braving the scorching afternoon heat and drizzles in the evening, people throng at roadside shops for the Chaitra
Chaitra
Chaitra is a month of the Hindu calendar....
sale offering attractive concessions. Shyambazar vies with New Market
New Market, Calcutta
New Market is a market in Kolkata situated on Lindsay Street. Technically, it referred to an enclosed market but today in local parlance the entire Lindsay Street shopping area is often known as New Market.-History:...
and Gariahat as the most crowded markets in Kolkata. The Shyambazar Hatibagan area also caters extensively to customers on the eve of Durga Puja
Durga Puja
Durga puja ; দুর্গা পূজা,ଦୁର୍ଗା ପୂଜା,‘Worship of Durga’), also referred to as Durgotsava ; , is an annual Hindu festival in South Asia that celebrates worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. It refers to all the six days observed as Mahalaya, Shashthi, Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and...
and for weddings, apart from daily necessities. A newspaper columnist wrote, “A formidable matron with husband and children in tow wading through the crowds at Gariahat and Shyambazar is a familiar sight on the eve of Poila Baishakh.
Shyambazar has two regular markets — Shyambazar and Hatibagan. As Shyambazar is a popular shopping area, the footpaths have virtually been taken over by hawkers, who spread out their fare all over the place. It may be recalled that Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation is responsible for the civic infrastructure and administration of the city of Kolkata. The organization is known, in short, as KMC . This civic administrative body administers an area of 185 sq. km. Its motto, Purosree Bibardhan, is inscribed on its emblem in Bengali...
had conducted Operation Sunshine in 1996 to remove hawkers from Gariahat and Shyambazar. Following the hawker removal drive, KMC had issued a notification imposing certain restrictions on the movement of hawkers on 21 streets in the city. However, everything seems to be back to the square one. In 2002, a decision was taken by the KMC to keep one-third of the pavement vacant for passers-by.
Sports
As Shyambazar is a crowded residential and shopping locality, there are few play grounds here. However, Mohun Bagan AC, one of Kolkata’s leading sports clubs, had its first play ground at what is now Mohun Bagan Row. A plaque announces that the first play ground was in Mohun Bagan Villa from 1889-1892. Kolkata has a deep passion for football but other sports too have developed with time and have gained their share of importance and popularity as well. Tennis is one of them. Shyambazar Tennis Club operates regularly at Deshbandhu Park.Entertainment
Shyambazar has traditionally been an entertainment neighbourhood. Nabin Chandra Basu staged the first Bengali production Bidyasundar at his Shyambazar home theatre in 1835. Later in the 19th century, crucial roles were played by Bagbazar Amateur Theatre and Shyambazar Natya Samaj, in highlighting the demand for public commercial theatres open to the public, as opposed to private home theatres of the rich.It is Star Theatre
Star Theatre, Calcutta
The Star Theatre is a theatre in Kolkata, built in 1883. Initially situated in Beadon Street, the theatre later moved to Cornwallis Street - now called Bidhan Sarani. The Star, along with the Minerva Theatre, was one of the first institutions of commercial Bengali theatre...
which had been the focus of attention in Shyambazar. When the land of Star Theatre at Beadon Street was sold, the dramatic group purchased a land at 76/3, Cornwalis Street (renamed Bidhan Sarani), near Hatibagan Bazar, and built a new Star Theatre. It was famous for over 100 years and during the period nearly 250 Bengali dramas of more than 80 playwrights were performed by different producers. More than 12 Hindi dramas were also staged at the Theatre. Unfortunately a fire destroyed the glorious Star Theatre on 16 October 1991. It has again been built but it has failed to regain its old glory. Now, cinema shows are held in the auditorium.
Nandikar
Nandikar
Nandikar is a theatre group in India. The group has its headquarters in Kolkata in the state of West Bengal, but works around the world.__FORCETOC__-History:...
, one of the leading theatre groups in Kolkata is based in Shyambazar.
With five cinema halls — Radha, Rupbani, Minar, Mitra and Darpana — in a row along Bidhan Sarani, Shyambazar was called cinema neighbourhood. The Bengali films that they screened were particularly popular with the housewives, who used to crowd the afternoon shows. Talkie Show House in Phariapikur was an outlet mostly for English films. With the advent of television both theatre and cinema has been badly hit.