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Calcutta Culture Glossary – Issue 13.0
[No city is worth a city unless it has her encyclopaedists, illustrators, strange and secret lovers – irregular sons and non-regular daughters. A true city should also have her fair share of dwellers those could be anywhere but consciously made the city their home. Ethereal Minstrels in one way - they are also the pilgrims of the city.
I am also an adopted son of this city. One dark night in East Calcutta, I read Buddhadev Basu’s essay as why he chose to make Calcutta his home. This had been resonating. He told in his Bengali essay, as why he chose Calcutta – an antithesis of everything he prefers – (perhaps) the pull of the eternal spirit of the city – শহরের চিরন্তন আত্বা... I am yet to find a better description for my own engagement with this city.
স্বামী ও আসামী : An anonymous but a sparkling wit with a razor sharp sense of hiostory. It was told that somewhere in Calcutta, there is a statue of Swami (স্বামী) Vivekananda and behind that came a hoarding commeorating Jyoti Basu. The caption of such a picture: স্বামী ও আসামী
The Travelling Executive: One of my Bengali friends, an executive - working in London wanted to leave the island and venture elsewhere. He shared that first he would go to Kenya. Then the company which has presence in Syria might send him there. I quipped, London – Kenya – Syria and then what, Daria? Being an aristocratic Bengali, he loved the humour but he would move on.
Adda আড্ডা: Pentasect Adda-Zone is slowly becoming operational. We were thinking about many Adda-শিল্পী of Bengal and came one thanksgiving of Adda from Buddhadev Basu: এই আড্ডার জন্যই পরীক্ষাবৃক্ষের উচু শাখার আপাতরমণীয় ফলগুলি পেড়ে আনতে পেরেছিলাম ।
WH and MB: WH à Lord Warren Hastings and MB à Didi Mamata Banerjee. My friend Himanshu, one of the exiled aristocrats of Bengal, sent me a terse line after many of his wild researches: For last three hundred years, in terms of nominal power and understanding of the masses, Didi Mamata Banerjee can only be compared with Lord Warren Hastings.
Football + Bengal à Bengal Mainland, lost to history for some four decades confirm its complete resignation after every four years. During World Cup Football. Since every Bengali has an opinion and since voicing this opinion does not need any qualification whatsoever, during these days, it is unbearable to tolerate these critics and experts and supporters. I have always believed that just like a poor man can afford profligacy so a completely worthless man can only afford ‘criticize at will’.
The Missing Commentators (of Bengal): Why Bengal, now anticiapting change in a bated breath has no true commentator (there are plenty in mass media – in English and Bengali but quite sub-standard, painfully to those who had known better). Where have they gone? A part of them don’t reside in the geography and in order to become ‘successful’ in other geographies, most have become mediocre and counter-feit. Those who are in the geography, slowly and inexorably have entered into the তামসিক আলস্য of Bengal which had degenerated even the early Britons, the greatest administrators the world has seen since Roman Empire.
The Future Elites of Bengal: It appears that the word elite, aristocrat will not be villified terms in Bengal sooner. In any geography, and Bengal is very relevant where amidst a cluster of poverty, some people would be able to make money and become rich (in money terms). Last thirty of so years favoured this process quite covertly. Hence, you find neigbourhoods of sparkling disparity in living standards.
As Bengal slowly comes out of that Age of Infantile Dreams, the words elite, aristocrat, বনেদী, অভিজাত would have a new meaning.
Internet is redefining what elite is. In blogsphere, what you are producing matters. Internet knows no দাদা and cares little whom you call দাদা
Bengal needs to accustom herself to a new world without দাদা
Contact wordsmith.bengal@gmail.com for Calcutta Culture Glossary
No translation is attempted.
To be continued. Please contact editor@pentasect.com if you want to add some terms.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 12.0 came in Pentasect June 2010 Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 11.0 came in Pentasect April 2010 Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 10.0 came in Pentasect Novenber Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 9.0 came in Pentasect August Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 8.0 came in Pentasect July Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 7.0 came in Pentasect May Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 6.0 came in Pentasect April Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 5.0 came in Pentasect March Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 4.0 came in Pentasect February Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 3.0 came in Pentasect January Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 2.0 came in Pentasect December Issue.
Calcutta Culture Glossary Issue 1.0 came in Pentasect November Issue.