Adda, Calcutta: Dwelling in modernity

Public Culture

Volumn 11, Issue 1, 1999, Pages 109-145

  Chakrabarty, Dipesh ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 0033463250     PISSN: 08992363     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1215/08992363-11-1-109     Document Type: Article

References (87)

1. Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts into Air: The Experience of Modernity (New York: Penguin Books, 1988), 5.
2. Sunitikumar Chattopadhyay, "Hostel Life in Calcutta" [in Bengali, 1913], in Jiban katha (Calcutta: Jijnasha, 1979), 210.
3. Benoy Sarkar, "Addar darshan," in Binay sarkarer baithake, ed. Haridas Mukhopadhyay (Calcutta, 1942), 273.
4. Nishithranjan Ray, "Preface" to Kolkatar adda, ed. Samarendra Das (Calcutta: Mahajati prakashan, 1990), 10.
5. Nripendrakrishna Chattopadhyay, "Adda," in Nana katha (Calcutta: Deb Sahitya Kutir, 1978), 2-3.
6. Saiyad Mujtaba Ali, "Adda Passport" [in Bengali], in Siayad mujtaba ali rachanabali, vol. 3 (Calcutta: Mitra o ghosh, 1975), 404-11.
7. Try, for instance, "Calcutta Online," where it is possible to subscribe to "Bengali adda." The legendary nature of addas at the College Street Coffee House may also be seen in the fact that a news digest published from New York for immigrant and diasporie Bengalis in the United States carried news of the retirement of an "upcountry" working-class man, Ramuchacha, who for forty-five years served addabaj Bengali patrons of the Coffee House. See Udayan, 3 December 1997, 8: "The man who was inseparable from all the joys and sorrows, hope and despair, poetry and adda of Coffeee House over the last four decades, formally accepted farewell on last Saturday . . . Ramuda alias Ramuchacha has now left behind forty-five of his seventy years of life in the main hall and in the balconies of Coffee House. . . . His white moustache moist with tears, Ramuchacha said in his slightly upcountry style: 'I am an ignorant man. I do not know the names of any of those whom I have seen here over the last forty years. But I can still recognize their faces. Students come, sip coffee, chat, write poetry - I only see them. Now I will return to my village and spend time in the company of my grandchildren.'" Had it not been for the association Ramuchacha had with a space treated in Bengali middle-class memory as a sacred site in the history of Bengali literary modernism, the retirement of an "unknown" working-class person, who was not even a Bengali himself, would have scarcely made news in the American-Bengali diaspora.
8. Ray, "Preface."
9. Saiyad Mujtaba Ali, "Adda," in Saiyad mujtaba ali racanabali, vol. 3 (Calcutta: Mitra o ghosh, 1975), 396.
10. Sabitendranath Ray and Rabin Bal, "Bangla prakashanar panchash bochhor, 1947-97," in Books in Print from West Bengal and Fair Directory 1997 (Calcutta: Publisher's Guild, 1997), xxxii.
11. Nirad Chaudhuri, The Autobiography of an Unknown Indian (1951; reprint, New York: Macmillan, 1989), 382.
12. All quotations from Chaudhuri are from Autobiography, 383-86.
13. Buddhadev Bose, "Adda," in Kolkatar adda, ed. Samarendra Das (Calcutta, 1990), 13.
14. Chattopadhyay, "Hostel Life," 210; Bose, "Adda," 13.
15. Chattopadhyay, "Hostel Life," 210; Bose, "Adda," 13.
16. See Hirankumar Sanyal, Porichoyer kuribochhor o onnanno smritichitra (Calcutta: Papyrus, 1978), 145. See also Gaurkishor Ghosh, "Preface" to Saiyad mujtaba ali granthabali (Calcutta: Mitra o ghosh, 1978), vol. 4.
17. See Hirankumar Sanyal, Porichoyer kuribochhor o onnanno smritichitra (Calcutta: Papyrus, 1978), 145. See also Gaurkishor Ghosh, "Preface" to Saiyad mujtaba ali granthabali (Calcutta: Mitra o ghosh, 1978), vol. 4.
18. "Adda," in Samsad Bengali-English Dictionary (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1968).
19. See Ray, "Preface," 9.
20. Pyarimohan Mukhopadhyay, Amar dekha kolkata (Calcutta, 1981). Pages 207-11 and 222-24 describe such addas at the turn of the century.
21. Premankur Atarthi, Mahasthabirer galpashamagra (Calcutta, 1988), 231, 364-65.
22. Lal Behari Dey, Recollections of My School-Days (along with Bengal Peasant Life and Folk Titles of Bengal), ed. Mahadevprasad Saha (Calcutta, 1969), 464. Unfortunately, Saha does not give the original date of publication of Recollections.
23. Kaliprasanna Sinha, Hutom pyanchar naksha, ed. and annotated by Arun Nag (Calcutta: Subanarekha, 1992), 52
24. Mukhopadhyay, Amar dekha, 207-11.
25. For evidence of the older association of the word with life-forms of the subaltern classes, see the entries for adda in the following Bengali dictionaries: Gyanendramohan Das, Bangla bhashar ahhidhan, vol. 1 (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1988; first pub. 1916-17), Haricharan Bandyopadhyay, Bangiyo shabdakosh (Calcutta: Sahitya akademi, 1988; first pub. 1924-25), and Subal Chandra Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan (Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1984; first pub. 1906). Similar associations of the word are to be found in Hutom, 63, 105, and Sivanath Shastri, Ramtanu lahiri o tatkalin bangasamaj (Calcutta, 1957; first pub. 1903).
26. For evidence of the older association of the word with life-forms of the subaltern classes, see the entries for adda in the following Bengali dictionaries: Gyanendramohan Das, Bangla bhashar ahhidhan, vol. 1 (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1988; first pub. 1916-17), Haricharan Bandyopadhyay, Bangiyo shabdakosh (Calcutta: Sahitya akademi, 1988; first pub. 1924-25), and Subal Chandra Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan (Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1984; first pub. 1906). Similar associations of the word are to be found in Hutom, 63, 105, and Sivanath Shastri, Ramtanu lahiri o tatkalin bangasamaj (Calcutta, 1957; first pub. 1903).
27. For evidence of the older association of the word with life-forms of the subaltern classes, see the entries for adda in the following Bengali dictionaries: Gyanendramohan Das, Bangla bhashar ahhidhan, vol. 1 (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1988; first pub. 1916-17), Haricharan Bandyopadhyay, Bangiyo shabdakosh (Calcutta: Sahitya akademi, 1988; first pub. 1924-25), and Subal Chandra Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan (Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1984; first pub. 1906). Similar associations of the word are to be found in Hutom, 63, 105, and Sivanath Shastri, Ramtanu lahiri o tatkalin bangasamaj (Calcutta, 1957; first pub. 1903).
28. For evidence of the older association of the word with life-forms of the subaltern classes, see the entries for adda in the following Bengali dictionaries: Gyanendramohan Das, Bangla bhashar ahhidhan, vol. 1 (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1988; first pub. 1916-17), Haricharan Bandyopadhyay, Bangiyo shabdakosh (Calcutta: Sahitya akademi, 1988; first pub. 1924-25), and Subal Chandra Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan (Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1984; first pub. 1906). Similar associations of the word are to be found in Hutom, 63, 105, and Sivanath Shastri, Ramtanu lahiri o tatkalin bangasamaj (Calcutta, 1957; first pub. 1903).
29. For evidence of the older association of the word with life-forms of the subaltern classes, see the entries for adda in the following Bengali dictionaries: Gyanendramohan Das, Bangla bhashar ahhidhan, vol. 1 (Calcutta: Sahitya samsad, 1988; first pub. 1916-17), Haricharan Bandyopadhyay, Bangiyo shabdakosh (Calcutta: Sahitya akademi, 1988; first pub. 1924-25), and Subal Chandra Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan (Calcutta: New Age Publishers, 1984; first pub. 1906). Similar associations of the word are to be found in Hutom, 63, 105, and Sivanath Shastri, Ramtanu lahiri o tatkalin bangasamaj (Calcutta, 1957; first pub. 1903).
30. Hutom, 21, 23, 78-97, 87, 94, 102-3.
31. Mitra, Saral bangala abhidhan, entry for majlish. It is not entirely clear whether Mitra is simply referring to the religious sect here.
32. Bose, "Adda," 14.
33. Parashuram [Rajshekhar Bosu], "Lambakarna," in Gaddalika (Calcutta: M. C. Sarkar and Sons, 1974), 79.
34. Radhaprasad Gupta, "Amader jubakaler adda: jhankidarshan." in Kolkatar adda, ed. Samarenda Das (Calcutta, 1990), 27. The italicized English words are used in the original.
35. Parashuram [Rajshekhar Bosu], "Dakshinray," in Kajjali (Calcutta: M. C. Sarkar and Sons, 1969), 65-66. The italicized English words are used in the original.
36. My friend Peter van der Veer tells me that what is known in English or Australian as "going Dutch" or in American as "Dutch treat" is known to the Dutch themselves as "American party"! Obviously, no people want to assume responsibility for the death of the patron and the subsequent death of hospitality that democracy brings in its trail.
37. Sagarmoy Ghosh, "Hirer nakchhabi," in Kolkatar adda, ed. Samarenda Das (Calcutta, 1990), 52.
38. Jogindranath Bosu, Michael madhusudan datter jibancharit (Calcutta: Ashok pustakalaya, 1990), 48-49, 51.
39. Bipinchandra Pal, Sattarbatshar: atmajibani (Calcutta: Jugajatri, 1957), 202-3; Dineshchandra Sen, Gharer katha o juga sahitya (Calcutta: Jijnasha, 1969), 95-98.
40. Bipinchandra Pal, Sattarbatshar: atmajibani (Calcutta: Jugajatri, 1957), 202-3; Dineshchandra Sen, Gharer katha o juga sahitya (Calcutta: Jijnasha, 1969), 95-98.
41. See the letters exchanged between Mitra and Sengupta in their adolescence - they have been reproduced in Achintyakumar Sengupta, Kallol jug (Calcutta: M. C. Sarkar and Sons, 1960), 6-16.
42. See Prasantakumar Pal, Rabijibani, vol. 3 (Calcutta, 1988), 39, 60, 237, 268, 270.
43. Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, Jibaner jharapata (Calcutta: Rupa, 1982), 34. See also Pal, Rabijibani, 74 where this statement is set in the context of Tagore's life.
44. Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, Jibaner jharapata (Calcutta: Rupa, 1982), 34. See also Pal, Rabijibani, 74 where this statement is set in the context of Tagore's life.
45. Quoted in Amitrasudan Bhattacharya, Bankimchandrajibani (Calcutta: Ananda Publishers, 1991), 109.
46. Sachishchandra Chattopadhyay, Bankim-jibani (Calcutta: Pustak bipani, 1989), 283, 311.
47. Hutom, 41.
48. This sketch is entitled "Betaler baithake" [In the parlor of Betal] and was used us a masthead for a regular column by "Betal" (a pen name with obvious reference to the Sanskrit text Vetalapanchavimsati) in the literary magazine Prabashi, first published in 1901 and then resumed in the 1920s. have reproduced it from an essay by Hirendranath Datta, "Sahityer adda" [Literary addas] in Desh, Special Issue on Literature, 1975, 49.
49. This sketch is entitled "Betaler baithake" [In the parlor of Betal] and was used us a masthead for a regular column by "Betal" (a pen name with obvious reference to the Sanskrit text Vetalapanchavimsati) in the literary magazine Prabashi, first published in 1901 and then resumed in the 1920s. have reproduced it from an essay by Hirendranath Datta, "Sahityer adda" [Literary addas] in Desh, Special Issue on Literature, 1975, 49.
50. The sketch is reproduced from Chattopadhyay, "Hostel life," 199.
51. Chattopadhyay, "Hostel Life," 198-99.
52. Chattopadhyay, "Hostel Life," 201.
53. Sanyal, Porichoyer, 145.
54. Satyajit Ray, Preface to Sukumar Ray, Shamagra shishusahitya (Calcutta: Ananda Publishers, 1977).
55. Jibendra Singha Ray, Kolloler kal (Calcutta: Deys, 1973), 5
56. Ray, Kolloler kal, 2-3; emphasis mine.
57. See Desh, Special Issue on Literature, 1975.
58. Chattopadhyay, "Adda," 4-6.
59. Arun Das Gupta, "Three-B kalighat park southe kanuda," in Kicchu chintakana, kichhu smriti: bimal ghosh smaranik patra, ed. Manashi Das Gupta (Calcutta, 1987), 62
60. Debabrata Mukhopadhyay, Kofir kaape shomoyer chhohi (Calcutta, 1989), Preface and 10.
61. Bipinbehari Gupta, Puratan prasanga (Calcutta: Bidyabharati, 1977; first pub. ca. 1913-14).
62. Amiyabhusan Majumdar, "Rabindranath o bigyanacharya satyendranath," Desh, Special Issue on Literature, 1975, 131.
63. Parimal Goswami, "Prabashir adda," in Desk, Special Issue, 59-64. Ranajit Guha tells me that in the Calcutta of his youth (1930s) parks were indeed the place for adda, removed as they were from parental surveillance. Premankur Atarthi's writings explore these urban spaces in fictional and autobiographical forms and remain to be mined by a future historian of the city. For a captivating description of the social use made of terraced roofs in Calcutta in the early and middle parts of the twentieth century, see, for example, Atarthi's short story "Chhate" in Mahasthabirer granthabali, 354-63.
64. Parimal Goswami, "Prabashir adda," in Desk, Special Issue, 59-64. Ranajit Guha tells me that in the Calcutta of his youth (1930s) parks were indeed the place for adda, removed as they were from parental surveillance. Premankur Atarthi's writings explore these urban spaces in fictional and autobiographical forms and remain to be mined by a future historian of the city. For a captivating description of the social use made of terraced roofs in Calcutta in the early and middle parts of the twentieth century, see, for example, Atarthi's short story "Chhate" in Mahasthabirer granthabali, 354-63.
65. Unfortunately, nothing like Frank Conlon's "Dining out in Bombay," in Consuming Modernity: Public Culture in a South Asian World, ed. Carol Breckenridge (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1995), 90-127, exists for Calcutta.
66. Muzaffar Ahmad, Kazi nazrul islam smritikatha (Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1965), 277-78.
67. Susobhan Sarkar, "Bhumikar bodole," in Hirankumar Sanyal, Porichoyer Kuribochhor o onnanno smiritichitra (Calcutta, 1978), 9.
68. Radhaprasad Gupta, "Amader jubakkaler adda," in Kolkatar adda, ed. Samarenda Das (Calcutta, 1990), 24.
69. Gupta, "Amader jubakkaler adda," 24.
70. Gupta, "Amader jubakkaler adda," 27-28. The English words in italics are used in the original.
71. Parashuram [Rajshekhar Bosu]. "Ratarati," in Hanumaner shapna ityadi galpo (Calcutta: M. C. Sarkar and Sons, 1962), 79.
72. Bose, "Adda," 14.
73. Sanyal, Porichoyer, 163-64.
74. Shyamalkrishna Ghosh, Porichoyer adda (Calcutta: K. P. Bagchi, 1990), 11.
75. The compound word used by Susobhan Sarkar to describe the nature of conversation at an adda is galpagujob (lit. tales and rumors). See Sarkar's preface to Sanyal, Porichoyer, 3.
76. Hemendrakumar Ray, Jader dekhechhi, vol. 1 (Calcutta, 1948-49), 112.
77. Sanyal, Porichoyer, 167.
78. Sanyal, Porichoyer, 166-67. I find this piece of conversation quite illuminating in thinking about our modernity. The tradition of testing someone by putting to them big questions in the form of puzzles is as old as the Indian epic the Mahabharata. There is a sequence there in which the mythical demigod Yaksha tests the eldest of the Pandavas. Yudhisthira, with a series of such unconnected questions. In our nineteenth-century history, similar encounters are reported between the young (and future) Vivekananda and the different people in whom he searched for a suitable guru, and between Ramakrishna (eventually Vivekananda's guru) and the many Calcutta personalities he met and tested.
79. Gupta, "Amader," 29.
80. See the essay "Meyeder adda" in Kolkatar adda.
81. Chattopadhyay, "Adda," 9, 16.
82. Chattopadhyay, "Adda," 4, 10. Darjeeling and Puri were among the favorite locations for holidays for Bengali middle-class families from Calcutta.
83. Parashuram [Rajshekhar Bosu], "Dvandik kobita," in his Neel tara ityadi galpa (Calcutta: M. C. Sarkar and Sons, 1962), 121-26. The English words in italics are used in the original.
84. Sreekumar Bandyopadhyay, Bangasahitye upanashyer dhara (Calcutta: Modern Book Agency, 1988), 148.
85. Mukhopadhyay, Kofir Kaape, 16.
86. See Henri Lefebvre, The Production of Space, trans. Donald Nicholson-Smith (Oxford: Blackwell, 1992), 304-6.
87. Personal communication from Manashi Das Gupta.