Trying to relive Kolkata – from Hatibagan to Dalhousie via Shyambazar

After my tour of Kolkata from Hatibagan to Esplanade, I decided to travel in the opposite direction – namely, from Hatibagan to Dalhousie Square via Shyambazar. Since I had spent a portion of my childhood in the Shyambazar area, this trip brought back many fond memories. Since the metro rail had not disturbed the surroundings, the locality maintained the old life charms but the cinema halls that used to once bustle with activities were relics. The footpaths were occupied by hawkers and pedestrians had to use the roads. Moreover, the once busy Cornwallis Street had been converted to a one way street to ease the flow of traffic. Since there was no possibility of widening of the road, making it one-way was the best solution.
The tram depot was still intact and trams did ply – if only the tram routes had been kept alive, it would have been a boon to the commuters but, the trams plied only in a few selected routes.
When I came to the famous five-point crossing at Shyambazar, I looked around and saw the statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at the center of the crossing, he was on horseback.
I took a left turn to Bhupen Bose Avenue and boarded a bus that was to go to Dalhousie Square – the place where most of the offices of the government, the eastern railway and the Police Headquarters at Lalbazar were located.
It was a relatively smooth ride through Chittaranjan Avenue till the rear portion of the Medical College when the bus encountered a jam and, after waiting for a while, the bus driver decided to take a diversion that took the bus to a lane next to the gate of Lalbazar. Then it went ahead and parked in the terminus where I got down and began the long walk to Esplanade. I passed through the portals of the Great Eastern Hotel and, keeping the Governor’s House on my right, I took the turning towards K C Das – the brand famous for its Rosogollas. I did peep in but discovered that the interiors had changed completely.
Finally, I crossed over to the Metro cinema on Chowringhee Road – this cinema house was another landmark of Kolkata and it was practically in ruins. The pavement was occupied by hawkers who sold anything under the sun from foreign scents and sunglasses to foreign chocolates and wristwatches. And then there were the women who offered themselves to others to earn a living – they solicited customers openly at the bus stands through their touts.
I discovered that prosperity brings with it hordes of other associated problems that have to be accepted as a fallout of changes.