Review: Maach, Mishti & More

Cast: Soumitra Chatterjee, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Raima Sen, Swastika Mukherjee, Parno Mittra, Shauvik Kundagrami, Rachita Chauhan, Anubrata Basu, Pamela Singh Bhutoria, Neha Panda, Pradip Mukhopadhyay and Anuradha Roy

Director: Mainak Bhaumik

The opening credits unfold with sketches of Kolkata, setting the mood for a light-hearted, enjoyable two hours with your popcorn. Maach, Mishti & More is a mint fresh urban romantic comedy set in the cosmopolitan Kolkata. Mainak’s third film tells the tale of the trials and tribulations in the relationships of three brothers in a joint family in an old house.

The eldest, Rahul (Shauvik), is an NRI based in US who chucks his high-paying corporate career to come back to his city with the dream to start his own restaurant (‘To cook for others’ in his mother’s words). Rony, the middle one (Parambrata), is doing well in a corporate job, earns handsomely, and struggles to meet expectations of his Marwari girlfriend (Rachita) from a rich family. Raju, or Raj, the third one (Anubrata), is a struggling actor who dreams of his big break in Bollywood. All of them love to spend time with their ‘Dadu’ (Soumitra), who believes in living life on his own terms and is at ease dealing with gen Y (He goes to his morning walk in cool roundneck tees). While Rahul and Raj are sorted out in their personal lives - Rahul has a settled and routine life with Rina, his wife of three years (Swastika), and Raj doesn’t date a girl for long - Rony is the confused soul. He is in love with Swati but not sure of committing to marriage. Each of them happens to meet a new girl and life takes a turn from that point. Rahul comes across June (Pamela), his friend’s colleague, who helps him in setting up his business. Rony bumps into Ishani (Raima), his college mate, now a yoga & reiki teacher and Raj meets Neha (Neha), with who his past two encounters were unpalatable, in a meeting set up by his mother to help her son in his career. Meanwhile Dadu meets Sunny, a college-going tomboy (Parno) in the local tea shop and helps him sort out her love life.

What is refreshing to see is that the women in Mainak’s film are , in varying degrees, confident, liberated, unapologetic for the right reasons and take their own decisions, yet are true to their feminine selves. The men are overshadowed by these stronger women, which reflects the changing equation of modern urban society.  Mainak takes a look at the idiosyncrasies of the Bengali and never stops short of having a hearty laugh at it. In the same spirit the film shows a young girl lighting up in the middle of the conversation with someone her grandfather’s age or a homemaker sharing a fag with her much younger brother-in-law. Going ahead, it treats the death after a life well lived with a song, rather than the familiar background score. Some moments of the film did remind me of Aamra – Mainak’s debut film.

The performances elevate the film, helped by apt casting, and taut script and dialogue by Mainak (with additional writing by Pratim D. Gupta, the maker of the last Puja release Paanch Adhyay. Everyone fits the bill for his / her part. Soumitra is superb as the old man of the family rediscovering life in his city of love. I have always wondered why none offered an actor of his calibre a role like this, breaking out of the stereotype he has been forced in. Neha (also one of the stylists in this film) is impressive as the kickass Neha driving bike with Raj riding pillion. Swastika is good as the bored wife thanks to an ever busy husband, and disgusted by the middle class practices in her in-law’s family on return from abroad, yet making an effort to win over her husband from the other woman. Though Anubrata is the natural choice for his role, he is just rocking as Raj representing gen Y. His telephonic conversation with a prospective landlord in a coffee shop is uproariously funny. The three leading men show fabulous comic timing. Ajopa Mukhpadhyay, the other stylist of the film, also shone in the small role as sister to her real life sister Swastika. Neha and Ajopa have done an equally good job in styling. Shauvik’s accent sounded a little too heavy though. And I wish Anuradha Roy (the mother) was given a better wig.

The sepia frames lovingly embrace the different parts of the old and the new Kolkata. They are perfectly complimented by the well-worded songs (by Srijit, Rituparno and others) put to hummable tunes by Neel Dutt and sung by Rupankar, Somlata and Timir among others. The title track, the one with Param-Raima and one with Anubrata-Neha are particularly good. Supriyo Datta has done a good job behind the camera. The editing job could be better though, the cuts in some scenes look a bit rushed.

There are minor glitches, like Sunny’s character could have been fleshed out a bit more to lend it a credibility that it lacks or the mother’s shock at her son’s return from abroad to pursue that silly dream being too mild. Rony’s frequently walking into Ishani’s ongoing classes and starting a very personal conversation also looks odd. But one is still able to set aside all this once out of the theatre thanks to the overall feel good factor.

Mainak said in his Calcutta Times pre-release interview that he sincerely believes he is a mediocre director who has a shitload of interesting stories to tell. Well, Maach, Mishti & More is indeed an interesting story, but it’s no mediocre work either. In fact, this is the best from Mainak. Go for it!

Bengali releases to look forward to

The Bengali releases that I would like to watch / keep an eye on in this year is: Ashchorjyo Prodip by Anik Dutta, Meghe Dhaka Tara by Kamaleshwar Mukhopadhyay, Room No. 103 and Mahapurush O Kapurush by Aniket Chattopadhyay, Chorabali by Rituparno Ghosh, Hanuman.com by Gaurav Pandey, Goynar Baksho by Aparna Sen, Mishar Rahasya by Srijit Mukherjee, Aleek Sukh by Shiboprosad Mukhopadhyay-Nandita Roy, Ganesh Talkies by Anjan Dutta, Abhishopto Nighty by Birsa Dasgupta, C/o Sir by Kaushik Ganguly and Kanamachhi and Praloy by Raj Chakaborty. The genres in the list have an amazing variety.

Special mention goes to Meghe Dhaka Tara – I’m extremely curious to watch Kamaleshwar’s take on Ritwik Ghatak’s life, Mishar Rahasya- Srijit’s take on the iconic Kakababu, Chorabali - Rituparno’s fresh take on Byomkesh Bakshi and Praloy- Raj’s take on the late Barun Biswas- the idealistic teacher known for his collective protest against the gang rapes in Sutia.

'Loi Krathong' at Benjarong

It was indeed an interesting bit of news from Benjarong - the premier fine dining Thai cuisine restaurant at South City Mall - that Diwali - our festival of lights has a parallel in Thailand - known as Loi Krathong! What added to it was that keeping the celebration of Loi Krathong, Benjarong put together a food festival from 27th November to 9th December, 2012.

Loi Krathong borrows its name from the words ‘loi’ that means to float, and ‘krathong’ that stands for small baskets or rafts. The traditional 'krathongs', made from banana leaves, contain incense, lotus flowers and candles, which are lit and set to float in water as a ritual during this festival. It is believed that the krathong carries away bad luck and signals a fresh start while people make wishes as their krathongs float away. Benjarong organised  for its guests to float krathongs in large vessels after making a wish to connect with the festival.  

As I didn't have an exposure to the Thai cuisine, I was curious to experience it.

In the presence of some fellow bloggers, the appetizers rolled out in the evening, starting with soup. It just hit the right note with my palate. The thin soup with pieces of chicken, mushroom and spinach omelette was balanced in taste. The pieces of the spinach omelette particularly appealed to me. The soup was followed by Pla Hor Baitaey, which is delicately marinated, dip fried fish wrapped in pandanus leaves - somewhat similar to 'paturi' of Bengali cuisine in look. Loved the tiny, bite-size pieces of crunchy fish with a creamy softness inside. It was served with a transparent-looking sweet chilli sauce. Didn't mind a few helpings. Along with it came Look Chin Gai Ping - grilled minced chicken balls in bamboo skewer served with a dip. It had a fine taste, unlike the spicy kind. 

The soup

Pla Hor Baitaey

Look Chin Gai Ping

The main course started with glass noodles (transparent-looking noodles with vegetables) and steamed rice to go with Burmese Curry and lamb (curry) with hot basil sauce. The Burmese Curry was a sweetish chicken curry, cooked in coconut milk. It's a dish from south Burma and south Thailand, typical of this time of the year. Tried it with the rice. I suppose a dish like this calls for an acquired taste as it didn't exactly appeal to my palate. I had assumed it to be rather spicy. The lamb curry (it had basil leaves in it) was likable. A thumbs up to the glass noodles. Its taste had an edge over regular noodles.

Burmese Curry

The dessert was Khao Niew Sankhaya - a sweetened sticky rice served with coconut custard, made with jaggery. Ended up liking the coconut custard more, as the jaggery helped relate to the famous Bengali desserts of this season.

Overall, a food festival that offered one a peek at the variety of dishes that people in Thailand typically have at this time of the year, as they celebrate Loi Krathong. It would particularly appeal to Thai cuisine aficionados in the city who constantly look for variety. If you have a thing for Thai food, do remember to block a date for Benjarong the time you come to know about their next food festival.

'Bhooter Bhobishyot' - a brief take

Here goes my wall post on Bhooter Bhobishyot on Facebook:

'Bhooter Bhobishyot' is witty, hilarious, a fresh concept and a nice tribute to the Ray brand of humour. Has some super one liners. Go for it!

Would like to add, Paran Bandopadhyay is superb and Saswata Chatterjee lights up the second half as Haat-kata Kartick (once again after his outstanding 'Bob Biswas' in Kahaani).

Wish the film all the very best!

The 'Kahaani' BO magic

Bidya’s BO magic

Loved to read this article in today's Telegraph about Kahaani's rare box office magic in Kolkata and Bengal! Cheers to Sujoy Ghosh & Co. & the entire cast (Specially the Kolkata actors) to make it happen with a shot-in-Kolkata film with a majorly Kolkata cast and a crew partially from the city. Kahaani magic is largely Kolkata magic as well!

Kolkata random 2

by Shreyas Surya DasGupta

Loved this surreal shot by a friend who loves shooting the city in its various moods and moments. Showing a slice of Kolkata 'adda' (The legendary 'chat' by Bengalis) among some senior citizens.

Bhooter Bhobishyot : Srijit's take

Here's Srijit Mukherjee's oven fresh view on Bhooter Bhobishyot on his Facebook wall :

In Tollygunge, we might not have lavish budgets, infinite timelines, never-ending resources and enviable infrastructure, but we do have fantastic actors, superb technicians and most importantly...an incredible storytelling bug. For a milestone comedy cum satire, and one of the wittiest scripts in the recent times, watch Bhooter Bhobishyot!!

The curiosity to check out the new release is on accelerator mode now!

Bhooter Bhobishyot : TOI rating

The Bhooter Bhobishyot poster

Bhooter Bhobishyot gets a **** rating in the Times of India review today. Am all the more keen to check it out at the earliest. Some audience feedback will be fine.

Kahaani : a brief take

In a hurry, but can't help sharing my view on Kahaani briefly. Saw it yesterday. So, here goes my Facebook wall post on the same, slightly edited: 

Kahaani is the Kolkata film made in Hindi that finally hits the bull's eye (after failed attempts like Yuva and Raincoat, and Anjan Dutt's BBD that unfortunately never made it to theatre screens). Highly recommended for all Kolkatans and non-resident Kolkatans and all others who love a story-driven, smartly-made film rich with performances. Sujoy & Co., Vidya and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, you rocked! And proud of you - Param, Kharaj, Shantilal and all other actors from Kolkata. Loved to see Indraneil too, who's more of a Kolkata actor now.

Hope to post a complete review. Watch this space.

The 'Kahaani' we are loving to watch

Couldn't resist this one. Just couldn't. Kahaani has been increasingly generating unprecedented buzz in the city since its last Friday release. Nationally too, I learn, the scene is no different. Predictably so, as Kolkata is not a backdrop, but a well-etched lead character in the film, besides Vidya Balan (Or would 'Bidya' Balan be in the right spirit?). The strong reviews, feedback from friends and colleagues.... all are tempting me to catch it ASAP and post something here. Oh... at last a film with Kolkata featuring prominently in it scores with audience (Didn't like Yuva, the last example of such a film that comes to my mind).

The 'neutral' police administration

It was good to know that the arrogant and foul-mouthed youngster Akash Banerjee was finally arrested in an unusual climax of a not-so-uncommon road drama where he and his friends in a car violated traffic rules yesterday, then abused and assaulted a traffic constable and shoved the traffic police inspector on duty while dropping the name of his famous aunt (father's sister) - none other than the CM of the state - Mamata Banerjee and threatening with grim consequences.

It was great to know that the arrest was at the behest of none other than the CM who was on visit to Darjeeling, and showed good governance in a quick, exemplary action (Though this must be noted that that media had raised its voice about the incident by then). It was indeed a new and welcome experience for people of the state.

But a question remains. Is this the 'neutral' police administration that the CM promised after she took the charge? She has the moral duty to answer (Especially since she heads the home ministry) what precisely led the police to let the brat and his gang walk out of the police station scot-free initially?

Bhooter Bhobishyot - a sneak peek

Loved this funny and witty 'official' sneak peek of Bhooter Bhobishyot - the long-awaited debut film of city-based adman-turned-director Aneek Dutta. It's a funny ghost story with an eclectic ensemble cast, packaged as a sensible entertainer. Very Bengali and contemporary in feel. Looking forward to catch it when it releases sometime in March.

The 'bandh', the attack and the denial

Handful of buses (public and private put together), empty streets tempting enough to play a game of football, closed shops , low turnout at office marked yesterday's bandh (Officially an 'all-India' industrial strike) in the city.

I condemn the attack on the Anandabazar Patrika reporter Subhashis Ghatak and photographer Pintu Mondal by Trinamool hooligans for they dared to cover their ransacking the CPI(M) zonal office in Jadavpur yesterday! Following the brutal attack that could've turned fatal, a Star Ananda reporter Partha Pratim Ghosh was roughed up.

It was SHOCKING to know that a Kolkata Police constable off duty, named Tarak Das, was a prominent member of the Trinamool gang! He was clearly seen in the day-long coverage of the incident on Star Ananda. He is a real star indeed, for all the wrong reasons.

What added to the shock was that the CM rubbished the incident later on! This marks the hat trick of her denial after the recent Park Street and Katwa rape cases. As everybody knows, she was proved wrong by her own department (Police) as the Park Street case was cracked and a few key accused were arrested shortly by a team led by DC (DD) Damayanti Sen.

Didi, please think before you speak (to the media). Please remember you are a CM first, and a party supremo later. You are clearly testing the patience of the electorate who voted your party to power.

The strike : how will it be this time?

Don't know how tomorrow will unfold. The industrial strike called by trade unions incl. CITU hints at clashes between the ruling party and the opposition in the city, as the Trinamool-led government is hell bent at opposing the strike. Had enjoyed defying the last few strikes (called by left organisations, SUCI etc) and enjoyed being at work. Will have to watch out first this time.

Abar Byomkesh

The Abar Byomkesh poster. The second offering of Anjan Dutt's series on one of Bengali's all-time favourite sleuths is releasing this March.

KC gets the first award!

Well, Liebster Blog Award is actually a token of appreciation presented by fellow bloggers in global blogosphere. My heartfelt gratitude to fellow blogger Panu who thought Kolkata Curry was worth making it to the list of 5 blogs she ‘adores’ and giving the award to.

I am a follower of Panu’s blog Presented by P and love reading her smartly written gastronomic experiences in the city.

Here’s my pick for the Liebster Blog Award:

Chakhori Corner by Sreeparna, Jahnavi, Sohini - a Kolkata food blog that reviews eateries of all kind.
Sakagaze by Anindo Sen – a superbly written personal blog. Great writing on cinema.
Presented by P by Panu
Calcutta Chromosome by Diptakirti Chaudhuri – a personal blog by a non-resident Kolkatan-at-heart.
Bong Pen by Tanmay Mukherjee – a humourous blog in Bengali.

Guys, do claim your award and share it on your blogs. Thanks a ton to each of you for delighting and informing me as a reader. Your blogs have the special quality of making me read them frequently off my limited personal online time. Do keep up the good writing and delight your readers.

Here’s what you have to do to claim the award: Copy and paste the blog award (image) on your blog. Also Link back to the blogger who presented the award to you.

You also can
 Present the Liebster Blog Award to 5 blogs of 200 followers or less who you feel deserve to be noticed.
 Let them know they have been chosen by leaving a comment at their blog to check out your award-giving blog post.

Any other blogger who is reading this can do the above too to show the appreciation to the blogs he / she like the most.

Kolkata vintage I

Presenting a selection of pictures I loved from Kanad Sanyal's recent album (Read briefly about him in my second last post Saraswati Puja 2012). The famous Kolkata heritage (Mostly in the north part of the city) was effortlessly captured in his camera while he was out on a weekend trail on the streets of the city he loves.

1. Crossroad at Gossainpara Lane
2. 16 Mohun Banagn Lane
3. At the junction of Kripanath Lane and Shovabazaar Street
4. House of Butto Krishto Paul, the pharamacist at 92B Shovabazaar Street
5. Gossainpara Lane
6. Basu Bati at 65 Baghbazar Street
7. Lohia Maternity Hospital at 296B Rabindra Sarani

The new fbb store

Just noticed that the Pantaloon Shoppe at e-Mall (next to my office building) is closed, and the Future Group has just opened an fbb store (The standalone format stocking the fashion range from Big Bazaar) at the first floor. The fbb store is way bigger than the Shoppe, just had a cursory view from outside. Looking forward to tempting deals from the store.

Saraswati Puja 2012

Glimpses of Saraswati Puja, on 28th January. Captured lovingly by Kanad Sanyal, a photographer by passion and a senior corporate person by profession.

A personal favourite is the shot of four girls. Wearing a basanti-coloured (yellow) cotton saree on this day has been a lovingly preserved custom among girls of all ages till even a few years back. But as Mr Sanyal observed, an invasion of pan-India fashion trends (thanks to daily soaps on national television) is fading it out among adolescent and older girls. I too have spotted this trend in recent years. He loved to see these younger counterparts of theirs holding up the custom in a north Kolkata locality.

The Chinese breakfast

Fulfilled the long-nurtured wish of the Chinese breakfast at Tiretta Bazar. Had read and heard about it enough to take a resolution to sample the fare. This meal is available from early morning till about 8 am, that's what I heard. Hence unless I planned for it or came across an opportunity incidentally, it wouldn't be possible. The latter happened as I went to Howrah station last week to see off my father to Hyderabad. On way back, hopped on to a BBD Bag-bound mini bus and got down at Lalbazar and reached the place in front of Poddar Court, referred to as Tiretta Bazar (Pronounced as 'Teriti Bazar' in Bengali). Walking past it and looking around, I spotted the Chinese selling their almost-legendary stuff on the road.

Tried the meat ball soup. The Chinese woman put two balls and some clear soup from the container with the soup on boil. As I asked for a spoon, the Chinese guy sitting behind directed me to the nearby table placed on the road. Some Chinese youngsters were having the soup on that table standing around it. Joined them and tasted the soup. Liked the spongy meat balls, made of minced chicken. Followed it up with fish dumpling. Both have a fine taste, and are not exactly finger-licking good type. The meat balls tasted better with chili sauce. Enjoyed both. The prices are reasonable. The soup cost Rs 20 and the dumplings Rs 12 each. Momos were also available. Saw another steamed fish preparation called something that sounded 'Fish pao' - a large flat dumpling with minced fish filling. One single piece should be adequately filling for a snack.

Dining at Barbeque Nation

It was a ‘delicious’ conclusion of 2011, thanks to the office lunch at Barbeque Nation, the tandoori speciality restaurant of the well-known national chain at Sector V, Salt Lake on the new year eve. Their offering at the lunch comprises of unlimited kebabs as starters served at individual tables, followed by the main course spread out at the buffet table. The arrangement is the same as Flame n Grill, the tandoori speciality restaurant from the famous Specialty group of Restaurants with chains like Mainland China, Oh Calcutta!, Sigree and others.

Each table has a grill at the centre, which is switched on when guests arrive, whereupon the waiters place the kebab sticks with steaming hot kebabs. One picks them as and when he / she feels like, or turn the stick to avoid burning of the kebabs. There is a flag at each table. The rule is that until a guest puts it down, the waiters will keep refilling the grill.

The non-veg kebabs were Parash Chicken, Sociaty Fish, Pesto Prawns, Lebanese Seek Kebab (Mutton) and Murgh Jeera Tangri (Chicken legs). There’s a complimentary (non-alchoholic) drink too, unlike Flame n Grill (hereafter mentioned as F&G). We chose fresh lime soda. Just like our two office dinner outings at F&G at Park Street, almost all of us in the group kept on gorging the kebabs to the heart’s content, without much of a thought for the main course. In fact many had already decided beforehand to skip it and head straight for the desserts table when they would have had their fill of kebabs.

The kebabs were all yummy and perfectly done. The soft and succulent Sociaty Fish easily topped the charts, closely followed by the juicy Parash Chicken. Taste-wise the kebabs match F&G, only the mutton kebab (Lebanese Seek Kebab) is much better and the fish kebab has a slight edge too. This considering F&G does a really good job with fish kebab. There are six types of not-so-common sauces to go with the kebabs kept on the tables.

The main course was widely laid out with plenty of choices in veg and non-veg, including a variety of salads. After the two F&G experiences where I flew with the tide, I had decided not to go overboard with the kebabs. Now, with limited space in the stomach (How much control can you exercise anyway seeing the kebabs placed before you over and over again?) I first tried the Non-veg Dum Biriyani and the ghosht (a mutton gravy dish), planning to come back later to the Mahi Rezala. The biriyani was good, though not a match to the best in the city (Read Arsalan, Aliah et al). The ghosht was good too. But the rezala put me off royally. Not only that the soup was a mess, they cooked the dish with……..FISH!! And the fish tasted like it was fried not long before being put in the rezala.

At the dessert table a big hit was the hot baby gulab jamuns (slightly larger than kofta balls). Looked like the guys in the group were picking not less than 15 pieces at a time, many topping their ice cream with it. I don’t really have a thing for hot gulab jamun, so it was the firni (in small matkas), a scoop of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and a slice of date walnut cake for me. Wasn’t disappointed. The boss liked the coconut jam cake.

All this at Rs 575 (including taxes)! Value for money indeed for any kebab lover with an average appetite that can take up a reasonable gastronomic challenge.

On service front, F&G has an edge though. The replenishment of the kebabs was a bit slow. The Parash Chicken arrived much later. But you would tend to consider this a minor blemish given the taste of the food, especially the core offering – the kebabs. Barbeque Nation is a definite recommendation.

The new serial novels in Robbar

Loved the two new serial novels by Swapnamoy Chakraborty and Ashok Kumar Mukhopadhyay started in the last issue in Robbar - the complimentary Sunday magazine distributed with Sangbad Pratidin (Read my earlier post No Sunday without Robbar).

Swapnamoy's Holdey Golap starts in 1995 in the AIR office in Kolkata. Aniket, the producer of Health and Science shows, is seriously pondering over letters that regularly come in from remote corners of Bengal bearing sex-related personal queries. He is taking a pathbreaking and one of the boldest ever initiatives to produce a show to address the queries in a place as conservative and archaic as Akashvani.

I like Swapnamoy's writing. He is a leading name among this generation's authors.

Ashok Kumar Mukhopadhyay's Aat-ta Naw-tar Surjyo starts long ago, in 1964, in a village called Joypur, near Mogra in Hooghly district, with the story of a struggling family man - Nibaran Chandra . It has an earthy feel.

Keenly waiting to read the next issue for these two.

You can read the issue online here.

Tandoori Nights on Chakhori Corner

Chakhori Corner: Tandoori Nights (Click to read)

Visited Chakhori Corner - the blog I wrote about a while back (Chakhori Corner - the Kolkata food blog), and came across the latest post on this wonderful restaurant called Tandoori Nights on Hazra Road. The kebab platters are finger-licking good, and a fish kebab platter comprising of ten types of kebab is absolutely unimaginable in a non-5-star set up. It's an understatement to say that the idea itself is great!

Give it a read. You won't be disappointed.

Kolkata random

A breather of a photo post after long. Kolkata as captured (in winter) by young journalist Bidisha Chatterjee. Loved the pictures in her Facebook album Shiter sahor. Bidisha regularly writes in Popcorn, the Friday entertainment pullout of Sangbad Pratidin.

1. Bow Barracks
3. New Market during Christmas
4. Flury's during Christmas
5. Morning at Maidan
6. Morning crickte practice at Maidan
7. Trams in front of Raj Bhawan

The eagerly awaited 'Bedroom' drama

Bedroom games (Click to read)

Loved this kickass two-page coverage of Bedroom in t2. Bedroom - the most eagerly awaited Bengali movie at the moment brings back editor-turned-director Mainak Bhaumik to big screen six long years after his debut in the brilliant Aamra. It flaunts an interesting ensemble cast and a captures a dark, hopelessly honest slice of life, spent in bedroom.

Happy New Year...

Wish all the readers a happy, healthy, professionally and personally fulfilling 2012 with this just unveiled still of Paanch Adhyay - the under-production Bengali film directed by well-known film critic Pratim D Gupta of (of The Telegraph). It's a 'mature love story' (In the director's words as I read in The Telegraph) starring Diya Mirza and Priyanshu Chatterjee. The classily shot photograph reminds me of a famous still from the cult Uttam-Suchitra starrer Saptapadi.

Here's wishing Paanch Adhyay all the best too.

Check out its Facebook page here for regular updates (as promised by Pratim).

'Calcutta Restaurants' Facebook group

Can't wait but write about this hyperactive group on Facebook called Calcutta Restaurants. I discovered this group some months back and reluctantly became a member. Thereafter I began to realise how different it was from the other groups I've been a member of so far.

I dislike many Facebook groups related to a common interest because of their pathetically low activity level. But this one is so refreshingly and excitingly different!

It's a group for the foodies, by the foodies and of the foodies. A foodie member makes a post on his / her food experience, a food picture, a recipe or just a casual post on his / her mood for some particular food or cooking some dish or even shopping for cooking something , or to start a discussion on food. Besides posting images of the dishes the members have at restaurants, the images of dishes they cook are commonly posted. The posts are intensely frequent, and there are super active members who make multiple posts in a day and posts comments to others' posts thus contributing to the ongoing discussion. There are some really thought-provoking discussions one can come across here. The posts are balanced between images and texts. One can get to read some wonderful food experiences, including those by Kaushik Chatterjee, an active member, who is a doctor by profession and a true blue foodie by passion. One more thing I like about the group is that it spans all age groups.

Check out the group here. Would love to know the feedback.

Bawla Baron

Was bowled over by the first song from Aparajita Tumi, Aniruddha Roy Choudhury's upcoming release, on television. Bawla Baron, composed by Shantanu Moitra, written by Anindya Chattopadhyay-Chandril Bhattacharya and sung by Anindya has a beautifully slow pace, has the Anindya-Chandril signature that we loved in Antaheen, and sung in a not-so-Anindyaisque fashion. Shantanu has lived up to the tall expectation after his memorable Antaheen score with this one song at least. Looking forward to the others. The music was released a few days back.

Do share through a comment how you liked the song (Check out the video posted above).

Chicken Roll from Elfin Bar

My foodie eyes had noticed sometime back that Elfin Bar & Restaurant, an old bar on Meredith Street (Near Bentinck Street crossing) frequented by officegoers in CBD had opened a takeaway fast food counter. It mainly sells rolls. Tried its chicken roll the other day. It was better in taste than the ones you get in sundry roll shops around, because of better ingredients, cooking and that it was made with oil instead of vanaspati (which leaves a stickiness on your tongue long after). The prices are regular. The chicken roll cost Rs 20. Would like to come back.

Mutton Handi Kebab at Gypsy

Tried this new dish - Mutton Handi Kebab - at Gypsy - a new restaurant on Chandni Chowk Street (near GC Avenue crossing). I had been craving for some spicy mutton dish for some days, though I had gone there for kebabs. I looked at the photo of the dish once on the menu and ordered it....and didn't regret. It was super yummy!

Mutton Handi Kebab is a spicy and oily dish with small pieces of boneless mutton in very little gravy. At Gypsy they served it with coriander leaves on it. Polished it off with a lachchha paratha, but a naan / butter naan would be a better choice. Priced at Rs 70, it's a tempting deal for any foodie looking for value for money.

Found this picture of handi kebab on the net for putting here as a reference. This was more or less how it looked (Though the dish in the picture is beef).

Gypsy is from the owners of Aminia, the famous Mughlai restaurant at Dharmatala. Kebab seems to be its speciality and it serves them at extremely reasonable prices (within Rs 70-80). It's just a few steps away from Sabir. Am looking forward to try the regular kebabs at Gypsy.

The AMRI Fire

I have little to add on the devastating fire that broke at one of the top and expensive private hospitals (AMRI at Dhakuria) at around 3.30 am that shook the city today. The death toll, rising possibly every hour, reportedly stands at close to 90 now, apparently most of them patients, including many old and immobile. The fire started at the basement and rose up to the second floor.

This is the second biggest fire the city witnessed haplessly after the one at Stephen Court in March 2010!

What I find particularly shocking is that the fire safety of such an advanced institution where people would come to save lives of near and dear ones against hefty expenditure apparently left a lot to be desired! Did they have smoke alarms, I wonder!

As per last update, the CM Mamata Banerjee, who's also the Minister of Health, has cancelled the license of the hospital. Six directors of AMRI (most of them big names in the industry) have been arrested.

This incident has tarnished the goodwill of the AMRI chain (They have another full-fledged hospital in Salt Lake and a newly started maternity and pediatric hospital at Mukundapur on EM Bypass) majorly and the group (Promoted by two leading local business groups - Emami and Shrachi) will have to struggle hard to revive it in the coming years. The healthcare chain expanded remarkably in the last 10 years. Public memory is short in general, but since this is healthcare this nightmare is not going to fade away easily. This incident should also lead to a new benchmark of fire safety standards in private hospitals in Kolkata.

The offenders should receive exemplary punishment in the court of law and the government should leave no stones unturned to do the needful. It's good to know that the CM has vowed the 'harshest punishment possible' for the guilty.

Looking forward to the development that follows.

Two ‘Kachuri’ Experiences

1. Tucked away in Meredith Street, near the Bentinck Street Crossing, is this low-profile, old vegetarian eatery ‘Shivam’s’. It serves a variety of vegetarian fare at down-to-earth prices. It’s my favourite place to eat when I opt for a roti lunch at work and have the time to go out.

Was feeling very hungry post-work last Tuesday evening (the Muharram day). As all the joints I went to were closed, I settled for Shivam’s. Had kachori and alur tarkari (Potato curry). The kachoris were thick and the curry was light, cooked home-style, with less gravy and more potatoes. The curry is markedly different from any other place serving the same food. It was a tasty and filling evening snack with four kachoris (At Rs 16).

Had written about its singara and vegetable chop last year in a tiny post Evening Snacks.

2. This run down telebhaja (Kind of fried Bengali snacks) shop at a dilapidated house at 17 Dixon Lane (Now known as Shahid Sushil Dasgupta Sarani, adjacent to Prachi cinema) is popular for its cheap kachoris. Till two years back or so, it sold kachoris at an unbelievable Re 1 a piece. Went there this morning for kachoris after a long time. The price stands slightly higher at Rs 1.50 a piece now, but the taste is equally good as last time. Keeping with the season, green peas show in the delicious alur tarkari served with the kachori. They also sell jilipi, beguni, alur chop, phuluri, and dhoka among other things.

The Mutton Roll at Anil Saha

When Anil Saha, a businessman experienced in the fast food business opened his roll shop (Named ‘Anil Saha’) next to the extremely popular Kohinoor roll centre in Barrackpore Chiria More in the 90’s, many were apprehensive of its success. It was mostly because of Kohinoor’s popularity.

It didn’t take him long before he proved all wrong with a roaring success. It became one of the hottest roll joints in Barrackpore. It has been one of my favourite local joints since then.

One of its best items is the mutton roll. Full with juicy pieces of soft mutton, cooked in a light gravy (Somewhat home-style), it’s just the way a good mutton roll should be. Making this food is indeed an art that few roll joints even in Kolkata city have mastered. The mutton roll from Anil Saha has been a hot favourite since our student days when it would be considered an occasional indulgence considering the megre pocket money we used to receive from our parents.

Went to the place yesterday with an old friend equally fond of the mutton roll. And we ordered it! And it felt great to experience the same old taste! We felt nostalgic. It costs Rs 35 now, but delivers complete value for money. They make the paratha with white oil, not with vanaspati unlike other roll joints. So there’s no greasy aftertaste caused by vanaspati.

For those interested, it’s located behind Roy Optical which is a well-known optical store right at Chiria More junction, near the island. And anyone around can help with direction.

The toast at Chittababu's Shop

My recent visits to this favourite place after a long gap and savouring their toasts brought me to this post.

There are toasts available in the city (at numerous street shops and small joints) and then there are toasts made at Chittababu’s Shop! I sincerely believe few make toasts as good as Chittababu’s Shop. Crisp and brown at places, with a thin streak of just absorbed butter in the middle and a dash of salt ‘n’ pepper sprinkled over. Umm….pure bliss! This non-descript yet legendary shop at Dacres Lane (at Esplanade East, a few minutes walk from Dharmalata / Esplanade metro station) is the eternal favourite of the large population of local officegoers.

Apart from toasts, the ghughni made at this place is extremely popular and markedly different from the regular stuff you get outside home. The ghughni is darker, thicker and taken with two toasts can make you feel full. The package comes at Rs 14. If you take plain toasts (without butter), that’s preferred by many, it will cost Rs 12. A great alternative to ghughni (with toasts) is the liver curry – small pieces of chicken liver in a mildly spicy vegetable curry can make for a memorable evening snack.

Their tea also stands out and needless to say is preferred by many to pair with toast or round off their evening snacking.

The shop is also famous for its fish fry and stew. There are many other pop picks like fish roll, fish pakora and fish chop. They have also been serving chilli chicken and maybe one or two odd Chinese dishes for some years but that cuisine is definitely not their forte and doesn’t reflect their culinary expertise. I also used to love their chicken pakora. A small pakora with juicy chicken inside, a wee bit sweeter than regular chicken pakoras (because of the filling) would make it outstanding. They would come at just Rs 7 apiece. But on my last visit observed that the pakora has become smaller and the taste wasn’t as good. Is rapidly rising prices the culprit? Would have loved if they priced it at Rs 10 and made it a bit larger, while not compromising on the taste. Was the double-digit price a difficult decision to make? I wonder.

(You may also read my old post Chittababu's Shop).

Chakhori Corner - the Kolkata food blog

I found this blog about Kolkata food called Chakhori Corner some months back. And being a true blue foodie with a strong academic interest on eating out, got hooked to it. Three foodie college girls - Jahnavi, Sohini and Sreeparna - review restaurants on this blog with rating on various parameters comprising decor, cleanliness, service, taste and value for money. Each post mentions portion size (i.e. one portion is ideal for how many heads) and cost of individual dishes and their photographs.

The eateries are mostly in the budget category and spread in south and central Kolkata, across cuisines. The cuisines show in the various labels listed at the right, so you can pick up a cuisine and check out posts on various restaurants reviewed under it.

What I especially like about Chakhori Corner is that it shares a down-to-earth and extremely honest view about the restaurants. The bloggers are not in awe about any place and thus don't get carried away. 'Value for money' is an attribute that is sincerely reflected in all the posts. Hence, apart from being a reliable Kolkata food blog, it's worth trusting for the value conscious and price sensitive Kolkatans. There are reasons that it has more than 100 followers, who I believe, are mostly from the city.

It also lists a few easy-to-do recipes of common Bengali delicacies.

They also have a Facebook page. See it here.

A definite recommendation!

A-1 Haji Fast Food Centre

When this new fast food centre opened in Baguiati (in Ashwini Nagar, near Phoira Bhawan) last year, a lot of locals must have expected to get quality biryani and mutton delicacies, because the name ‘Haji’ is legendary in Kolkata for its quality raw mutton from numerous outlets across the city. It was seen that the mutton roll sold at A-1 Haji Fast Food Centre is cheaper than average. The reason is not a difficult guess, the raw mutton is in-sourced.

Soon after it was opened, it was a hit in the area. Food flies off the counter in the evening.

Had brought its biryani to a reception at home last week. Must say I was impressed with the quality. Post a ‘genuinely’ positive feedback from the guests, when I started on the biryani it wasn’t exactly hot. But it was yummy. The mutton was succulent. Yes, it was a little rich, but that’s fine. Even after eating to my heart’s content there wasn’t any uneasiness.

The prices are quite reasonable. Let’s look at some of the items : Mutton biryani sells at Rs 70, special mutton biryani Rs 110 (with 2 pieces of mutton and a larger quantity of rice), chicken biryani Rs 65, special chicken biryani Rs 100, chicken chaap Rs 50, mutton kassa Rs 70 (full) and Rs 35 (half), chicken kassa Rs 60 (full) and Rs 30 (half), special masala tikia Rs 20, chicken roll Rs 20, mutton roll Rs 22, special tikia roll Rs 17 and chicken boti kabab Rs 60 (There’s no mutton variety).

Hope to explore its mutton roll and other dishes.

For those more interested to check it out, it’s located at HC1 Ashwini Nagar, Baguiati, Kolkata 59, and can be reached at 32562688.

The 'Fitted' Fashion

Went to Big Bazaar last Sunday to pick up a t-shirt. I last bought a t-shirt quite a few years ago.

Picked up a turquoise blue round neck and went into the trial room. And…did not like the fit at all. It was making my thirties stomach bulge (an office bulge to be precise, the average one you have thanks to sitting long hours at the desk) too prominent. It was a close fit. Thought of changing to a dark colour that has the ‘hiding’ quality. Tried a dark grey, but the fit of the large size (which is my size) still left a lot to be desired. The bulge wasn’t showing much because of the dark colour, but not that it couldn’t be noticed at all. Finally I had to pick up an XL for the fit to be acceptable. Something I have never had to do ever in my life.

The experience in the trial room gave me a hard realization that this in an age of the fitted fashion as far as western clothes are concerned. If it’s fashionable, it’s got to be fitting. T-shirts to shirts, all follow your contour, and some of them do it closely (the body fit). Yes, you are a bit relieved with short shirts that are a bit loose (unless you are grossly out of shape). In our younger times, it was different. T-shirts were loose, and shirts were looser. When not tucked in, shirts looked shapeless. So unless one was absolutely out of shape he wouldn’t need to be much careful about the fit. Cut to today’s times, those who are conscious about how they look in clothes need to be extra careful about the fit.

A fun question

Met a colleague on another's invitation last Sunday evening. He was dressed in a nice, long burnt orange kurta and faded blue jeans. We discussed how his teenage son keeps borrowing his clothes and footwear as he (the son) feels like. There's another colleague who is often teased by us for often wearing his teenage son's tees to work.

Both guys are in their forties and in reasonably good shape for their age. And they are fine exchanging (or letting the son borrow) clothes with their children. There must be many like them in the city. Which brings me to the question : Are their many women in the city too who exchange clothes (no, not saree) with their daughters?

Calcutta Times : The Saturday Avatar

Needed to put in this clarification after my two recent posts : The New Calcutta Times on October 8 and Calcutta Times : a put off after a great hope on October 10.

Well, it's permanent. And it's ONLY on Saturday. On Saturdays, Calcutta Times is donning this exciting tabloid avatar. Apart from familiar sections it has a cover story. The interviews are also structured differently, with more pictures and text boxes, to suit the tabloid format. Loved the interview of the actor brothers Gaurav and Arjun Chakraborty (Of Gaaner Opare fame), also known as the sons of the well-known actor couple Sabyasachi Chakraborty and Mithu Chakraborty, on the October 29 edition (See the cover in picture).

Looking forward to the Saturdays for one more reason!

(Picture sourced from The Times of India e-paper)

A nip in the air

There is a nip in the air....and the mind (the body too) is ready to embrace the season (despite the ongoing bout of flu). The sun is mellow, and inviting us to find more occasions to go out and feel it. And yes......food beckons ...vegetable chop, phulkopir singara, koraishutir kachuri , hot momos, stews and soups..nolen gurer sandesh, gurer rosogolla ...and much, much more as the body is prepared for a long and varied gastronomic journey ahead.

Enjoy Kolkata!! And drop your take on the above, especially your favourite winter foods.

A milestone

Am absolutely loving to share with you, the KC readers, that KC has just crossed 60,000 page views. Considering the count is since its birth in May 2006, that's close to 1000 page views a month! And that's pretty good by the standards of an Indian blog.

Thank you readers from the core of my heart, for visiting. Special thanks go to the followers of this blog. Hope it makes their following KC more worthwhile.

Keep visiting and keep contributing through comments, suggestions, info on and pictures of this lovely city. Hope to have a long journey together.

The Date with Tin Tin

After a fairly long time I’m keenly awaiting a Hollywood movie. Tin Tin, one of the favourite comic strip heroes of our generation, that grew up in the seventies and eighties, is coming back with a bang to the celluloid after almost four decades of his last screen outing.

The iconic comic strip by Herge (as he was popularly known) from Belgium, was first published in Bengali among all Indian languages. Two pages of the adventures of Tin Tin was a permanent feature of Anandamela- the popular fortnightly children’s magazine from the ABP group, and it was the first thing that I would invariably check out immediately after grabbing a new copy. The comic strip stayed as Anandamela went through a transformation over time, including converting to the regular size from a small size (that of a regular book) that is my first memory of the magazine and Tin Tin as well.

I followed Tin Tin, a young, boyish-looking reporter with a golden tuft that was sort of his brand identity, having a penchant for cracking mysteries, through his series of adventures that took him through various places across globe from desserts to the land of Red Indians, and even moon. He and his dog Snowy were often accompanied in the adventures by Captain Haddock, the hardcore mariner with an amusingly colourful vocabulary. And the duo would often come across Professor Calculus, the semi-deaf inventor whose famous line was ‘More to the west’, and the twin detectives Thompson and Thompson known for messing up things more than solving cases. To make it suit the language, especially the school-going readers, Snowy was called Kuttus and the detective duo Johnson and Rohnson in Anandamela, and later in the Bengali edition of Tin Tin books published by Penguin. Tin Tin sailed across many incredibly challenging and life-threatening situations by virtue of his quick wit and vast knowledge.

The attraction of the movie in question, apart from the fact that it is largely a 3D-animation-based (with actors playing the famous characters besides a completely animated, perfect-looking Snowy), hence a smarter version unlike the previous ones, and that the pirate villain is played by Daniel Craig, is that it is directed by none other than the great Steven Spielberg, a self-confessed Tin Tin buff. Fate came between him and his dream movie for a few decades before he filmed ‘The Adventures of Tin Tin : The Sectret of the Unicorn’ (about a sunken treasure in a huge ship named Unicorn, one of my favourite Tin Tin adventures) that is releasing worldwide in phases now. It has released first in Belgium, the country of Herge, and where Tin Tin is a national icon, on 26th October, followed by other European countries, Asia, Africa, the Australia continent and finally in North and Latin America through December ’11 – January ‘12. It is releasing across India on November 11.

Can’t wait to set a date with my childhood hero after November 11!! Am sure, scores of Kolkatans who have been avid Tin Tin readers in their younger years are feeling as nostalgic or more. Would also like find it out for myself how the young reporter fares on celluloid in the age of famous big screen versions of Spiderman, Batman and Harry Potter.

Pictures : 1. Tin Tin & Snowy from the comics, 2. The movie poster of 'The Adventures of Tin Tin : The Sectret of the Unicorn' and 3. Tin Tin and Captain Haddock from the movie.

Dining at Anand

Had heard a lot about Anand - the south Indian cuisine restaurant - a lot before I moved to my new workplace in April 2011 at Chandni Chowk where it is located. Naturally I was keen to check it out thereafter.

By now I have been there a couple of times, and I love their long and perfectly crisp masala dosa which has a lightly cooked potato filling, and the mixed uttapam too. The sambhar particularly appeals to me. The sambhar and coconut chutney are refilled whenever required, without call, and at no extra cost. The service is quick, and if you order dosa it's the quickest. The dishes are priced at just a small premium. A masala dosa comes close to Rs 50 (without VAT). The lassi is good too, and I guess the other south Indian items that I haven't tried are more or less similarly good in taste.

They serve north Indian dishes (Like chana batora, chaats etc) too.

Naturally the air-conditioned joint is a favourite among officegoers in the CBD. Be prepared to wait for some time at lunch hour though the sitting capacity isn't small.

What many may not know is that Anand makes good veg pizzas too. It was recommended by my foodie boss and I vouch for that after tasting two varieties. And they are much inexpensive considering the quality. Wish to taste their mushroom pizza some day.

A feat at CMRI

Here's a friend's post on Facebook (My additions are in bold):
CMRI (Calcutta Medical Research Institute), Kolkata rejoined 4 severed fingers of a 3-year old girl (from Ghatal, in Bengal) in a 8-hour long operation on 13th October 2011. Congrats docs! She's expected to recover fully in about 6 months.

A few years ago doctors at the same hospital successfully rejoined the severed hands of a factory worker from Hooghly who carried his own limb to the hospital wrapped in a plastic bag.


Take a bow, docs at CMRI, for your magic on limbs!!

Sandesh from Nakur

The client treated with two varieties of sandesh from Nakur Chandra Nandy, the famous sweet shop near Hedua, on occasion of Bijoya. Nakur's sandesh is legendary and a bite into the soft (Naram pak variety) chocolate sandesh was ample proof of that. As the liquid chocolate came out of its core, it felt heavenly. It's difficult to stop at one even for someone without a sweet tooth like me (also considering I'm watching my diet these days). The other one, a regular ‘Naram pak’ sandesh, was great too.

Calcutta Times : a put off after a great hope

Unfortunately Calcutta Times was back to its old broadsheet avatar on Sunday, October 9 (Re: My last post The New Calcutta Times) and it continues today. The hope for a proper tabloid-style avatar, giving t2 a run for its money, crashed.

The new Calcutta Times

The brand new tabloid size avatar of Calcutta Times was a pleasant surprise this morning. Am loving it! Noticed that it is now talking to its readers directly (Like "We'll let the photo speak" or "We're ready to insure it"), just like t2 does it.

Loved the naughty cover story on the most 'insurable' assets of the beauties of Bangla film industry.

t2, you have serious competition now. The Kolkata tabloid scene looks set to be more exciting!

(Picture sourced from The Times of India e-paper)

Pujo 2011

It was decently spent. Through pandal-hopping at Barrackpore (checked out the first theme Puja - known to me- there), home-cooked mutton curry on Nabami, Salt Lake Pujas and Kakurgachhi-Sribhumi-Lake Town Pujas.

Didn't find the idols impressive this year. The patterns were too common, except for a bit of innovation like Lake Town Pradip Sangha (Conceived by Artist Prashanta Pal), and Salt Lake FD block (just the sheer size, all of 51 feet). The leading trend was the Jamini Roy-influenced style. I felt that the attention of the Puja organisers has drifted from the idol, (very unlike what it was in the 90's) and set on attracting huge footfall with newer and sensational themes in pandal. Some 'arty' idols were pretty small in size, rivaling a Saraswati idol one sees at the time of Saraswati Puja. Didn't find a single memorable face among the idols, and sorely missed the traditional angry face of Durga.

The auto rickshaws, of great help during pandal-hopping, made a killing, fleecing the vulnerable passengers. I was charged Rs 15 (the regular fare is Rs 8) for Ultadanga to City Centre and an incredible Rs 20 for Baishakhi to Ultadanga (More than double the fare). Was so irritated in the latter case that I refused to pay in change initially.

Didn't also find anything new in the street food, except for the Fruity Freeze range of Rollick ice creams. Had the Daab Malai flavour. Innovative and good in taste, but wish they used more of green coconut pulp instead of a mix of the same and coconut with the ice cream. The price (Rs 30 a single scoop) was exorbitant too! The rest was the same, routine roll-phuchka-ghughni-bhel puri-papri chaat-chowmein and ice cream. With an increasing number of cuisines on offer in the restaurants, it was time Kolkata expanded it's street food offerings too!

'Baishe Srabon' outside Bengal

Good to know (from Srijit Mukherjee's wall post and Prosenjit's tweet) that Baishe Srabon is having a simultaneous release today in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. Certainly one of the best Puja gifts for the true-blue Bangalees there. Enjoy!

The Desh short stories number

Bought the just-released Desh stort stories issue. Read Sangeeta Bandopadhyay's Dushtu Mishti first, and loved it (And told her so on Facebook!). It's a humane take on a relationship between a single woman and her pug.

Would love to come back here to talk more on the issue. Looks like a nice, small Puja gift from Desh!

The yummiest Mishti Doi

Posted a question on my Facebook wall to do an informal poll among friends : Who makes the yummiest 'Mishti Doi' in the city?. My vote went to Ganguram.

The result (Based on a few comments) is skewed towards Ganguram. And there was a small insight too. Many of us like the Mishti Doi from our neighbourhood sweet shops.

I don't have a sweet tooth. I have started having sweets on my own (i.e. not when treated by somebody) much late in life. In my late twenties. Still I am not much fond of Mishti Doi. I rather like the sour version when made at home. I didn't like the legendary Amrito's Mishti Doi. I've never been displeased with the transition of Mishti Doi to ice cream at marriage receptions and other similar occasions. But I found this dessert at Ganguram's different.

A foodie colleague treated me with Ganguram's Mishti Doi. And I loved it. It doesn't have a so called crust that's so much sought after by the Mishti Doi fans. It's the same at the top and bottom. Not too sweet or thick.

Oh, about the poll. The votes went to Mithai and Banchharam among the well-known brands of Kolkata. And the local ones include Shree Durga Mishtanna Bhandar in Behala and Ashesh Sweets in Barasat.

The poll can continue here. What's your pick as the 'Yummiest Mishti Doi in Kolkata'?

The sandwich at Just Baked

Loved the chicken sandwich at Just Baked, at lunch today. At Rs 30, it is at a 50% higher rate than Monginis, with a taste, rich with generous dose of mayonnaise, that better.

Was tempted to have the chocolate walnut brownie as well (which is really good here!), but resisted for taking in too many calories (am on a diet watch before Puja).

A Facebook post

Sanghita Chatterjee, a freelance writer and jewellery designer, and a Facebook friend of this blogger has made a wall post I couldn't resist sharing here (post a chuckle):

I love you with all my heart...but my butt is bigger.

The Baishe Srabon soundtrack

Kolkata seems to be hooked to Gobhire jao, aaro gobhire jao ever since the Baishe Srabon trailer made it to the virtual world, and especially after the August 27 music release.

Apart from this Rupankar song, Ekbar bol nei, tor keu nei, keu nei - written, composed and sung by Anupam is also catching on fast.

Liked the Anupamesque flavour (As a dear friend put it) in both the songs. Looking forward to the other songs from the Baishe Srabon soundtrack, written and composed by Anupam with voices like Rupam, Shreya, Raghab, Anindya and Saptarshi (Who sung the other version of Beche thakar gaan in Autograph). Hope Anupam lives up to his Autograph fame and grows with this film as a competent music director. His two songs (Written and composed) in Autograph are still so popular that they get featured in Friends FM weekly top 10 after nearly a year of their release. Had also loved Anupam's Bariye dao tomar haat and Classroom from Chalo Paltai, released earlier this year, that marked his debut as a full-fledged music director.

The aquatic meet

The annual aquatic meet at Lake Town Swimming Pool Association drew a huge number of members starting from small kids, and enthusiastic guardians on 4th September, Sunday morning.

It was cute to see teachers in the water helping 3-4 year olds in finishing their freestyle lap in the mini pool. This category didn't have winners. Each participant was given a medal, which was a nice gesture on the club's part.

The swimming den draws huge number of swimmers and swimming aspirants, being the best in the business in North-East Kolkata. The fees are reasonable. It sports two well-maintained pools - one main pool and one mini pool (for kids). Many members participate in competitive swimming at various levels.

Rituparno on Twitter

Yes, Rituparno Ghosh has joined the Twitterverse in the middle of this August. No, it's NOT a fake profile, because his tweet has been carried in t2, and also evident from his tweet exchanges with well-known Twitterfolks. Logged on to Twitter rightaway after I read his tweet in t2 today and followed him. Am interested in Twitter again after long for his tweets. Hope he stays regular

A big 'Thank you' to t2 for publishing his tweet.

Uro Chithi

Loved Uro Chithi - the August '11 film sporting an ensemble cast, by debutant Kamaleswar Mukherjee.

It's a story of one year in the life of techie Aniket caught in rough weather during the last recession - capturing abut various people in his life. The ensemble cast with Indraneil (the protagonist), Saswata, Sudipta, Rudranil, Biswanath (The surprise package), Sreelekha, Biswajit, Locket, Reshmi, Tanusree and others is spot on. Everyone was just perfect for their roles. Tight script, good storytelling, superb performances and good music make it a recommendation.

Waited long for Uro Chithi. And it was worth it! Loved the doctor-turned-adman-turned-director Kamaleswar's dialogue (especially the witty one liners) in Natobor Not Out last year. Looking forward to his next work.

Iti Mrinalini disappoints

Yesterday I watched the film I so eagerly and frustratingly awaited all this while……only to find it wasn’t worth the wait! Sheer disappointment!

It is far, far from Aparna's best work. And sad for we the audience that it came right after The Japanese Wife.

I expected a close look at Mrinalini’s careergraph, her path to success, her exit. There hasn’t been a worthy film on the life of a lead actress of Bengali cinema in the 70′s (while we have a Nayak) and I expected Iti Mrinalini to fill that void. But Iti.. showed Mrinalini at work only as reference points for sketching her personal life. And top of all, she’s shown to work mostly in Siddhartha Sarkar’s (The character of a leading, commercially successful director, played by Rajat Kapoor, in Anjan Dutta's voice) films. Utterly ridiculous!!

Not that the film DOES NOT HAVE redeeming qualities. The performances - Konkona, Kaushik Sen, Rajat, Ananya Banerjee (the older Sohini) - are first rate. Kaushik's talent is well-known, but his Chintan Nair will stay in audience memory for long. The music, especially the title track by Srikanto Acharya (Based on Sunil Gangopadhyay's poem) is good, and the cinematography by the late Somak Mukhopadhyay is outstanding.

I loved the ruthlessly honest 'personal' take of Pratim D. Gupta on the film (The link : http://moifightclub.wordpress.com/2011/08/01/iti-mrinalini-koko-channel-in-rina-rut/#comment-5884).

Life in Metro : 3 - The 'Smart' commuter

Every daily commuter was waiting for this for a painfully long time. The new Smart Card from Kolkata Metro. The authorities stopped issuing the current avatar of Smart Card long back, forcing the daily commuters to stand in painfully long queues or buy multi-ride tickets. Now, multi-riders come with their own reality, which is not palatable.

So, when the paperless travel (Switch from magnetic paper ticket to plastic tokens) was kicked off in July '11, the subsequent announcement of fresh issue of 'Smart' cards caught many like me, who suffer long queues every morning and haplessly count the no. of trains passing by before we reach the counter, in great enthusiasm. Mine was higher as I haven't ever possessed one.

The expected date of launch was missed at least once, just like the launch of the token system. Finally the newspaper report yesterday brought the day in striking distance. Metro counters for smart cards opened yesterday itself.

Changed my route midway today after dropping my elder daughter to school at Sealdah. Travelled back to get down at Dum Dum, my stop for the daily metro ride to Chandni Chowk. The queue (only for smart cards) was as long as that of regular tickets any other day. But, fine, it was going to be the last pain before a long relief. Quickly took down the 'Must know' info of a smart card from fellow commuters, and ended up at the counter after a wait of 35 minutes. Bought the long desired object costing Rs 100 (with an usage value of Rs 120 and a validity of 30 days). Aahhhh.....life in Kolkata Metro will be different now.