While dazzling malls and hypermarkets push and shove for space, a new voice of rejuvenation greets old Calcutta at the dawn of 2009. While some argue that Park Street remains as vibrant as ever, others feel that Calcutta’s soul street has lost its sheen. To reverse this trend, Celebrate Park Street, a year-long initiative, has been taken up by Society for Park Street Rejuvenation (SPARK). A part of the Great Kolkata Shopping Festival presented by Anandabazar Patrika, the three-day-long Park Street Carnival was its first public display, celebrated from January 2 to January 4.

Day One:

The carnival kick-started with an Art Camp — Park Street Canvas at Allen Park, inaugurated by commissioner of police Gautam Mohan Chakrabarti, who painted a few strokes on a canvas. For mood music, there was Sumit Roy and his band belting out original compositions like Life is Like a Canvas, We Are All Painters and The Magic of Park Street, all with a jazz twist.

Keshav Roy, Beena Pradhan, Partha Bhattacharjee, Samir Paul, Rabin Mondal and Sanjib Sen were among the 12 artists who recreated Park Street on canvas for an exhibition-sale on January 4 at The Park, part of the proceeds of which would go towards the rejuvenation project.

The musical evening at Allen Park had minister of tourism Manabendra Mukhopadhyay lighting the lamp as he wished “new glory” to the “pavements of frustration and dreams”. Recalling “fond memories” of walking the streets as a young boy with “little money in his pocket”, the minister pledged financial and infrastructure support to the venture.

U.S. Consul General Beth Payne, who has been “adopted into the neighbourhood”, was also present at the event and called it a “fabulous effort”. Park Street stalwart of the past four decades Usha Uthup, jazzman Louis Banks and Don Saigal and Band had the audience in raptures while Hip Pocket added a dash of the new.

Day Two:

The morning started at Oxford Bookstore for a two-day urban design seminar. Flagged off by mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya, the seminar saw heated discussions on viable restoration plans of heritage structures like the Queen’s Mansion and Park Mansion, as well as the Archbishop’s residence, The Park and Flurys in the modern perspective. Landscaping possibilities, with potted urns beautifying the sidewalks and ways of reducing the visual clutter by removing billboards were all on the agenda. A facelift for Park Street Cemetery and recreating Allen Park as a showcase for tropical bio-diversity were also discussed.

“This is a long-term, multi-disciplinary, multi-decision task involving planning at various levels. To keep the spirit of the rejuvenation drive alive, once every month we will celebrate Park Street,” said Supriyo Nandy, a member of SPARK. Attended by Usha Uthup, Beth Payne, sociologist, historians and economists, the seminar was intended to be a pilot project for similar future efforts in other parts of Calcutta.

That evening, the Carnival swung back to sound, with musical performances by Usha Uthup at Trincas and The Saturday Night Blues Band playing at Someplace Else.

However, a scheduled youth forum and street performance had to be cancelled due to unrest on the streets as a result of the crackdown on banned two-stroke autos.

Day Three:

The final day of the carnival saw the 12 artists showcasing their impressionistic representations of Park Street at The Park’s Galaxy Room. Calcutta’s cityscape in general and rickshaws in particular were the muses for most of the acrylic, pen & ink and charcoal-on-canvas pieces. Architectural artist Keshav Roy’s abstract spatula pieces with rickshaws in black and white offset with a dramatic dash of red, Beena Pradhan’s riotous colours and Suvro Chakraborty’s Jesus Christ in soft contours were some of the works on display. About six paintings were sold and two were auctioned.

Good art was followed by good music with Usha Uthup and the Sami sisters belting out I Believe in Music and Can’t Help Falling in Love.

though a low-key affair, the carnival made it clear that whatever its name — Mother Teresa Sarani or Park Street — this is one artery that leads straight to every Calcuttan’s heart.

Ipshita Nandi
Pictures by Rashbehari Das and Amit Datta