Would you have heard of Bortir Bil in Barasat or Berir Baor in Bongaon, Joypur Forest in Bankura, or Chandraketugarh in South 24-Parganas? Never to suggest that they are places not worth noting. The first is a prized wetland, the second has an oxbow lake and the third is a forest near Bishnupur village. As for Chandraketugarh, it boasts of a mound that dates back to the Graeco-Roman period.
But cities have their patches of amnesia as well as their rationale for remembering.
One reason for the recent awakening to the larger bounty of Bengal would be... pre-wedding shoots.
Sudarshana Ganguly, a resident of Khardah, says, “Growing up, we always thought of Bortir Bil more as an unkempt, abandoned field. It’s not that people didn’t visit the place, but the place was dank, waterlogged and full of mosquitoes. So I was quite surprised when I saw brides-to-be shooting pre-wedding reels there.”
Yes, pre-wedding shoots have been around for a while now. Those who can afford it will head out for a fort in another state or a hill station with colonial architecture, or the ghats of Benares. Those who can afford more will go even further — Paris, Tuscany, Rome, the jungles of Madagascar. But a good chunk of the middle class has decided that they too want destination shoots. And that is how, dictated only by the size of their pockets, brides and grooms-to-be have turned ambassadors of Bengal’s hidden gems.
The Archaeological Survey of India or ASI tag might be a draw in some cases, even if only to suggest old, and therefore of a certain historic value. The state tourism department too tries to promote many spots, but nothing draws in tourists better than a full day vlog or video blog of a bride swaying with her partner to Hemanta Mukherjee’s Olir O Kotha Sune in a dinghy on the Hooghly, or running through the halls of Bari Kothi in Murshidabad in slow motion in a shot fashioned after something you would have seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas.
G.M. Kapoor, who is director of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage, Calcutta, says, “I like how these young people are highlighting our heritage sites.”
Jayanta Sengupta, who is the director of the Alipore Museum, says, “I see nothing wrong with it unless they are trespassing into a no-photography zone.” He goes on to explain that “no-photography” rules do not quite work in favour of museums and tourist sites the way people once thought they would. “When people see these places on social media, they too want to come and visit. It works almost as a promotion.”
Prinsep Ghat, College Street, Coffee House, Victoria Memorial Hall, old houses of north Calcutta, Eco Park and Kumartuli are some of the popular spots. Sreeja Bhattacharya had her pre-wedding shoot in a slew of locations — Bagbazar Ghat, Kumartuli, Sarada Mayer Bari, old lanes and houses of north Calcutta, Victoria Memorial Hall and even Park Street on Christmas Eve. When asked what made her want to do such an elaborate photoshoot with professional photographers, Sreeja smiles and says, “sakh”. A Bengali word suggesting aspiration, with a dollop of romance.
“Back in 2016-2017, maybe two or three couples would opt for a pre-wedding shoot,” says photographer Anindya Saha. “Now, almost everyone is doing it.”
“People are not just looking for picturesque sights. They want to tell a story,” says Manoj Kumar Kar, who is also a photographer. “If they first met at the bookfair or the Tollygunge metro station, they want to do their shoot there,” he says.
When Shraddha and Suniti shot their pre-wedding video, they only had each other in mind. Suniti serenades his bride as they walk down north Calcutta streets or mock chase each other in the Maidan. “We wanted to revisit all those places where we used to go on dates,” says Shraddha.
Yugal and Sumiran came from Ranchi to Calcutta to get their pre-wedding shoot done. Nilanjan Das, their videographer, says, “We have chosen Mallick Ghat and the lanes around Kumartuli for the shoot and we will end it in Maidan.”
Kar adds, “Earlier, the Bengali middle class felt a little inhibited in displaying such intimacy before getting married; if they even took such photos, they would dare not show anyone. Now, thanks to social media, people are more at ease in front of the camera.”
Dilip Moira, who has worked as a photographer at Golden Photo Studio in Jadavpur since 1998, says, “Even 20 years ago, young men and women used to come to our studio after getting married. A photograph against the backdrop of a shikara on Dal Lake or some such.”
Nowadays, pre-wedding photos double as e-invites, or are worked into venue decoration and wedding announcement posts — months before the actual wedding.
Those with a bigger budget rent out heritage houses such as the Laha Bari and Burdwan Raj Bari. And sometimes, to save on rent, couples show up at their friends’ houses in north Calcutta. Satyajit Dey, one of the trustees of the Laha Bari in north Calcutta, says, “We get clients from different financial backgrounds.”
As for Bortir Bil, according to Sudarshana, the place is better maintained nowand the boatmen are also making a good living, thanks to the new trend.