Winter picnics in Kolkata were once an event that demanded planning, coordination and excitement that stretched across days. Families discussed menus for weeks and finalised a venue. Today, that world is slipping away. Most Kolkatans say tight schedules and scattered families have weakened the culture of spending an entire day outdoors with loved ones.
Nuclear families, lesser enthusiasm
Many feel that the disintegration of joint families has been a major reason for this shift
Singer Soumita Saha said, “The picnic tradition has thinned out so much that even gatherings with friends rarely resemble the picnics of earlier years. People now prefer vacations or short brunches. The joy of small things is getting hard to seek.”
Ahead of a grand picnic, someone would book the bus. Someone else would be in charge of procuring raw ingredients. Elderly members packed oranges, sandwiches and homemade muffins. On the morning of the picnic, every household buzzed as baskets were filled, blankets rolled up and food was prepared or packed. The venue was usually a riverside patch, a quiet farmhouse on the outskirts or a relative’s sprawling garden. By the time the group reached the spot, the day had already taken on the glow of a small festival.
Some families have held on to their ritual with determination
Many also feel that the disintegration of joint families has been a major reason for this shift. Former journalist Arup Chanda said, “The old fabric of family bonding has dissolved and food-filled drinking sessions among friends have replaced the wholesome picnics of the past.”
Some families have held on to their ritual with determination. Home chef Jayeeta Ghosh says her in-laws host a picnic every year on Dashami. “The entire extended family gathers, contributes to the food and arranges catering,” she said. Everyone looks forward to it but she agrees that such traditions are becoming rare.
For many like Ayon Bhattacharya, a resident of Birbhum, the shift feels even more permanent. “Our childhood memories of picnics will only exist and be seen in fairytale books in the years to come. Now it has become a juxtaposition of a drawing party done outdoors,” he said.
A 200-year-old house and a day-long celebration: Rohit Raj’s memory of Patihal
A scene from a family picnic of Dwarik and Grandsons
Rohit Raj Ghosh, fifth-generation owner of Dwarik and Grandsons, remembers his family picnic with deep nostalgia. “I miss our family picnics. It was the typical big fat Bengali joint family picnic,” he said. Every year, the meeting point was their Sovabazar home, from where cousins from across the city gathered to leave for their almost 200-year-old ancestral house at Patihal in Howrah.
“It was strictly restricted to the yearly Harishabha and Annakuth celebrations,” he recalled. Breakfast was always the same comforting spread of koraishutir kochuri, alur dum, boondi and gurer makha sondesh. The courtyard built for Harishabha celebrations turned into their cricket pitch, hosting endless rounds of one-drop-one-hand matches. Mothers and aunts joined in cheerful badminton games while keeping an eye on bundled-up children who were warned about the winter chill.
Lunch at the house
Lunch arrived late in the afternoon and was served in two batches, vegetarian and non-vegetarian. “The lunch menu comprised traditional rice, dal, shukto, topshe maach from our pond and the traditional mutton curry. Everything was cooked on a charcoal burner by the caretaker Rajani da, his wife Pratima and the women of the family,” he said. After lunch came an Antakshari session and a dance round where his cousin and father showed off their moves.
As the evening grew colder, hurricane lamps lit up the courtyard. Departure was marked by phoolkopir singara and hot tea. “We really miss those golden days,” he said.