Seven to seventy, Bengalis love their fish and what can be more tempting than hilsa? The sea of people on the first two days of Ebong Ilish, presented by t2 and City Centre at the Salt Lake and New Town malls, was ample proof of that. And joining Calcuttans were foodies from Kerala to the Caribbean Islands, some tasting the delicacy for the first time and others renewing their love affair with the queen of fishes

“Egulo shob amar jonyo,” declared four-year-old Sounak Basu as his father Saugata Basu placed orders for Ilisher Mukhapriya Biryani from The Rose (Viand) at City Centre Salt Lake

Two-year-old Deepraj Majumder surprised his parents by gobbling it all up by himself at City Centre New Town. “We generally have to feed him at home but today he ate rice with Ilish Bhapa all by himself. We were surprised to see him use a spoon!” smiled proud mommy Sudipta

Shaun and Nathalie from the UK spent the last day of their week-long holiday in Calcutta tasting an array of hilsa preparations. “I loved the Ilish Bhaja. It reminded me of this Caribbean fish called Carite,” said Shaun, at City Centre New Town

Age is no bar for a fish-ista! Mintu Sett, 73, came all the way from Sodepur to City Centre Salt Lake to relish the ilish experience. The grand old lady camped in front of Prince Restaurant’s stall with friends and family and dug into Ilish Paturi, Ilish Biryani, Kochupata Diye Ilish and Doi Ilish. “The paturi is the best,” she voted

Diana Barjoveanu decided to get some items packed. “For now, I am enjoying the Tiramisu from Cafe Swiss. It is fantastic,” smiled the Romanian based in the US, at the Salt Lake mall

Sayantan Roy, a senior manager with an insurance company, and wife Atreyee Das Roy, a fashion designer, gorged on some ilish before boarding the Chennai Express with King Khan at City Centre 2. “Being a bangal, what can be better than having ilish with rice?” asked Atreyee

Cecilia Kingston has been living in the city for decades but had never tried hilsa before Saturday. “I never dared to try it but today my sister egged me on and here I am having Kochu Shak with Ilish Head and Bhapa Ilish from Raajbarir Khawa. I am loving it,” said Cecilia, busy deboning her fish at the Salt Lake mall

Asha Das, a first-year BSc student at St. Paul’s Cathedral Mission College, had come shopping with her parents to City Centre 2 but could not resist the aroma of ilish wafting in the monsoon air. “We swear by ilish. It’s a wonderful idea to have an ilish festival, it gives us an opportunity to try out different preparations,” Asha said

This father-daughter duo had a date with ilish at Salt Lake. Their top pick? “The Ilish Bhapa with Steamed Rice from Raajbarir Khawa,” said KK Ganguly as Kasaurina nodded her approval

The rain could not stop Debojit Ghosh and son Mayukh from enjoying a “fishy” afternoon, umbrella in one hand and a plate of Ilish Biryani from Raajbarir Khawa in another, with Mayukh more than happy to feed his dad for a change. “This is just the beginning. We would like to try out at least one dish from each stall,” Debojit said at the Salt Lake mall

Mini and Anjali Jayan from Cochin were at the Salt Lake address to shop for their sari boutique when they decided to try a “new fish” from Bengal. “We loved it. It is similar to Karimeen that we cook with mustard and coconut paste and steam-wrapped in plantain leaves,” said the mother as the daughter relished the new-found delicacy

Text: Sibendu Das and Malancha Dasgupta

Pictures: Rashbehari Das, B. Halder and Anindya Shankar Ray