It’s Always a Wonderful Christmas in Kolkata

For a long, long time, the City of Joy has been emblematic of a curious collection of innately Bengali things. The sweetness of the rosogolla, the melody of Rabindra Sangeet and the incomparable beauty and fervor of Durga Puja. You hear of these and you know Calcutta is the subject of conversation.

While that’s accurate, it isn’t the be all and the end all. Calcutta is a veritable mix of December madness too. But very few people outside of the city think of Christmas as an inherently Calcuttan celebration – a day of as much joy and merriment as say any day of Durgotsav. But if you’ve lived here long enough, you’ll know that it is.

Home to around 40,000 Christians spread across various by-lanes, nooks and crannies, Christmas is actually a very quintessential Calcuttan affair. Come December, and you can feel the merry vibe taking over, covering the now cool city in a warm blanket of twinkly lights. Joining in would be the aroma of homemade mulled wine, plum cakes and piles of smoked turkey and ham.

There’s really nothing quite like Christmas.

A tradition as old as time

Since the British colonization of Calcutta, Christmas has become an inherent part of the otherwise devoid-of-any-celebrations month of December. Yes, weddings happen at this time of the year. But they’re a personal affair rather than all encompassing festivals. And they too end by the 15th of the month. Mostly.

Now you can say that once the British left, so should have Christmas. After all, the Anglo-Indian population, though sizable enough, is quite small, and as such doesn’t warrant a large-scale celebration. But that’s where the magic happened.

The city and all its people decided to collectively hold on to the spirit of Christmas; turning it overtime into a tradition that stuck despite the passage of time. Maybe it was the nostalgia, maybe it was the city’s love for all things western, or maybe even its celebratory soul that clings to festivities with a fervor seldom seen elsewhere. Whatever it might have been, Christmas soon adopted the role of a citywide festival, celebrated with gusto just because it added to the feel-good factor of the season.

Tinsel town in the making

As soon as the leaf of November is torn from the calendar, the city gets busy preparing a warm welcome for Santa Claus’s visit to town. Stroll into the colorful lanes of New Market and you’ll find yourself meandering through a crowd huddled around trees and tinsel to find the best bargain.

The streets would be lined in twinkly lights, casting pretty glows of gold, green, red and blue on every passerby as they make their way to the vintage Jewish bakery of Nahoum’s, eager to get their slice of the Christmas staple plum cake.

Walk a little ahead, and you’ll find yourself marching into the magical world of Park Street. A sensory extravaganza of a million lights and public installations of Santa and his sleigh will greet you as crowds all around you throng the streets to get the perfect Christmassy selfie.

Walk a little bit more and you’ll stumble across Asia’s first Anglican cathedral and the largest church in Calcutta, St. Paul’s Cathedral. Which, no doubt, will be decked to the spires with Christmas décor that’ll beckon you in to attend its Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.

And of course, there’ll be Bow Barracks. Tucked neatly away into the center of Central Calcutta, it’s bright red homes aglow with lights with a giant tree gracing the heart of the quadrangle. Whoever visits the city at this time will find Christmas to be a delightfully elaborate event, celebrated in every para of the town.

All aboard the merriment sleigh

The highlight of Christmas in Calcutta are not the delicious cakes or the dazzlingly blinding light show. It’s that feeling of togetherness that truly sets the city apart in heart and soul from other metropolitans.

The way every single cast & creed comes together to celebrate the spirit of Christmas brings out the city’s willingness to embrace other cultures and assimilate them into their lives. It’s a true testament to the open heart of Calcutta, one that is always up for a good time, celebrating special days with all & sundry.

At this time of the year, you will find Calcuttans exercising their generosity to the fullest, conducting charity drives, hosting dinners and brunches open to one and all and partaking in celebrations on the street as one big community. This is what makes Christmas always a wonderful time in the City of Joy.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight

Although the world might still be reeling from the effects of the pandemic, we do seem to be on the path to recovery. Improving one day at a time to going back to a mix of the old and the new normal. In that light, Christmas is bound to fall under the shadow of the world’s present circumstances. But we hope yours is brightly lit with the cheer and merriment the season brings!

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Creating a harmonious atmosphere of community living, our homes present to you the finer side of life. As real estate builders in Kolkata, we realize the importance of having a healthy community and ensure our homes live up to your expectations of a good neighborhood. Be it our luxury flats in Kolkata or 3 BHK or 4 BHK apartments in Kolkata, you can count on them to provide you with wholesome experiences that bring cheer into your life every day.