A City in the Making
Author- Ranabir Ray Choudhury
Publisher- Niyogi, Rs995
A history of transformation of a cluster of villages into a colonial city, A City in the Making will prove an indispensable read for scholars interested in the architectural history and urban planning of Calcutta, writes BINOY BHUSHAN AGARWAl
Ranabir Ray Choudhury’s passion for the ‘city of joy’ has resulted in four major publications focused on different historical aspects of Calcutta. In his latest book, A City in the Making: Aspects of Calcutta’s Early Growth, he traces the genesis of the founding of Calcutta.
Rich in archival detail based as it is on official correspondences, land reports, cartographic maps, building plans and paintings, it is also a study of the early European intervention in urban planning and the built environment of what became the city of Calcutta and the capital of East India Company.
Divided into three major sections, the book covers the period from the last decade of the 17th century with the arrival of Job Charnock in 1690 till the formation of the lottery Committee in 1817 which was constituted to oversee the development of modern Calcutta.
In Section I, the book throws light on how the Europeans went about the business of establishing settlements both for themselves as well as the natives. In a course of time the mercantile spirit resulted in an acquisitive trend that saw the subsuming of nearby villages to increase revenue and create spaces specifically meant for European habitation. What emerges from this history of early English presence in India and their active engagement and numerous initiatives is a parallel history of the growth of trade and revenue generation.
Beginning with a focus on territorial claims and modes of revenue generation, there were efforts directed at shoring up their military defense and fortifications. One of the things that is noticeable in the official correspondences is the way in which even in its early days the English people were carefully treading the thin line between building defensive military establishments and the urgent need to not arouse the suspicion of the natives. However, the local population did pose challenges and litigation was the preferred mode of settling arbitration.
In Section II, the focus shifts on the expansion of the city that would come to define its geographical limits. In writing about the shaping of the Esplanade, the emergence of the bazaars and residential bungalows, Choudhury points to the contested framework within which the metamorphosis took place.
The frenetic exercise of claiming lands and constructing buildings was fraught with fraudulent claims and disputes. What is striking about this is that the natives went to court to settle disputes as they trusted the British system of fair justice and improvement. And therefore to both contain resistance and retain the faith reposed in them, the participation of the local population was ensured through confidence building measures. The emphasis on collaboration between the settlers and the natives draws attention to modes of control that did not necessarily rely on force and discipline. Instead the success of the urban project included involving the local populace too.
Thus the story of Calcutta and the early English presence there is also a narrative of subsequent control over Calcutta and by extension India through their intervention in economy, building settlements, civic developments, regulating property and land distribution. So, in what was to lay ground for the future of British rule in Bengal, the period proved significant in introducing changes in conditions of ownership, settlement of land disputes, introduction of tax and sale deed and regularisation of land records.
The author also focuses on the architectural history of important colonial buildings that were erected by the early Englishmen who came as traders. In the process, the author also sheds some light on the bureaucratic control and corruption that too was a part of the process. For instance, in highlighting Wellesley’s contribution in the making of Calcutta, he writes about how he built palaces for himself while keeping it under wraps for long as well as undertaking extensive public road repair works as measures to fund his pet projects.
In Section III the focus shifts from spreading of the town and settlement of disputes that defined the limits of Calcutta to renewed efforts aimed at developing the emergent city in a planned manner which saw the instituting of the lottery Committee and a flurry of proposals, funds and projects that would usher in a modern Calcutta.
The book gives a vivid account of the role of Englishmen in heralding a new city who were reckoned as agents of change who catapulted the villages on the banks of Hooghly into a modern city bustling with life. It offers scholarly insights to our understanding of modernity, architectural history and early town planning. A history of transformation of a cluster of villages into a colonial city, this is an indispensable read about the architectural history and urban planning of Calcutta.
The reviewer is an Assistant Professor of English at Aryabhatta College, University of Delhi