Spending Christmas in Calcutta is certainly one of those experiences that you will always keep in your heart. The Christmas here is full of meaning where Santa Claus may not be present, but there are presents, there is delicious food, and the Christmas spirit is latent in the smiles of the people.
December arrives, energy is renewed and the Christmas season begins. Churches are decorated with thousands of lights and display their most beautiful nativity scenes. Choir groups prepare their voices to set the mood for the holidays by singing Christmas carols and trees (any type) are suddenly dressed with stars, coloured balls and the brightest decorations you can imagine.
Christmas markets open up in the busiest streets and parks and kitchens are witness to the creation of new recipes to surprise guests at this time of year. Christmas Day is called “Boro Din” which means “Big Day”. In anglo-Indian homes there are family gatherings around the table, where there is no shortage of music, laughter, and an endless number of sweets and various delicacies. Surely their preparations are more spicy and pungent than those you will serve on your table.
And the Christmas tree is a faithful follower of this. Although there are artificial fir trees, here most of these very Christmassy trees are on the postcards. Christmas carols can be heard in churches from the voices of the most prestigious choirs, in children's circles in the streets and in small soul concerts.
The celebration of Christmas in Calcutta is legendary and dates back to the 18th century, when it was still the headquarters of the East India Company. In Calcutta, now called Kolkata, Christmas is unique. No other Indian city is so decorated for this time of year.
In Calcutta, a melting pot of cultures and religions coexist, but at Christmas they all come together and celebrate this date as a symbol of love, union and community.
The city centre is lit up with giant Christmas trees and huge figurines of Santa Claus. People dance in the streets of Bow Barracks (the former Anglo-Indian area). There are open-air concerts, choirs, midnight mass, and the typical plum cakes sweeten the festivities.
If you are in Kolkata during Christmas, you cannot miss the New Market and Lindsey Street where you can enjoy a stroll through the Christmas shopping paradise. You can find Christmas trees, decorations, a reindeer sleigh and all the Christmas delicacies such as turkey or the best ingredients for your cakes and puddings. Don't miss the Christmas cakes from the legendary Jewish bakery Nahoums.
The highlight of the table during this time is Christmas cakes. Trays piled high with cakes combine traditional delicacies and special Christmas delicacies. There is never a lack of plum pudding (the British left but the pudding stayed), dry fruit cakes, cardamom biscuits and jam.
On Christmas Eve it is typical to eat stuffed turkey (most tables serve chicken as it is more present in the gastronomy and in the markets here) as the main dish but all the tables are decked out with succulent curries, rice dishes and more.
Continue your route with a stroll down Park Street and enjoy the magic of the city's most illuminated street during Christmas and its most succulent street food stalls. The street is crowded and everyone seems really happy.
You'll find unique restaurants at the members-only Bengal and Calcutta Clubs, where white-gloved waiters politely serve centuries-old Anglo-Indian cuisine like Railway Mutton curry, vindaloo (curry with pork or chicken), and mulligatawny soup.
If you're not a member or a member's guest, you can sample these delicacies at the charming, cozy Anglo-Indian stalls on Park Street during the Christmas season. And Park Street is Kolkata's traditional food hub, teeming with trendy restaurants, but the main attraction is still Flury's, the elegant tearoom that dates back to 1927—where people queue patiently outside the front door for a breakfast table and to buy some plum cakes to take home.
There are also open-air concerts with some of Kolkata's most famous musicians singing Christmas tunes and performances by the city's most famous choirs.
Everyone is happy and the party is also in the streets. The people here rush to buy the still warm Calcutta cake, mmm yeah it's really too good! There are also the fir trees and the garlands, the Christmas music that resounds in the CD shops.
On Christmas Eve attend the Midnight Mass at St. Paul's Cathedral, a unique experience that will leave you breathless. And like every celebration in Calcutta, there is an overdose of joy, colour and delicious food in the company of loved ones.
