Step down the tram in Kolkata and you land in a city that refuses to be rushed. Kolkata, once known as the “City of Palaces” and still affectionately called the cultural capital of India, wears its history with a quiet pride. Colonial mansions with peeling yellow facades are in a row with lively bazaars, adda-filled coffee houses and temples that are centuries old. This is a city where art, intellect and life mingle so well that even a stroll to buy vegetables can turn into a conversation about Tagore’s poetry or the latest football match between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal.
