This video is a left-handed but heartfelt compliment to the slowness of Kolkata
‘Where else today will you see an India we only read about in our textbooks?’
Visiting Kolkata for those who have not grown up there is like watching a period film where time stands still, set in one of the last remaining cities to hold on to the essence of India’s history.
The short film above, aptly titled Stop, Look, Go, acknowledges that while most cities focus on progress, development, urbanisation, and infrastructure – and the visuals reveal that Kolkata is no exception – the former political, economic and cultural capital of India has still held on to the things that matter the most.
Made by the production company Ethereal, the film has its usual share of Kolkata clichés, and even its imaginative romanticisation – “these are the narrow lanes which Tagore once walked”. But it makes a point about the value of not giving up what matters under the onslaught of modernisation – which is both a compliment and a rap on the knuckles for the city that many consider as having missed the bus of progress.
