134 135 INTANGIBILITY IN HERITAGE CONSERVATION Prospects of Kolkata’s Chinatown Rishika Mukhopadhyay “…replete with traditional Chinese temples, dragon-architecture, gaily-painted signboards and festoons in their bold and picturesque language with the rustle of red silks and the aroma of Chinese food so temptingly around. ‘China-towns’ are or were so typical of the emigrant Chinese that visitors strolling around in the Bentinck Street-Lower Chitpur Road-Phearas Lane area of central Calcutta would ind it dificult to believe, at least till the Indo-China war in 1962, that they were not in some part of China.” 1 Kolkata’s Old Chinatown: between imagination and oblivion Kolkata’s Old Chinatown, which is locally known as Chinapara, is located in the north-central part of the town, around lower Chitpur Road, Bow Bazar Street and Bentinck Street. Similarly to other “outsider” communities2 that were established in the presidency town of Calcutta (Kolkata’s name until 2001) during British colonial rule, Old Chinatown is at the intersection of the erstwhile “native town” and administrative “white town”. Approximately two-thirds of Kolkata’s Chinese-Indian population stayed in this area while others settled in New Chinatown around Elliot Road and Topsia-Tangra in marshy lowlands on the eastern fringe of the city3. Old Chinatown’s population peaked at around 20,000 and has since dwindled to 2000. When planning my visit to Old Chinatown I imagined a vibrant place: houses painted in bright red and yellow, lags with Chinese characters, and delicious aromas of unfamiliar dishes: something akin to the Chinatowns of San Francisco, London or Melbourne that have long been able to maintain their identity and distinctiveness within diverse cityscapes. I was shocked when I irst stepped into Chattawala Gali near Poddar Court and witnessed a very different Chinatown – a crumbling and dilapidated neighbourhood marked by immense poverty and struggles. The footpaths were covered with makeshift plastic housing and peopled by daily labourers who work as loaders in the nearby business district or in the various Road Carriers Pvt. Ltd. that line the road. Daily vendors had set up their temporary stalls on the pavements or roads. Huge garbage dumps and public urinals created a pungent smell throughout the neighbourhood. Tall commercial buildings dwarfed the rundown, two-storeyed Chinese temples. In Kolkata, where the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) only identiies buildings as heritage, what happens when a community has only very few tangible relics to commemorate as heritage? In the absence of any formal conservation initiative by KMC, in what forms and ways does a community struggle to maintain its own heritage? Can these practices, which are still neglected in heritage studies in India and especially in Kolkata, be considered as intangible aspects of cultural heritage? Through the lens of traditional Chinese occupations, cuisine and cultural practices, this paper will explore a heritage that is lived and dynamic, and also look into the urban revival prospects of Chinatown. Stages of migration: from China to India The irst recorded Chinese settler in India was Yang Daijang, popularly known as Achi from Guandong, who came to Calcutta in 1778. Warren Hastings, Governor General of British controlled Bengal, rented Achi land just south of Calcutta to start a sugar plantation and a sugar mill, which he ran with the support of 110 Chinese workers4. Aside from the pioneering Achi, three stages of migration through which a large number of Chinese made India their home have been identiied5, beginning in the 19th century and continuing during the concomitant turmoil and conlict6 in China in the 1930s and 1940s7. The irst stage of migration started with skilled labourers in the 19th century. Most came from Guangdong province in Southern China: Cantonese from the Pearl Delta areas, Toi-san from Sai-yup Country, and Hakka from Moi-Yan Country. A small number came from Hupei and Shanghai as well8. The second wave of migration was triggered by the First World War, the Japanese invasion and a transitory phase in China’s political scenario. Although the skilled labourers started to bring their families with them during this era, they were planning to return to their homeland after the political turmoil had subsided. The last wave of migration came as the violent civil war between Communists and Guomindang broke out in 1946 and the Communists came into power. As a consequence, private properties were coniscated and many migrants who had worked in Calcutta for generations decided not to return to China and began to think of India as their permanent home. It is worth noting that Calcutta’s Chinatown was largely neglected by the larger domain of Chinese diaspora studies in the realm of academia until the 1960s9. It is also important to point out that most Chinese left Kolkata and India following continuous discrimination and marginalisation by the State and the people as an aftermath of the Sino-Indian War of 1962. Inheriting crafts: occupations of the Indo-Chinese community The four main migrant communities mentioned above took up speciic occupations. These “niche specialisations” are still maintained in spite of daily economic struggles10. People of Hakka origin are involved in shoemaking and later got involved in the leather tanning business, while Cantonese migrants are famous for their carpentry skills and engineering work. They used to work in the shipbuilding docks. Immigrants from Shanghai opened up laundries, while Hupei people practise dentistry and sell paper lowers and other paper decorations. Some Hakkas received training in shoemaking in Thailand and other places in Southeast Asia before they reached India11. They made Bentinck 136 137 Tiretta Bazaar Chinatown, Kolkata’s oldest and India’s only Chinatown, perishes in negligence and laxity Street the Shoe Road of Kolkata with more than 100 shoe shops. They specialised in handcrafted shoes where the techniques and crafts of shoemaking were passed on from father to son. Some enterprising shoemakers of the old Chinapara of Tiretta Bazaar moved to Tangra near Dhapa in search of an alternative occupation. photo credit: Rishika Mukhopadhyay After the Second World War there were 82 Chinese-run tanneries and about 300 businesses trading in leather – all produced in Dhapa. This helped the shoe business on Bentinck Street immensely12. But those days are long gone. Due to government regulation of tanneries (one of the most polluting industries within the city), the tannery business witnessed a rapid decline in the 1980s. From that time onwards the shoemakers also faced a steady decline. Mr. Lee, a shoe shop owner from 84 Bentinck Street, blames the violent labour movement and the labour unions during the leftist regime as the reason behind their present situation13. The languishing state of the shoe business is illustrated by the fact that there are only seven shoe shops left on lower Chitpur Road. In Kolkata only 30 Chinese shoe shops remain, and 75% of the shoes are mass-produced in factories, not handmade14. While similar situations can be observed for Cantonese carpenters, Hupei dentists, who were traditional teeth setters in Chinese society, have been more successful in sustaining their practices by gaining qualiications as professional dentists. Although fewer than 50 Hubeinese families survive in Kolkata now, all practice dentistry as a symbol of maintaining their traditional occupation15. Chinese-Indian shoemakers, carpenters and dentists have maintained their professions across borders and despite the changing socio-economic condition of the city, larger political crises and the resultant state atrocities that they have endured16. But, for those Kolkata Chinese who are still maintaining the trade, as in the case of Hong Kong Chinese17, the biological and social heritage of family and lineage play an important role. The accountability they feel towards their ancestors, their trade, the initial days of struggle, the tradition, inspires them to continue the businesses. Culinary tradition and festivities as heritage practice The morning breakfast at Tiretta Bazaar has been a major attraction not only for the Chinese population but for a certain section of people in Kolkata who are ready to try ish-ball soup, pork, chicken, shrimp momos, and sausages. Rangan Dutta in his extensive blog posts on Chinatown gave a mouth-watering description of the food served here: “Dimsums and momos are always the most sought-after items. Spring rolls and pork sausages are not far behind. Pau, the ball shaped over-sized dumpling, which comes with all sorts of pork, chicken, and ish illing is deinitely on the must have list.”18 Ancestor worshippers inside a shoe shop on Lower Chitpur Road photo credit: Rishika Mukhopadhyay Breakfast in this market starts at dawn and ends by eight in the morning. Due to the dwindling Chinese population on weekdays one will hardly ind any Chinese makeshift stalls. Standard Indian breakfast like puri and samosas have started to take their place along with a vegetable market. Only on Sundays is the authentic Chinese breakfast served in all its glory. 138 139 Kung Hai Fatchoi: It’s Chinese New Year! Every year, the declining Chinese population in Kolkata gears up for Chinese New Year, transforming the narrow Chattawala Gulee completely from its daily nature of hustle and bustle to a space of celebration. A huge stage is set up, and dazzling lights, music and the aroma of various foods like sausages, shrimp dimsums, pork buns, ish ball soup, momos, noodles and prawn wafers ill the air. The cultural programme is organised by the Indian Chinese Association for Culture, Welfare and Development. Here the celebration starts a week before New Year’s Day and continues till the Sunday after, when the celebrations move to Achipur where people pay homage to their ancestor Achi who irst came to India. The whole atmosphere becomes so engaging that it is hard to believe there are only approximately 4000 Chinese families left in Kolkata. On New Year’s Day, various Lion Dance groups pay homage to the god in each Chinese Temple. In 2017, groups like Ka Fook, Young Youth, Friends Warrior, and Legend Warrior performed with enthusiasm. After the performance they visited the homes of all Chinese-Indians and wished them good fortune for the upcoming year. This act is believed to usher wealth and prosperity into the house. Members of each household tie pieces of lettuce and some money in red envelopes with long sticks and hang them from balconies and windows. The lion then tries to skilfully approach them, reaching for the reward no matter how high it is. Some households even offer beer or cold drinks. Chinese-Indians who were born in Kolkata but have moved to other cities as well as abroad, return to Kolkata to celebrate New Year. John, who is currently a resident of Delhi, explained: need to be acknowledged. Although the changing global economic scenario has caused most of the traditional Chinese-Indian occupations to decline and brought increased poverty, the community’s struggle to preserve its ancestral heritage provokes us to interpret the meanings and manifestations of heritage in everyday life anew. 1 Jawhar Sircar, “he Chinese in Boxer Rebellion (1900-1901), and the series of holding Indian government jobs and corralled Calcutta”, in Calcutta: The Living City, ed. Su- movements and uprisings that overthrew the Chinese within the cities they lived in. Persons kanta Chaudhuri, vol. II (New Delhi: Oxford Qing (Chhing) dynasty. of Chinese descent were required to report University Press, n.d.), 64–64. to the Indian authorities for “registration and 7 2 Chinese, Armenians, Jews, Anglo-Indians and Muslims from northern Haraprasad Roy, “Chinese”, pedia.org/HT/C_0221.htm. states of India Liang, J. “Migration patterns Elizabeth Kenworthy Teather Kwai-Yun Li, “Deoli Camp: he Testament of Designated Heritage in An Oral History of Chinese Indians from Hong Kong”, International Journal of Heritage and occupational specialisations of the Kolkata, 1962 to 1966” (Master’s, Ontario Institute for Studies 9, no. 2 (1 January 2003): 93–115. Chinese: an insider’s story”. China Report 43, Studies in Education, 2011). no. 4 (2007): 397-410; Ali, Hasan. “The Chinese 18 in Calcutta.” In., Aspects of Society and Culture 9 in Calcutta. Edited by M.K.A. Siddigui, City, Diaspora”. Bonnerjee, “Neighbourhood, Calcutta: Anthropological Survey of India, “You won’t ind this kind of celebration or familiarity in Mumbai or Delhi. So we have to come back home on this particular day.”19 17 and Chun Shing Chow, “Identity and Place: 8 3 classiication”. accessed 23 January, 2015, http://www.bangla- Dutta, Rangan. Chinese Breakfast Tiretta Bazaar Chinatown 12 January, 2013 https://rangandatta.wordpress. com/2013/06/12/chinese-breakfast-old-chi- 1982.; Dasgupta, Keya. “Mapping the Spaces 10 of Minorities: Calcutta through the Last Cen- China Report 43, no 4 (2007): 531–538. re-4607 (accessed on 1 February, 2015). on the minority communities of Calcutta, edited 11 19 by Himadri Banerjee, Nilanjana Gupta, Shipra and Occupational Specialisations of Kolkata Mukherjee, 22-69. New Delhi: Anthem Press, Chinese”. Das, Samantak. Book review. natown-tiretta-bazar-calcutta-kolkata/#mo- tury.” In Calcutta Mosaic: essays and interviews Renewal: cha project In Kolkata’s Old Chinatown, a Singapore-based company has shown interest in rejuvenating the area and the West Bengal government has agreed to support the project. Indeed, the “cha project” instigated by some Kolkata-born Chinese is a ray of hope. The detailed project plan includes the discussed intangible heritage in its objectives of restoration and heritage conservation, business revival, makeover of streetscapes, and preservation of history. Reviving traditional Chinese cuisine through a street food lane, reinventing festivity through the celebration of Ancestors’ Day, the Moon Festival and Chinese New Year and an economic revival through traditional crafts and occupations constitute the major planning initiatives. However, the project has not progressed significantly over the past four years. This afirms that the conservation of Chinatown is not a priority for the State, on whom all implementation is dependent. Conclusion I have tried to deconstruct the general notion of heritage in India only as physical relics, sites, monuments and artifacts and give a more nuanced approach to the term where it has a direct bearing on a community’s way of life. My research shows that a domain of heritage practice exists outside the oficial discourse in Kolkata, where the municipality only identiies buildings as heritage. Particularly in the case of a community that has been severely discriminated against by State agency but has contributed immensely to the economic and cultural landscape of Kolkata, these dissonant spaces of heritage Liang, “Migration Patterns 2009. 12 Ibid. “Neighbourhood, City, Diaspora : Identity and 13 Interview with Mr. Lee, 14 Belonging for Calcutta’s Anglo-Indian and October, 2014. 4 Jayani Jeanne Bonnerjee, Chinese Communities” (Ph.D., Queen Mary, University of London, 2010); Jennifer Liang, 14 “Migration Patterns and Occupational Spe- our-vision/ Last accessed on 17 April, 2016. http://www.thechaproject.com/ cialisations of Kolkata Chinese: An Insider’s History”, China Report 43, no. 4 (1 December 15 Ibid. Fan and Other Stories (Toronto: TSAR Publi- 16 Following the Sino-Indian war, cations, 2006). the Chinese community in India experienced 2007): 397–410; Kwai-Yun Li, The Palm Leaf state-sanctioned violence, harassment and 5 Julien Berjeaut, Chinois à Cal- cutta: les tigres du Bengale (Harmattan, 1999); marginalisation in the form of physical violence, economic displacement and ostracism from Liang, “Migration Patterns and Occupational mainstream Indian society. here were arrests, Specialisations of Kolkata Chinese”. detention, internment, repatriation and forced deportations. As a result, the families of thous- 6 he Opium Wars (1840, 1856), ands of Chinese were violently broken apart. A the Taiping Tianguo Uprising (1850-1860), series of laws and ordinances were passed and the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895), the the laws barred Chinese living in India from ary 2015. Interview with John, 19 Febru-