Choong Ye Thong Church (Chinese Temple), New Meredith Street

“Wherever there is sunshine, there will be Chinese. Wherever there are Chinese, there will be Hakka” – Chinese proverb

 

A little removed from Calcutta’s (Kolkata) old Chinatown in Tiretta Bazar, on 19-20, New Meredith Street stands the Choong Ye Thong Church or Chinese temple. The quaint little building has enough architectural uniqueness to make it stand out from the other structures in the area. But few Calcuttans ever venture inside the building, and fewer still know, that this building once served as a school started by Calcutta’s thriving Hakka Chinese community.

Sea Ip Church (Chinese Temple), Tiretta Bazar

At 22/1 Chattawala Gully, in Calcutta’s (Kolkata) old Chinatown stands the Chinese temple known as the Sea Ip Church. It is one of the many temples built by the city’s Chinese community which has been settling in this part of town since the early 19^th century. The Sea Ip Church is one of 6 Chinese temples in the area, and one of the most active, with Chinese families still worshipping in the old way. But if you were to ask anyone in Calcutta today about Chinatown, they would tell you about a very different area called Tangra. This part of Central Calcutta (Kolkata) now goes by the name “Poddar Court”. So what are so many Chinese temples doing here?

 

Toong On Church (Chinese Temple) & Nanking Restaurant, Blackburn Lane

The quaint little red and white building on Blackburn Lane, in Calcutta’s (Kolkata) Tiretta Bazar (now also known as Poddar Court) area, housing the Toong On Church, a Chinese temple to the warrior God Kwan-Ti, was also once home to Nanking, Calcutta’s first Chinese Restaurant. The building has survived against all odds and is today part of the restoration efforts spearheaded by The Cha Project, which seeks to revive Tiretta Bazar, Calcutta’s first Chinatown.

 

Damzen Lane: A Street and its Story

Damzen Lane would be what in Calcutta is referred to as a “Muslim area”. What it means is that the people living in the area are primarily Muslim. The result is that such areas have an atmosphere of their own, very different from the other parts of the city. The people, understandably, look different. Women are seen clad in burqas or abayas, covered head to toe in black. The men are often seen in shalwar-kameez, with the lower garment, the shalwar, ending just a little bit above the ankle and often with a very thick hem. Beautiful handcrafted skull caps and fine flowing beards, often without the moustache also provide clues to the faith of the men sporting them. But this does not, by any means, describe all the people of the area. A large number of people of a single faith living in close proximity also give an area a certain look and feel. There is a certain rustic charm to Damzen Lane, but hiding within are stories and relics from a bygone era.

A goat pops out to say hi!