Modernity at Home
This erudite piece by Rosinka Chaudhuri is a personal favourite of mine: I feel it needs to be on the CAL website because it deals with many of the themes and issues close to the hearts of the members of CAL and which have brought us together. One significant theme is the importance of the modern aesthetic that went into the making of the Bengali residential houses of the 19th and 20th centuries – the houses that CAL wishes to preserve as well as bring to the notice of other Calcuttans. Since the essay traces the genealogy of the drawing room, it helps to focus attention on the rich interior spaces that go into the making of the residential houses that fascinate us today. Uploading the essay on the website will hopefully make it more accessible to interested readers who may otherwise not have had a chance to read it due to its circulation being confined exclusively to academic circles.
Sukanya Mitra
lecturer in history,
Loreto College, Calcutta, and member, core group, Calcutta Architectural Legacies
