Journalism of Courage
A forgotten chapter of India’s independence is hidden in this Kolkata Coffee House
1 / 15The Albert Hall, which was built in 1876, eventually came to be known as The Indian Coffee House. Albert Hall was named after Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Concert Albert. Located on College Street, the coffee house is known by many as Kolejpara's 'Coffee House'. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
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2 / 15Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Satyajit Ray, Nobel Laureate economist Amartya Sen, film directors Mrinal Sen, Ritwik Ghatak, poets Subhash Mukherjee, Shakti Chattopadhyay, author Sunil Gangopadhyay -- the historic house of Kolkata has been a go-to place for all. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
3 / 15In the British era, in 1846, Henry Paddington introduced coffee with the intention of turning Kolkata into London. In addition to this, another objective was to reduce drug addiction among the British. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
4 / 15The area around the coffee house came to be popularly known as College Street because of Presidency College, which was then called Hindu College. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
5 / 15Calcutta University was built on the site of Madhabbabu Bazar and the number of students living in the coffee house area increased over time and the enthusiasts started coming. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
6 / 15The coffee house was, back then, owned by Ramkamal Sen, the grandfather of Brahmo leader Keshab Chandra Sen. It was founded here in 1876. Ramkamal was also the manager of the Hindu College. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
7 / 15Established in the style of Sahebiana, the Albert Hall building became the main centre of the anti-British movement. The 'Bharat Sabha' or 'Indian Association' was established on the initiative of Surendranath Bandyopadhyay, Anand Mohan Bose, Shivnath Shastri, Dwarkanath Gangopadhyay and others. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
8 / 15'Bharat Sabha' was named with the aim of uniting the entire Indian population in the style of Young Italy, the great Italian leader Matsini. Most of the members in the sabha were educated, middle class. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
9 / 15Before the establishment of the National Congress, the Bharat Sabha was the most important political organisation in India. In 1883, the national conference of the 'Bharat Sabha' was held at the then Albert Hall. After that, it started overflowing with people. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
10 / 15The Bharat Sabha decided to build anti-British public opinion across the country, to unite Indians in all-India political interests, to maintain communal unity between Hindus and Muslims, to involve the people in political movements and to promote nationalism. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
11 / 15Outside the then Albert Hall in Bengal, branches of Bharat Sabha were formed in Lucknow, Meerut, Lahore, Ahmedabad, Madras etc. Gradually, the hall became the address of revolutionaries and intellectuals for the freedom struggle. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
12 / 15Subhash Chandra Bose held several political meetings in the Albert Hall. It was here that, on the advice of Rabindranath, Netaji made several plans for the Quit India Movement. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
13 / 15In 1912, the ownership of Albert Hall changed. The place was bought by the family of Aviram Mallick, a zamindar of Chorbagan. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
14 / 15The coffee house was started by renting two floors. Every big and small political event was planned here. After World War II began, bombers began to hover in the skies of Calcutta and the coffee house became a British army barracks. The British opened the Air Red Precision Center here. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
15 / 15The war ended and the country became independent in 1947. The coffee house continued to follow the rules of the day after many setbacks. The British-era Albert Hall came to be known as the Coffee House. While sipping a cup of coffee, many may not know that there is a forgotten chapter of independence hidden in the corners of this house. (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)
