History for Peace and Waypoint present

A Taste of Time

Readings and Conversation with author Mohona Kanjilal and Vibha Mitra

Calcutta, once the nucleus of the Raj, was at the heart of a thriving economy and unparalleled administration. Over the centuries, this teeming, cosmopolitan metropolis has become home to people from various communities who have lent its food and culture their distinctive tastes and culinary rituals.

A Taste of Time is an insightful journey through the ever-changing landscape of Calcutta’s food and cultural milieu, from its decades-old cutlet, jhal muri and puchka stalls to its iconic continental restaurants like Firpo’s and Flurys; from its oldest tea shop, Favourite Cabin, set up in 1924, to the 21st-century fine-dining restaurant threesixtythreeo. Mohona Kanjilal, through her immaculate research, deftly captures the stories behind the city’s endearing culture of ‘bikel chaar-ter cha’ (tea at 4 p.m.); its renowned bakeries like Nahoum’s; and the invention of rasogollas and samosas (or shingara). Diving into Calcutta’s dazzling history, she explores how the food habits of early European settlers, Jewish, Armenian, Chinese, Parsi and other expats, and the city’s next-door neighbours like Darjeeling and Odisha, have made the culinary fabric of Calcutta immensely rich and layered.

Mohona Kanjilal was born in Kolkata and spent most of her childhood in Bengaluru. She began her career in Kolkata as a freelance journalist. It was during her stint with the newspapers that she got bitten by the writing bug and ventured into full-time writing. A Taste of Time is her third book and first work of non-fiction. Prior to this book, she authored two short-story collections. She is an alumnus of Loreto College, Kolkata.

Vibha Mitra tackles life head-on, blending crosswords, Scrabble and films into her vibrant world. She earned top ranks in her CA Inter and Final exams and completed a Law degree, choosing to pause a PwC career to raise her two children. Vibha then channelled her drive into entrepreneurship, founding Opus (test prep), Qissaa (textiles) and its digital expansion, Qissaa Buddy (a shopping companion). Beyond commerce, she champions heritage preservation through Own The Past and is the author of Odds and Bends, an eccentric essay collection exploring life’s unexpected twists.