Nawab Wajid Ali Shah is an unknown person in today’s Metiabruz

Metiabruz of today would have been an unknown place if Nawab Wajid Ali Shah wasn’t exiled here. Metiabruz at present in Garden Reach, once used to be an isolated piece of land adjacent to the Hoogly River. It was mainly used by the traders of East India Company as their relaxation spot between their trade ventures by sea route. Wild dogs and fox in large numbers inhabited the place at that time. Humans mostly include the robbers who were known as thangare (those who robbed innocent people after killing them by beating with large bamboo sticks).

It was only after 1856, when Nawab Wajid Ali Shah the then Nawab of Oudh, Lucknow was exiled in Metiabruz by the British Government, this place transformed dramatically. Just like the other contemporary Nawabs, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was also a very sophisticated person fond of traditional poetry, music, singing, dance and painting. His daily chore in Kaisarbagh Baradari, Oudh was filled with extravagance, pomp and show. The nawab with heavy heart bore the pain of parting from his royal haveli in Kaisarbagh.

But a true nawab at heart, for him it was impossible to stay away even one day from dance and music. So he brought along with him Hindustani classical musicians and baijis (court dancers) to Metiabruz. It should be mentioned here that the name Metiabruz meant fort made from mud (in Urdu matia mean mud and bruz mean fort). Soon his royal house in Metiabruz started to bustle with activity, Awadhi language, art, music, dance, singing, poetry, smell of atar (fragrance made from flowers) and opulent style of living. He invited the best singers and dancers from other parts of India to Metiabruz to entertain his guests that also include the East India Company officials who banished him from Oudh.

With an intention to create a similar Lucknow in Metiabruz where his people would live happily along with him he went ahead to create a zoo in Metiabruz, the first of its kind in Eastern India. This zoo spread across acres of land had different species of animals besides expensive and exotic birds brought from various parts of India, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, England etc. With the passage of time this vast area of zoo has been totally engulfed by the Hoogly River.

His another major contribution to today’s Metiabruz is the introduction of Hindustani darjees or tailors. At that period of time there were very few tailors in Bengal who had the artistic skill and concept to match the talent of these Hindustani darjees from Lucknow. Gradually, these darjees became so famous in Bengal that they started getting orders from Bengali zamindars, babus and even British officers. As time passed on holding the hands of these skilful darjees, Metiabruj became one of the prominent centres of fashionable garment making in Eastern India. Now around 56% of the total youth in Metabruz is into the business of garment manufacturing. Bulk shipment of garment produced from Metiabruz is now sent to neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka every month.

Nawab Wajid Ali Shah’s love for kite and pigeons also made a contribution to Metiabruz’s economy. His love for large and unique kite was immense. So he encouraged innovative kite makers in his time. Following this tradition, at present kite making is a profitable business here, in which large number of youth is involved. Interestingly, kite is now exported to various parts of the world from Metibruz now.

Historically also Metiabruz got its due importance holding the hands of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah when the legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray created Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players) in 1977.

But unfortunately, the manner in which the charm and splendour of the old Metiabruz has melted, in a similar manner the people of Metiabruz has also easily forgot the name of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. All that remains of the 31 years that the nawab had spent at Metiabruz is a sprawling Imambara and a private mosque (the Shah Masjid) that he built ten years after arriving here.

Ustiwalas: The vanishing profession in Kolkata

With the passage of time everything that we see around us vanishes in the darkness of past. We love to stay in present and dream of a sweet future. Past haunts us, so we prefer to run away from it, ignoring the fact that lot is lost in the process.

Kolkata, or the colonial Calcutta has come a long way from the time it was bought by Job Charnock from the then Zamindars of Bengal and has now transformed into one of the fascinating cities in the world. Once a remote village, then Calcutta slowly became the capital of India holding the hands of British Empire. The Britishers changed it into one of the most important centres of medical, education, cultural and financial hub in India. Every day large number of people from different sections of the society entered Calcutta through the Calcutta Port. It started bustling with lots of activities. Traders from other parts of India and the rest of the World visited Calcutta to explore a new market. Gradually, the city started expanding manifold. New buildings, offices, schools, universities, medical institution and recreational centres were created to keep up with the growing demand.

New professions were also created to keep the city administration run successfully. One such profession was the Kerani babu or Clerk in modern day who were assigned to keep records and look into the accounts of the administration. This is one profession that has survived till now escaping the wrath of time victoriously. The British has left India long ago but the Kerani babus are still dominating the Government offices such Writers Building, New Secretariat and several other key govt. departments.

But there is one profession, which is almost standing on the verge of extinction. They are the Ustiwalas. This is one unique profession about which very few had any idea. At present there are very few Ustiwalas to be found in the whole city. Basically they earn their living by carrying water. They had derived their unique name from the usti or a hand made leather bag that is made from the skin of goat or cow. The leak proof bag look like a long neck pitcher. The bag has a leather handle for carrying on shoulder. The Ustiwalas fill their usti from any street side source of water, preferably hand pump. They then tie the mouth of the usti and carry the water to their customer. These Ustiwalas earn very little, around forty to fifty rupees a day and finds it hard to survive with their family.

But in the colonial Calcutta, these Ustiwalas had a different role to play. They were not appointed to carry drinking water as their usti was made from animal skin. Instead they used to carry water from the Ganga and nearby ponds to clean the roads early in the morning. Large numbers of Ustiwalas were appointed for this job. Generally these people are Muslims who belong from the same family and had a separate community of their own. They mainly lived in the then old Chitpur and in the adjacent localities.

The Ustiwalas should not be mistaken with the typical Bharis (mainly Odiya) of today who carry fresh drinking water from tube well and supply it to household. Nowadays these Ustiwalas can be found in limited areas of Kolkata fighting everyday to feed their family.

In near future there will be an attempt to post an interview along with a relevant picture of an Ustiwala who work in the Mirza Galib Street of Kolkata. Readers will get to know about their lifestyle, their inclination towards their profession and their trembling future from their own mouth.

The writer came to know about this particular profession from a book on old Kolkata written by Srijato who presently works with Anandabazar Patrika, ABP Pvt. Ltd.