Talk:The Bengal Club
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I propose to delete the old article entirely and add a new article from scratch. I have done research on the subject. In my view, the present article has the following errors and shortcomings:
1. The article is too short.
2. It has a photograph of the Bengal United Service(s) Club. This is not connected with the Bengal Club. In fact, a blogpost criticises Wikipedia for giving incorrect information.
http://double-dolphin.blogspot.com/2016/04/united-service-club-chowringhee-calcutta-kolkata.html
The Telegraph newspaper says of the Bengal United Service(s) Club: "The Bengal United Service Club was founded in 1845 as The Bengal Military Club. Membership was restricted to “Commissioned Officers, Military and Naval Chaplains, members of the ICS and Barrister Judges of the High Court as may have received permanent appointments from the Home Government”
https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/maltese-cross-in-city-heart/cid/1258480
3. The article says: "The club-house was in a building in Esplanade West, erected in 1813 and has been catering elites since 1827."The article omits to say that the club has relocated several times. The present location is not mentioned.
4. The article says: "The club was established...as a gentlemen's club for British officers." The club's early members indeed had many military officers and civil servants, but also judges of the highest court, who are generally not called "officers".
5. The article does not refer to a wealth of literature available on the club. For example: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.38290 https://www.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.7228/manchester/9780719096051.001.0001/upso-9780719096051 https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781590774496/Indian-and-Chinese-Cooking-from-the-Himalayan-Rim https://www.thebengalclub.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/The-Bengal-Club-in-History.pdf
6. The article says: "in 1990, membership of women was permitted." The correct year appears to be 1988.
7. The article says: "The club has a dining hall, a number of bars, libraries and a gymnasium". The official website of the club has no mention of a gymnasium and only mentions on library, not libraries. https://www.thebengalclub.com/other-facilities/
8. The article says: "It serves the tradition of Bengal and British culture with a blend of ethics and vision to rule in the heart of culture"
I am not sure what this sentence means. Also, the original citiation of the article it cites to make this claim is an article in the Associated Press. The article actually says: "To dip into Kolkata’s bygone era, my wife and I stayed at the Oberoi Grand Hotel, took afternoon tea at the still oh-so-English Bengal Club and best of all signed up for a guided walk around Dalhousie Square, the onetime epicenter of the British Raj. ...The Bengal Club, another enduring social fixture, has been catering to elites since 1827, and the lovely premise strives to keep the modern world at bay. One may forget it is 2018 while sipping tea in a politely hushed room named after the prominent 18th century British painter Joshua Reynolds, one of whose works hangs on its pastel yellow walls. The colonials also tried to shut out a dramatically changing India: Incredibly, the club only opened its doors to Indians in 1959 — 12 years after independence was won."
In my view,the article is better paraphrased by saying that the Club caters to social elites/corporate elites and has a colonial ambience/old-word charm with old paintings and decor. The article also make an important point about racial admission policies, which I propose to expand on.
https://apnews.com/article/37a2617d8df847d3b25112ce38d0ac6c
9. The article says: "In 2018, the club was featured in the Top 100 Platinum City Clubs in an election conducted by Club Leaders Forum."
This is significant, but the current edition is 2021 (where the club also features). Also, the link given is a dead link. I propose to give the current link (2021 list).
10. The article mentions a noted doctor as the club's curent president, but the website mentions that his term ended a few years ago.
11. The article has a photo of the club's old building. It may be better to use this photo. Not only does the building look nicer, but there is also an interesting history behind it, which I will expand on. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bengal_Club_te_Calcutta_in_India,_KITLV_152328.tiff