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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Anderson1970 (talk | contribs) at 10:26, 22 October 2021. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

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= Proposal to delete old article and replace with new

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 one library, not "libraries"in plural. 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 the article it cites to make this claim is an article is by 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."https://apnews.com/article/37a2617d8df847d3b25112ce38d0ac6c

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.

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


Anderson1970 (talk) 04:18, 21 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Draft of proposed new article + queries

Further to my message above, below is a draft of the proposed new article. I have rectified the errors stated above. Can I paste this one in place of the current one? I have rectified the errors above. The opening para was mostly drafted by a Wikipedia editor who kindly helped me with the sandbox draft, who said that the original sandbox draft was too long and should be reduced by 10% (I think I probably reduced by 50% though, to be safe).

I have retained the following from the old article:

- -Retained the line "The Bengal Club is a social and business club in Kolkata" - Retained the founding date and reference to Lt-Col Finch (I used hs military rank instead of his family rank of "Hon'ble", you can change back if you like. - Retained the Associated Press artice but gave a more accurate paraphrase of it and linked to the AP website, rather than India West - Retained that women allowed as members, but gave the corect date. - Retained the mention of Platinum Clubs but gave the updated citation and described the Club Leaders Forum as a - Retained the reference to the (now former) doctor president but I gave it as a footnote instead of mentioning the name

I also have the following queries/doubts which will help improve the article:

- Would he editors like me to add more trivia about the club's colonial history?

- It isn't 100% clear to me if Vincent Esch designed the Russell Street building too, in addition to the Chowringhee building. I referred to Panckridge, but the language seems unclear to me. I think he probably did, as the plaque says that Macaulay's house was "dismantled" in 1911 (same year as the Chowringhee building), but it's not 100% clear to me. There is also a chapter on Macaulay's house by historian Rudrangshu Mukherjee in Sarkar's book, but he does not seem to discuss this point. Thus, can Esch be mentioned as the architect of the Russell Street building or not?

- As a researcher, I have access to academic databases like Proquest and Factiva and cited them. I cited the Times of India, but I think the Statesman newspaper is a better source. But I cannot find the old archives of the Statesman on Proquest or Factiva. Can someone advise?

- Another interesting source could be the archives of the now-extinct Amrita Bazar Patrika. As it was an anti-British newspaper (unlike the Statesman) it may have a more critical perspective. Just guessing here.

- A article by Sunanda K Datta Rsy says that Prince Philip rebuked the club for its colour bar when he visited in 1959. It is the same year that the restrictions were removed. Is there any source or news report which says that Prince Philip intervened in the matter? Can Datta Ray's article be cited? He says: "Discerning men like Sir Padam Ginwala who passed the Lejeune test before independence would not join the Bengal when political and economic circumstance (and a lecture from Prince Philip) forced it to lift its colour bar." If true, then this is important and interesting because it shows a new side of Prince Philip. https://www.telegraphindia.com/opinion/gentle-bastion-of-privilege/cid/903608

Partial view of a wing of the Bengal Club.

The Bengal Club is a social and business club in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India. Founded in 1827, the club is the oldest social club in India.[1][2][3] When Kolkata was the capital of British India, the club was considered to be the "unofficial headquarters of the Raj".[4] The club is now known for its old-world ambience and patronage among contemporary social elites, and is among a small number of Indian clubs featured in the elite list of Platinum Clubs of the World.[5] The club's present site used to house the residence of Thomas Babington Macaulay.[6]

History

Works that provide detailed historical information about the club include A Short History of the Bengal Club 1827-1927, a book by Sir Hugh Rahere Panckridge (Barrister-at-law and later judge of the Calcutta High Court); The Bengal Club 1927-1970, a book by R.I. Macalpine (former officer of the Imperial Forest Service); A History of The Bengal Club (1970-2000), a booklet by Arabinda Ray (former club president and senior corporate executive); and The Bengal Club in History, a book edited by academic Malabika Sarkar.

19th century

Field Marshal Stapleton Cotton, 1st Viscount Combermere, the first patron of the Bengal Club

Panckridge writes that the Bengal Club predated many important social clubs in London, though the model for the club was the Oriental Club in London. The idea for the Bengal Club was conceived of in a meeting of notable Englishmen at the Town Hall of Calcutta in 1826, led by Lieutenant-Colonel (later Lieutenant-General) John Finch, son of the 4th Earl of Aylesford. Finch explained at the meeting that "nothing like a respectable hotel or coffeehouse has ever existed" in Calcutta, and "those who constitute the society of Calcutta have no place where they can spend an idle half hour agreeably"[7] The Club was formally established on 8 February 1827, with the Viscount Combermere its first patron. In 1830, Lord William Bentinck, the last Governor of Bengal and the first Governor-General of India, became the second patron of the club. The club's first committee included influential personalities like Charles Metcalfe and Henry Thoby Prinsep, along with senior military officials.[8] In 1838, the club passed a resolution to reciprocate with the now-defunct Byculla Club of Mumbai (then Bombay). Later, reciprocal relations were established with the Hong Kong Club, the Shanghai Club and the Madras Club.[7]The club's rules provided that all members of the Byculla Club and Madras Club would be considered as Honorary Members of the Bengal Club, and vice versa.[9] By the 1870s, the club was being described in travelogues as "the most swell establishment of the kind in the East" (by American Civil War general Robert Ogden Tyler)[10] and "an institution known to all the dwellers of the East" (by scholar and historian Sir George William Forrest).[11] By the close of the century, the Bengal Club became one of a handful of buildings in British India to be supplied with electricity.[12]

Panckridge writes that the Bengal Club was originally intended to be called the Calcutta United Services Club. Ironically, a later institution with a similar name, the Bengal United Service Club (now home to the Geological Survey of India), was established in close proximity to the Bengal Club. Much like the Bengal Club, the club had senior British officials as members.[13][14] Some websites thus erroneously state that the Bengal United Service Club was the predecessor of the Bengal Club.

Plaque at the Bengal Club with names of members who died while serving in the First World War.

20th century

In 1912, on the visit of King George V to Kolkata, the club was among a set of buildings illuminated with electric lights to welcome his cavalcade.[15][16] The King presented the club with his portrait.[7] At some point, a bust of the King was also installed inside the club. Over a hundred members of the Bengal Club served in the First World War. Two members, army physician Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Martin-Leake and Sir John Reginald Noble Graham, were awarded the Victoria Cross. Several members also lost their lives in the War, and the Governor of Bengal later unveiled a tablet in their memory. [7] In 1927, the Bengal Club celebrated its centenary by organising a grand banquet, with many important figures from British India in attendance.[17]

A Royal Air Force hospital in Kolkata, during the Second World War. In the course of the War, over a thousand military officers stationed in the city (above a certain rank) were granted temporary honorary membership of the Bengal Club.
Bust of George V at the Bengal Club.

According to Macalpine, the club's other milestones in the 20th century included its designation as a public air raid shelter and a medical aid post during the Second World War; the grant of temporary honorary membership to around 1,200 armed forces personnel stationed in Kolkata during different phases of the War (above the rank of Lieutenant-colonel); the admittance of Indian members (in 1959); the allowance of women inside the club's premises (initially in fits and starts, and eventually without restriction in 1967); the receipt of valuable paintings and artefacts (gifted by club members and presidents); and visits by many notable dignitaries and public figures.[18] However, Macalpine also chronicles the club as suffering from a series of financial setbacks during this period, exacerbated by the fact that the club's membership size was small and selective. For example, the 1934 Nepal–India earthquake apparently caused great damage to the club's building and necessitated costly repairs, while a large number of expensive renovations were also undertaken in successive decades. Meanwhile, the Second World War resulted in food and alcohol shortages, and an atmosphere of panic followed the bombing of Kolkata by Japan. Macalpine claims that the club's revenues were further dented by strikes by "menial" staff motivated by "anti-British" sentiment, and various excise, prohibition and labour laws. By the late 1960s, the club's finances were so badly hit that it sold half of its premises.[19]

Ray states that the club similarly celebrated its 150th anniversary with a large banquet in 1977 (with the then British High Commissioner to India and the then Governor of West Bengal in attendance),[20] allowed women to become members in 1988, and increased facilities offered to members significantly from the 1990s onwards.[20]

21st century

Sarkar and the contributors to her book generally describe the Bengal Club as continuing with many British-era traditions in the present century.[21] The international press has painted a similar picture, often referring to the club's dress codes, waiters' uniforms, colonial artworks and antiques.[22][23] Some of the contributors to Sarkar's book mention that a significant change in the character of the club in contemporary India has been in the playing of Indian music, in addition to Western music. In recent years, the club has organised concerts by Indian musicians such as Zakir Hussain, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and Shujaat Khan.[24][25] Among other events of note, the club has hosted an award ceremony for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, where The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon and A Distant Shore by Caryl Philips were awarded the top prizes.[26][27]

Members and Presidents

Charles Metcalfe, Governor General of India and club president from 1827 to 1837
Edward Law, Governor General of India and club president from 1842 to 1844

In British India, the club's rules provided for "Honorary Member" status to the Governor-General of India, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Indian Army, the Members of the Council of India, the Judges of the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William, and the Lord Bishop of Calcutta. The rules also provided that all members of the Byculla Club and Madras Club would be considered as Honorary Members of the Bengal Club, and vice versa. The list of members in the 19th century was fairly small and comprised individuals with titles like "Lord", "Sir" and "Hon'ble" next to their name, as well as senior military titles.[9] The Bengal Club's presidents were initially drawn from "the profession of Arms or from the Executive", and then included "a dynasty of Supreme Court Judges".[7] Finch became the club's first president, but only had a brief tenure and was succeeded by Metcalfe, whose tenure lasted for over a decade and resulted in many foundational developments at the club.[8] Following Metcalfe, political figures to have been president included Governors-General of India and other British colonies (such as Lord Ellenborough, John Peter Grant, Sir Henry Bartle Frere and Hugh Lansdown Stephenson). Lawyers and jurists who became president included Sir James William Colville (Advocate General of Bengal and later Chief Justice of Bengal), Sir George Claus Rankin (Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court), and Sir James Tisdall Woodroffe and Thomas Hardwick Cowie (both Advocates General of Bengal). Military officers included Major-General Sir Willoughby Cotton and Lieutenant General Sir James Outram, and civil servants included Sir Clement Hindley. The first president outside of the government, armed forces or judiciary (in 1871) was Charles Marten, co-founder of Thomas, Marten & Co (now J Thomas & Co).[7] Other merchants to have been president included Robert Steel (a shipping merchant and member of the Viceroy's Executive Council),[28] John Johnstone Jardine Keswick (chairman of Jardine, Skinner and Company), and Sir Apcar Alexander Apcar (an Armenian business magnate who also sat on the Imperial Legislative Council). During his presidency, Keswick controversially founded the conservative European and Anglo-Indian Defence Association in 1883, to oppose Lord Ripon's Ilbert Bill.[8] Keswick gave a speech at the club lobbying against the Bill.[4] According to Panckridge, he rose so much in stature among Europeans in India that he was colloquially referred to as "King" Keswick.[7] Another member prominent in the opposition of the Bill was R.C. Macgregor, a barrister and correspondent for the The Times. Ripon criticised Macgregor as "a small Calcutta Barrister...who knows nothing of this country or its affairs except  what he picks up in the Bar Library and the Bengal Club."[29] Many club presidents, including Keswik, Steel and Apcar, also served as presidents of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.[30] Further, Steel was reported to be "probably the finest chess player India has ever seen",[28] and the first World Chess Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz, even dedicated a book to him.[31] Dr William Earnest Fetherstonhaugh was the last club president in British India. He was also the first medical doctor to serve as club president.[32]

In early postcolonial India, V.S. Naipaul described the "box-wallahs" of Kolkata ("the new Indian elite") as working for now-defunct British companies in "the business buildings of Dalhousie Square", and possessing British qualifications. Various writings have used the expression "box-wallah" while referring to the Bengal Club's older generation of members.

Bharati Ray writes that the early generation of Indian Bengal Club members "came from the highest echelons of the corporate world" and "had one common trait —either educated in the United Kingdom or trained in British corporate ethics."[33] In the early decades of postcolonial India, many presidents of the Bengal Club headed British corporations in India that no longer exist in original form.[34][35] Some of these corporations were named by V.S. Naipaul, in his notable description of the "box-wallah culture of Calcutta" in early postcolonial India,[36] and the expression "box-wallah" has been used by various historians while referring to the Bengal Club's members.[37][38] Several prominent Englishmen served as club presidents even in postcolonial India.[39] Examples include Sir Anthony Elkins (former director of the Imperial Bank of India and an advisor to Nehru),[40] Sir Anthony Hayward (chairman of Shaw Wallace and the man behind the Haywards alcohol brand),[41] Sir Alec Ogilvie (chairman of Andrew Yule and Company), and Michael Graham Satow (senior executive with Imperial Chemical Industries and railway conservationist). In 1968, the club witnessed its first Indian president, Dorab Pestonjee Maneckjee Kanga, a member of the Parsi community and managing director of the Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation.[42] A number of Parsis similarly served as president in later years, among them CR Irani (editor-in-chief of The Statesman)[43] and Dara P Antia (founder of the Indian Institute of Metals).[44] One of the last persons of European descent to have served as club (in 1984) was Pearson Surita, an Armenian-origin corporate executive and well-known cricket commentator.[34] In postcolonial India, like in British India, the list Bengal Club presidents has corresponded greatly with the list of Bengal Chamber of Commerce presidents.[45] Some club presidents have also served presidents of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of India (ASSOCHAM) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).[46][47] Outside of the commercial world, at least two barristers (including the present Advocate General of Bengal)[48][49] and at least four medical practitioners[50][51][52][53] have served as club president in postcolonial India.

Racial admission policy

"He did not then realise that an Indian could not be taken to the drawing-room of the Club. ... He expressed his sorrow regarding this prejudice of the local Englishmen..." Mahatma Gandhi, The Story of My Experiments With Truth.[54]
According to some accounts, the father of actress Vivien Leigh lost his membership of the Bengal Club after marrying her mother, a woman of Anglo-Indian descent.

A controversial chapter in the Bengal Club's history is that of racial discrimination. In 1930, Thomas Lowell described the club as "one of the best in the world", but added that the club treated "natives" as "undesirable".[55] Various anecdotes point towards racial discrimination. In the 19th century, noted industrialist Dwarakanath Tagore was denied membership of the club, in spite of being close to the ruling British establishment.[56] His cousin, lawyer Prasanna Kumar Tagore, was similarly denied membership, on the ground that "the personal habits of Bengallee gentlemen cannot in the relaxing moments of convivial intercourse be found agreeable to the rest of the members."[57] Soorjo Coomar Goodeve Chuckerbutty, a professor of medicine and a Member of the Royal College of Surgeons, was reportedly blackballed after he applied to be a member. The incident received widespread press coverage, though with opinions divided between support[58] and condemnation[59] of the club. In the 19th century, the well-known industrialist Sir Rajendra Nath Mookerjee had been invited to the club by Lord Minto, then Viceroy of India. Rather than allowing Mookherjee inside, the club authorities erected a tent on the lawn for him to dine in.[60] It has also been claimed that Ernest Richard Hartley, a British businessman and father of the actress Vivien Leigh, was effectively expelled from the club for marrying a woman of of Anglo-Indian descent.[61][62]

Portrait of Dwarakanath Tagore inside the Bengal Club (installed in postcolonial India). Tagore was denied membership of the club in British India.

In the 20th century, Mahatma Gandhi had been invited to the club by John Ellerthorpe, a correspondent of The Daily Telegraph who was staying at the club. On Gandhi's arrival, Ellerthorpe was informed that Indians were not allowed inside the club's drawing-room. He thus took Gandhi to his lodgings at the club instead.[54] Closer to Indian independence, in The Discovery of India, Jawaharlal Nehru criticised the Bengal Club for discriminating against Indians while still using the term "Bengal" in its name.[63] Echoing Nehru, the then Governor-General of India, Lord Mountbatten, conveyed that either the club ought to permit Indians as members or rename itself to the "United Kingdom Club".[64] However, even after independence, until 1958, the club did not admit Indians as members. Macalpine writes that an extraordinary general meeting of the club was held in 1959, where "an overwhelming majority of members voted conclusively" to amend the policy, amidst "pressure from outside".[65] According to The Times, the then government of West Bengal had allegedly threatened to revoke the club's alcohol licence if it did not admit Indians as members. The report also identified other colonial-era clubs in the city practising racial discrimination, and thus the Bengal Club was not singular in this respect.[66] In August 1959, the Home Minister of India, Govind Ballabh Pant, informed Parliament that the Bengal Club had "recently admitted some Indians as members."[67]

An apparent exception to the club's discriminatory practices occurred in 1934, when Aga Khan III dined at the club as a guest of Sir Edward Benthall, a Member of the Bengal Legislative Assembly and former Governor of the Imperial Bank of India.[68] Princess Abida Sultan is quoted as saying, apparently in reference to the visit, that "the British were becoming more sensible" about allowing Indians to physically enter "white man's clubs" during this period.[69] Furthermore, in postcolonial India, when Indians were still not being admitted as members, C. Rajagopalachari and Kailash Nath Katju were hosted for tea by the club,[70] while Nehru lunched with the club's president and committee members at their invitation.[71][72][73] In 1953, members of the landmark British Mount Everest expedition were welcomed at a reception hosted by the Bengal Club soon after their feat. The contingent not only included Sir Edmund Hillary and expedition leader Sir John Hunt, but also Tenzing Norgay.[74][75]

In the 1990s, as an ostensible symbol of change, a portrait of Dwarakanath Tagore was installed inside the club, sharing space with portraits of notable Englishmen from British India.

Relocation of premises

The Bengal Club's Chowringhee building (now demolished).
Plaque at the club's entrance

The Bengal Club has shifted its premises throughout its history.[76] In 1827, the Club was housed in a four-storeyed building in Esplanade, known as Gordon’s Buildings (now demolished), for a rent of Rupees 800 every month.[7] The "Agency House Crisis" (a major financial crisis from 1829 to 1833, linked to the indigo trade)[77][78] affected the club severely. Unable to pay rent, the club shifted to a house in Tank Square (now known as Dalhousie Square). In 1845, with its finances improving, the club shifted to a building in Russell Street, which had served as Macaulay’s residence in India. The original owner of the land was Kaliprasanna Singha, a well-known writer and philanthropist.[7] The club later expanded to a new, adjacent building in Chowringhee[38] The new building was designed by Vincent Esch and formally opened in 1911.[7]

In the 1960s, the club ran into heavy debt, as "class and race exclusivity had shrunk the membership".[38] Rather than expanding the club's membership to raise revenues, the club took the decision to maintain its rarefied membership and sell the Chowringhee building to Grindlay’s Bank, retaining only the Russell Street premises. Macalpine writes that the sale of the Chowringhee building to Grindlay's was "manna from heaven" for the club from a financial standpoint.[79] However, the Indian government later refused permission to Grindlay's to the use the Chowringhee building. Instead, the government forced the bank to sell the building ("reportedly for a song") to Benoy Kumar Chatterjee, a businessman with a controversial reputation.[80] Chatterjee, in violation of building laws,[80][81] demolished the Chowringhee building and built a skyscraper, the Chatterjee International Centre. In Britain, The Times reacted to the demolition by remarking: "The sun has set on the imperial splendour of the Bengal Club."[82] Historian David Gilmour contends that the Chowringhee building "might have survived" if the club had accepted Indians as members after Independence.[2] Meanwhile, heritage conservationists have cited the demolition of the building ("as grand as the grandest seafront hotel")[38] as a cautionary tale.[83]

According to oral legend, a king cobra was spotted by construction workers when the Tank Square premises were being built. The workers, regarding the creature as the sacred guardian of the place, refused to continue their work. A Hindu priest was then brought to the premises to perform rituals and propitiate the snake with milk. The snake eventually left the premises and work resumed. In acknowledgement of the incident, the club adopted the symbol of a king cobra as its logo in British India.[84][85]

Notable Guests and Visitors

Edward VIII
Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The Bengal Club has hosted a number of prominent visitors and guests. In colonial India, many of them had grand banquets held in their honour and some also stayed at the club. In British India, royal visitors and guests at the club included Leopold II (then styled as the Duke of Brabant);[86] Prince Albert Victor;[87] Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught (twice);[87] [88] Archduke Franz Ferdinand;[89] Grand Duke Boris Vladimirovich; [90] Carol II (then Crown Prince of Romania);[91] Edward VIII (then Prince of Wales);[92] [7] and Aga Khan III.[93] In postcolonial India, they have included Prince Philip (twice);[94] [95] Prince Charles;[20] Prince Edward;[96] and Prince Andrew,.[97] In British India, political, diplomatic and military visitors and guests at the club included Danish war hero Steen Andersen Bille;[98] American Civil War general Robert Ogden Tyler;[99] various Governors General of India;[100] Edwin Montagu;[101] Sir Patrick Duncan ;[102][103] the members of the Simon Commission,[104] Sir Stanley Jackson;[105] and Sir William Slim.[106][107] In postcolonial India, they have included C. Rajagopalachari;[108] Nehru;[109][110] President V.V. Giri;[20] various British High Commissioners ;[111][112][113] a British parliamentary delegation;[114][115] and Michael Russell;[116] Other visitors and guests have included cricketer Arthur Gilligan (who captained a team of the Marylebone Cricket Club during a historic tour in the 1920s).[117] and footballer Pelé (who played for the New York Cosmos in Kolkata in 1977).[20]

Notable Speakers

Gopalkrishna Gandhi (inset) launching the memoirs of Amartya Sen at a Bengal Club Library Talk event. The event was held online, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Bengal Club has hosted numerous writers and scholars as part of a "Library Talk" series,[118] such as Nobel laureates Amartya Sen,[63][119] Ben Feringa,[120] Abhijit Banerjee[121][122] and Esther Duflo;[123] literary and postcolonial theorist Gayatri Spivak;[124] economist Kaushik Basu;[125] Indologist Wendy Doniger;[126] and author Jeffrey Archer. [127] Other well-known speakers hosted by the club have included those invited as part of its annual panel discussion on national politics (typically Members of Parliament),[128] as well as those invited to deliver an annual lecture on cricket in honour of Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, such as Imran Khan, David Gower, Greg Chappell and Sir Clive Lloyd.[129]

Club Facilities and Cuisine

One of the Bengal Club's dining rooms

Food historian Colleen Taylor Sen credits the Bengal Club with pioneering and popularising the masala omelette in British India.[130] At one point, the club supposedly housed "four cooks who made nothing but omelettes all day long."[131] In modern times, various books have discussed the the club's culinary history and shared some of its well-known recipes.[132][133] While Ray writes that the club was traditionally known as a "lunch club",[20] the club's present facilities include accommodation rooms, banquet halls, bars, lounges, dining rooms, conference rooms, a library, and indoor sports facilities.

Literary References to the Bengal Club

Rudyard Kipling

The Bengal Club has been mentioned in novels and non-fiction writings by many renowned British and Indian writers.[134] The descriptions range from those that paint the club in positive light (for example, Rumer Godden described the club as serving "the best food east of Suez" in one of her novels)[135] to those that highlight its darker aspects (for example, W. Somerset Maugham claims in a travelogue that Prince Azam Jah had said to him: "In the Bengal Club at Calcutta they don't allow dogs or Indians").[136] In many novels and short stories, the club has been mentioned in a humorous or ironic way, as a meeting place for eccentric aristocratic gentlemen. Such examples include the Booker-prize winning novel The Siege of Krishnapur by J.G. Farrell, A Division of the Spoils by Paul Scott, A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth, and Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh.[134] Similarly, among non-fiction works, Rudyard Kipling caricatured the Bengal Club's patrons in his travel diaries.[137] In Bengali literature, Satyajit Ray has referred to the club in two short stories and Sunil Gangopadhyay has discussed the club's historical origins in his non-fiction work Those Days, winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award.[134] One of Ray's short stories refers to a fictitious Parsi member of the Bengal Club, apparently corresponding with the above-mentioned history of the club being patronised by the Parsi community in postcolonial India.

Satyajit Ray mentioned the Bengal Club in two short stories, one alluding to the club's Parsi membership.

An illustrative list of works mentioning the Bengal Club is given below:

Works of fiction:

Works of non-fiction

Reciprocal Clubs

The Bengal Club's website lists various clubs in India and overseas as among its affiliate clubs.[151] In the United Kingdom, they include the Carlton Club, the Traveller’s Club and the National Liberal Club in London, as well as the Royal Scots Club in Edinburgh. In the United States, they include the Cosmos Club in Washington DC, the St Botolph Club in Boston, the Union League Club in Chicago, and the Princeton Club and Cornell Club in New York. Affiliated clubs elsewhere include the Athenaeum Club in Melbourne, the Northern Club in Auckland, the Tanglin Club in Singapore and the Hong Kong Club. The Bengal Club's affiliate clubs in India include four in Mumbai (the Royal Willingdon Sports Club, the Bombay Gymkhana, the Royal Bombay Yacht Club and the Cricket Club of India); one in Delhi (the Delhi Gymkhana), one in Chennai (the Madras Club); one in Bengaluru (the Bangalore Club); and one in Hyderabad (the Secunderabad Club).[152]

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Further Reading

  • Cohen, B. B. (2015). In the Club: Associational Life in Colonial South Asia. United Kingdom: Manchester University Press.
  • Jones, S. (1992). Merchants of the Raj: British Managing Agency Houses in Calcutta Yesterday and Today. United Kingdom: Palgrave Macmillan UK.
  • Macalpine, R.I. (1970). The Bengal Club (1927-70). The Bengal Club 1827-1970 (1997 Reprint ed.). Calcutta: The Bengal Club Ltd.
  • Marks, Copeland (1999). Indian & Chinese Cooking from the Himalayan Rim. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-59077-449-6.
  • Panckridge, H. R. (1927). A Short History Of The Bengal Club. Calcutta: The Bengal Club Ltd.
  • Ray, Arabinda (2000). A History of The Bengal Club (1970-2000). Calcutta: The Bengal Club Ltd.
  • Sarkar, Malabika (ed.) (2006). The Bengal Club in History. Calcutta: The Bengal Club Ltd.
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