In the City of Joy, where food is a religion by itself, the lockdown hasn’t dampened the enthusiasm of its people to shop for fish and groceries as they try to make the most of the pre-noon hours when shops and stalls are open.
On Monday and also on Tuesday — the Bengali New Year — the neighbourhood markets remained particularly packed, with women shoppers outnumbering men in many places. With eating out — a common practice on this special day — ruled out, families were seeking to recreate a restaurant-like ambience at home by decorating their dining tables with delicacies.
“The Kasba market seemed to have been displaced and relocated on the main thoroughfare,” said Ballygunge-resident Saborni Paul, a resident doctor at a major hospital who took time off on Tuesday from her now-unpredictable hospital hours so that she could stock up. “Vegetable vendors occupied almost all conceivable space, spreading their wares out in small pre-measured bundles to save time. Business was sharp and brisk as there was no time to be lost,” she added.
“The chicken stalls were virtually vacant. The pork stall was open and well stocked but few takers for pork too. The fish market looked promising, there was some fresh catch. People were jostling — forget social distancing — to get the best pieces,” Dr. Paul said.
According to Golf Garden resident Ranjini Guha, who teaches history at Gourmohan Sachin Mondal College located on the outskirts of Kolkata, the visit to the local market was the “only breath of fresh air, a sprinkling of freedom” for most people. “Bored men of the house, tensed women of the family, elderly people living alone, watchmen carrying long lists of groceries — these are the people I mostly come across,” Ms. Guha, who is also a food blogger, said about her routine visits to the Lords Bakery market.
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“Since markets are open till 11 a.m., people are eager to stock up, to the extent it can also be called hoarding. During my first visit after the lockdown, there were no norms of social distancing being maintained, very few masks around. Things are somewhat better now. This morning, the chicken got sold off very fast. People wanted a variety of cuts too. There was not a large variety of fish but whatever was there was fresh,” Ms. Guha said.
“On Tuesday, I also drove to the Lake Market to pick up filter coffee and ingredients for south Indian dishes. It was so organised that it did not seem like our Kolkata — the transaction was without physical contact in most shops,” she added.
Suparna Saha, a banker who has her son visiting from Bengaluru, went to a supermarket in South City Mall to stock up and also prepare special meals for Tuesday. “The visit was pleasant,” Ms. Saha said. “The carts were being sanitised, stocks were plenty, not many were allowed together. In fact I never saw so much butter stocked up in the chill zone. At the cash counters, customers were encouraged to pick up their own stuff and put them in bags.”
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Added Ms. Guha: “It is heartening to see how local shops are serving our needs. I did not feel it was a lockdown when I visited the market this morning. It did not feel there was an unknown danger lurking around. It felt there was an oncoming festival and people were stocking up. I had carried my hand sanitiser and as I was rubbing my hands after every monetary transaction, people looked at me with surprise. In fact one of them asked me whether I had just returned from abroad.”
