While Chittaranjan Park (CR Park if you’re in a rush) may be the go-to destination for all those with a pandal-hopping itinerary during Pujo season, the neighbourhood remains a hotbed of activity during the rest of the year. You know what they say about being plenty of fish in the sea; well, CR Park is home to Delhi’s largest fish market.
This should come as no surprise in a colony dominated by Bengalis of all persuasions, having to become the destination of a vast exodus of people displaced by the partitioning of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in the late 1940s and early ’50s. Indeed, the area was formerly known as EPDP Colony, the acronym standing for East Pakistan Displaced Persons; it was then briefly known as Purbachal before coming into its own as CR Park.
Turning to more contemporary times, CR Park has naturally become a centrepiece of Bengali culture in the Capital, with its main markets (of which there are four in number) naturally dominated by all things food, with all courses from appetizers to dessert available. And there are a LOT of dessert options.
Sweet shops abound on all sides, with several having become household names, whether you’re Bengali, or not. Annapurna Sweet House and Tara Shankar Sweets are among the famous and serve up a veritable dentist’s bill of traditional mithai, from Mishti Doi to Rajbhog and Roshogulla to Chomchom to perhaps the king of Bengali sweets, Shondesh. Every local (and frequent visitor) has their own choice favourite sweet as well as sweet shop. If you ever have an hour to kill, go to CR Park in the evening and ask a passing local or two about which shop has the best Roshogulla. This will more often than not lead to long, rambling, sometimes acrimonious debate and discussion, which at least has the advantage of leaving you hungrier than ever, after you’ve slunk off to the sweet shop suggested by the loudest voice.
Speaking of evenings, this is the time that the markets at CR Park come truly alive, with street vendors and food stalls popping up all around, presumably to give their brick-and-mortar compatriots some respite. On offer is a mind-boggling and gut-lining array of foods of and for every taste, texture and temperature. Kolkata has always been famous for its rolls, so naturally, there are dime-a-dozen stalls serving those. Fried fish and mutton chops as well as cutlets? Check. Kolkata-style biryani? Of course. Puchki (basically gol gappas)? You better believe it.
The permanent restaurants are also fairly reasonably priced, comprising simple, fuss-free interiors serving up platters of food. Maa Tara, Dadu Cutlet Shop, Anna Purna Hotel, and Amar Shonar Bangla are some of the most established restaurants, having been around for decades, and dishing out traditional Bengali fare.
In the background of all this is the caterwauling of the fish merchants, advertising their wares. In perhaps the most Delhi thing ever, we came across an immaculately dressed Sikh gentleman whom we observed doing the round of several fishmongers, before settling on one. “I’m preparing Amritsari Fish Tikkas for a party at my place over the weekend. So naturally, the fish market here in CR Park is the best to get my bhetki from,” says Karanjit Bedi. Amen.