Funds crunch cripples College St Coffee House

Funds crunch cripples College St Coffee House

Once an oasis for coffee lovers and intellectuals, the College street Coffee House is now in a shambles due to lack of maintenance. Our correspondent provide an overview

Satrajit Sen and Jahirul Haque

The Coffee House at College Street is now a mere shadow of its glorious past. Shorn of the glamour, the Coffee House lacks upkeep and maintenance. But such is the magic of this heritage site that the young and the old still flock to this place - a rendezvous of friends past and present. From gossips, addas, fun chats, intellectual discussions, brainstorming sessions by city elite, Coffee House has carved a niche in the hearts of culture-savvy Kolkatans. And those who feel the importance and value of the place realise a speedy renovation work and a quick facelift are the need of the hour. The Coffee House is now under the dotage of the All India Coffee Workers’ Co-operative Society. But according to many, the society has failed to take up initiatives to bring it at par with world-famous coffee joints. “The concerned people need to shrug off their inertia and plunge headlong into a speedy recovery of the lost glory of the heritage site,” said Subhojit Sarkar, a student of Kolkata Medical College & Hospital. Others are equally vocal regarding the crying need to renovate the old building. And in case there is a dearth of funds, the authorities must hand over the project to private hands. What the society says According to the All India Coffee Workers’ Co-operative Society, it is going through a huge financial crunch that has kept them from undertaking immediate renovation work. “It is impossible for us to take up the revamping process by ourselves. We want some private or government concern to help us out with it,” said Subhas Ganguly, accountant of the society. According to him, the plan is at a nascent stage and they are yet to advertise inviting companies to help them out with the project. Though a few companies have already approached the society with offers to renovate the age-old Coffee House of Kolkata, the offers were thwarted due to reasons best known to them. “Companies like the Asian Paints and many others had approached us with the renovation offer. But there was a clash of norms as their conditions did not match ours,” said Dipankar Das Gupta, another accountant of the society.

The society, though is not willing to revamp the entire Coffee House building, it has plans of restoring the pristine look to the old world structure. “We only want to reconstruct the walls and beautify the looks without much demolition. The huge Victorian bastions, the long winding stairs and the intricate craft work will be retained to make the visitors feel the age and warmth of the almost mythic building,” said Das Gupta.

History of the Coffee House building

The Coffee House has a rich historical and cultural lineage. Before Independence, the place was famous as Albert Hall. Dignitaries like Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose were frequent visitors to the place. According to the society, the Coffee Board opened its office there in 1942. At that time Bengalis were not too keen on coffee and with a view to promoting this drink among the people of Kolkata, the Coffee Board opened an outlet there. “Since then, the place has been famous for its rich coffee and intellectual get-togethers,” said Ganguly.

In 1958, the Coffee Board decided to shut down its office and close the outlet. “Personalities like Prof Nirmal Bhattacharya, Sunil Ganguly approached the then chief minister BC Roy not to shut down the place. Roy then acquired the place and started the Coffee House Co-operative society,” informed Ganguly. Since then, the place has been a hub of intellectuals.

The present state

At present, the Coffee House is in a shambles. Despite on the verge of completing 50 years, the age-old hub is in desperate need for renovation. “We are going to complete 50 years next year. But alas, the renovation work is still pending. We need some funds for the massive revamp project,” rued Ganguly.

Though on an average basis the Coffee House enjoys an income of Rs 22,000 to Rs 24,000 per day, according to the society, the amount varies from day to day and from season to season. “During vacations, the population gets thin as students from colleges and universities mostly come here for addas and fast food,” said Das Gupta.

But braving all odds, the society is still planning a grand celebration on the the Coffee House’s fiftieth b’day bash. “Though we have not yet planned anything in pen and paper, we are, indeed, looking forward to a a grand celebration,” said Ganguly.

What the people say

Coffee House to Kolkatans is like an oasis in a desert. No one can deny the mystic feeling when one climbs the stairs of the hallowed building and drowns in the cacophony of sounds that surge like tidal waves in the spacious rooms of the oldest coffee joint in the city. Not only the city people but even foreigners take time to peep into one of the oldest wonders of Kolkata. Andrew Peters, a resident of UK, said: “I heard about Coffee House from my grandpa who was born in Kolkata. From then onwards, I was interested in visiting the place of my dreams.” In fact, many foreigners to the city feel that the Coffee House, if revamped, will definitely add a leaven to the academic charm of the College Street area. It will not only stand as one of the most revered heritage sites of the city, but also woo people from afar for a sip of coffee in an oasis of camaraderie.

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