Kolkata in the media explained

Several fiction, non-fiction and cinemas were based on Kolkata or depicted Kolkata from certain point of views. Some of such works are listed here.

Travelogues

• The Great Railway Bazaar (Paul Theroux)
• Following the Equator (Mark Twain)

Books

• Around the World in Eighty Days
• Calcutta (Geoffrey Moorhouse)
• City of the Dreadful Night and American Tales (Rudyard Kipling) - Where Kolkata is called as the titular city^[1]
• City of Joy (Dominique Lapierre) - a slum within Kolkata is called the City of Joy^[2]
• Volumes 1 & 2 (ed. Sukanta Chaudhuri)
• Calcutta - City of Palaces: A Survey of the City in the Days of the East India Company 1690–1858. (Jeremiah P. Losty)
• Calcutta 1981 (ed. Jean Racine)

Films set in Kolkata

Bengali films

• Nagarik - The Citizen (Ritwik Ghatak) (1952 - Released 1977)
• Bari Theke Paliye - The Runaway (Ritwik Ghatak) (1958)
• Mahanagar - The Big City (Satyajit Ray) (1963)
• Apanjan - (Tapan Sinha) (1968)
• Pratidwandi - The Adversary (Satyajit Ray) (1970)
• Seemabaddha - Company Limited (Satyajit Ray) (1971)
• Interview (Mrinal Sen) (1971)
• Calcutta 71 (Mrinal Sen) (1972)
• Padatik - The Guerilla Fighter (Mrinal Sen) (1973)
• Jukti Takko Aar Gappo - Logic, Debate and Story (Ritwik Ghatak) (1974)
• Jana Aranya - The Middleman (Satyajit Ray) (1976)
• Ek Din Pratidin - And Quiet Rolls the Day (Mrinal Sen) (1979)
• Grihajuddha - Crossroads (Buddhadev Dasgupta) (1982)
• Paroma - The Ultimate Woman Aparna Sen (1984)
• Agantuk - The Stranger (Satyajit Ray) (1991)
• Antareen - The Confined (Mrinal Sen) (1993)
• Unishe April - Nineteenth April(Rituparno Ghosh) (1994)
• Dahan - Crossfire (Rituparno Ghosh) (1997)
• Chokher Bali - Sand in the Eye (Rituparno Ghosh) (2003)
• Kaalbela - Calcutta My Love (Goutam Ghose) (2009)
• Houseful (Bappaditya Bandopadhyay (2009)
• Mahanagar@Kolkata (Suman Mukhopadhyay) (2009)
• 033 (Birsa Dasgupta) (2010)
• Ekti Tarar Khonje - Stars Never Sleep (Abhik Mukhopadhyay) (2010)
• Gorosthaney Sabdhan (Sandip Ray) (2010)
• Autograph (Srijit Mukherji) (2010)

English films

• The River (1951 film) (Jean Renoir)
• 36 Chowringhee Lane (Aparna Sen)
• City of Joy (Roland Joffe)
• Citi Life - Calcutta My El Dorado (Mrinal Sen)
• 10 Days in Calcutta (Gerhard Hauff)
• Bow Barracks Forever (Anjan Dutt)
• Call Cutta (Anjan Dutt)
• 15 Park Avenue (Aparna Sen)
• The Waiting City - According to the production notes the city acts as a character showing its colonial history and ancient historical relics^[3]
• The Last Lear
• The Avengers, Bruce Banner's hide-out where Natasha Romanoff recruits him for the Avengers
• Memories in March
• Lion starring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman
• The Namesake

French films

• Calcutta (Louis Malle)
• The Bengali Night(La Nuit Bengali)

Tamil films

Vedalam

Telugu films

• Naayak
• Padi Padi Leche Manasu

Malayalam Films

• Vasthuhara
• Calcutta News
• Neelakasham Pachakadal Chuvanna Bhoomi

Hindi films

• Howrah Bridge
• Pyaasa
• Amar Prem
• Do Bigha Zameen
• Devdas (1955)
• Devdas (2002)
• Ram Teri Ganga Maili
• Calcutta Mail
• Hey Ram
• Do Anjaane
• Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa
• Morning Walk
• Parineeta
• Vicky Donor
• Yuva
• Raincoat
• Kahaani (2012)
• Barfi!
• I Am
• Khushi
• Love Aaj Kal
• Calcutta Mail
• Gunday
• Badmaash Company
• Kaminey
• Michael by Ribhu Dasgupta
• Lootera
• No One Killed Jessica
• Special 26
• Bullet Raja
• Kolkata Junction
• Babumoshai Bandookbaaz
• Piku
• Highway
• Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!
• Hamari Adhuri Kahani
• Tamasha
• Te3n
• Kahaani 2
• Meri Pyaari Bindu
• Jagga Jasoos
• Pari
• Dhadak
• Chippa

Notes and References

1. News: Graham . Victoria . India's Largest City Is Ultimate Urban Nightmare : Calcutta Hits Rock Bottom of Black Hole . 27 February 2024 . Los Angeles Times . 17 March 1985.
2. News: Dietrich . Jeff . The City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre; translated by Kathryn Spink (Doubleday: $17.95; 464 pp.) . 27 February 2024 . Los Angeles Times . 24 November 1985.
3. Book: India and Australia: Bridging Different Worlds . 2011 . Readworthy Publications . 9789350180808 . 186 . 27 February 2024.