Kolkata: Glimpses of an imperial city

The Mullicks of Sovabazar out for a spin in their customised carriage drawn by a zebra. The Mullicks were bullion merchants and fabulously wealthy. The spectacular Marble Palace, a major tourist attraction in north Kolkata, was built by a Mullick   

Lord Wavell, viceroy and governor-general (1943-47), at a soup kitchen for famine victims. Around three million people died in the ‘Great Bengal Famine of 1943’ caused by the diversion of grain to England, which was fighting World War II, and unchecked hoarding

Kolkata remains the only Indian city with a functional tram service. The British laid the first lines, 2.4km long, in 1873. Drawn by horse initially, the system was electrified in 1900. With fares starting at Rs 6, it remains the best way to get around central Kolkata

Wrestlers and bodybuilders practice at an akhada in Mullick Ghat on the banks of the Hooghly, not too far from Howrah Bridge. Though little known, the city has a long history of akhadas, some go back 200 years

Tradition and technology come together as women take a groufie after the customary sindur khela on Vijayadashami, the last day of Durga puja, when the goddess is ceremoniously bid adieu before the effigy is immersed in the river Hooghly

Two members of the current generation of Mullicks, one of the city’s legendary wealthy families, in their private quarters of the Marble Palace. Built in 1835 by Raja Rajendra Mullick, its corridors are choc-a-bloc with European, Chinese and Japanese objets d’art