Whatever be Sanjeev Sanyal’s reasons for dissing the “adda intellectual”, there is no disputing the uniqueness of that time-honoured Bengali tradition. Sure, it comprises mostly what Sanyal describes as “sitting around smoking and sipping your old monk and passing judgement on the rest of the world, rather than doing anything”. But isn't that a mite better than desperately questioning random strangers about your parentage, as is common in Delhi?
Indeed, the adda could only happen in Kolkata among the major metros of India. Mumbai is too mercantile, its denizens in too much of a hurry for anyone to sit around discussing the problems of the world. In any case, given the price of every inch of real estate in the maximum city, there is simply no place for a bunch of people to settle down for a conversation.
Almost because the real finishing touch comes only after a few of the protagonists have got into an almighty row over an issue that will leave the initiated, perplexed. In my time I have seen two IITians break off a long friendship and swear never to talk to each other over whether Franz Beckenbaur or Johan Cruyff was the more complete footballer. Such extreme reactions though are rare and generally the argument ends by close of the session or is suspended till the next meeting.
Sanyal, of course, is an illustrious Bengali. Besides being an economist and a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, he’s also a popular historian. But in this case he may have erred in linking the state’s recent industrial decadence to the adda, simply because the phenomenon predates present-day Bengal. Its origins are engulfed in mystery but certainly date back hundreds of years which is why it is such an integral part of the Bengali identity.
While there isn’t any clinching evidence available, it isn't unreasonable to imagine that Jagadish Chandra Bose quite liked his bikeler adda (evening adda) before going back to work on wireless telecommunication. Of more recent vintage are the coffee house sessions of Satyajit Ray and his friends at the Coffee House on College Street. Sanyal, in fact, concedes that till the 1970s, Kolkata was the most important economic hub in India, indeed one of the most important industrial hubs in Asia. That it lost its way because of the socialism and communism of the Jyoti Basu era is undoubted. But why blame the harmless adda for it?
To the extent that the adda is basically a casual social space for conversation and connection, it transcends geographical boundaries. Spain, for instance, has its equivalent in tertulias which are similarly informal gatherings often held in cafes or bars, where people come together to chat about events around them.
Other countries have their versions. The one big difference is that often these centre around food and drink. Thus, the Cha chaan teng of Hong Kong are teahouses that serve as popular venues for casual meetings where people catch up with friends, over a cup of tea and some snacks. Similarly, in Japan there are the Izakayas which are informal pubs, popular as after-work spots where colleagues and friends unwind, chat, and enjoy drinks and small plates of food.
By contrast, food isn't an essential part of the Bengali adda. It is actually closest in spirit to its French version of groups of intellectuals and artists, at open air cafes chatting over their espressos.
The great Indian linguist, educationist and litterateur Suniti Kumar Chattopadhyay translated adda as “a place” for “careless talk with boon companions” or “the chats of intimate friends”. That perfect definition leaves no room for blame.
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