Nawab Wajid Ali Shah in Exile This area is connected to the history of Nawab
Wajid Ali Shah, eleventh and last
King of Oudh, who after being ousted by the
East India Company, made Garden Reach his refuge. Accompanied by his close relatives, musicians, cooks and animals from his menagerie, he came ashore at Bichali Ghat near
Metiabruz on 13 May 1856. A year later when the
Indian Rebellion of 1857 spread to
Lucknow and the rebelling
sepoys installed one of his sons to the throne of
Awadh, Wajid Ali Shah was imprisoned in
Fort William by the East India Company along with his Prime Minister, due to the fear that he could become a rallying figure for the rebellion.
H.E.A. Cotton wrote that "on Panic Sunday (June 14, 1857), there was wide spread apprehension among the white inhabitants of Kolkata because he had one, two, three thousand (no one knew) armed men under him". After his release from Fort William, he was "allotted" a building called
BNR House, in Garden Reach-
BNR Colony area, now a part of headquarters of
South-Eastern Railway, Kolkata. at Sibtainbad Imambara, Metiabruz Heartbroken after leaving
Lucknow, he tried to carve out a miniature of Lucknow in Metiabruz. In his exile in Metiabruz, complete with grand Islamic structures and cultural hubs, he arranged dance and music events and nurtured his love of poetry and the arts. He kept the sweet memories of his Lucknow alive by recreating the musical evenings of his
Qaisarbagh Baradari. The king spent his life lavishly out of his income of 12
lakhs rupees per annum and a
second Lucknow arose in this area. The
Imambaras he created stands at the centre of Metiabruz. He established a zoo of exotic animals,
Kabootarbazi (
pigeon flying),
Kite flying and brought along secret recipes from royal kitchens to feed the entourage. His royal chefs knew the recipes of the Awadhi Kitchen, which arrived in Kolkata with them. Awadhi cuisine was distinguished by its delicious
biryani, a dish of spiced rice and meat that was popular for its aromatic richness and flavour balance. Due to a shortage of funds following the banishment, the cooks started using potatoes and eggs instead of a large quantity of meat to maintain the royalty. These skilled chefs adapted their traditional recipes to suit the local taste buds, resulting in the birth of
Kolkata Biryani.
Surinaam Ghat Owned by the
Port Trust of India this
Ghat is situated at the eastern bank of
Hooghly River near
Kolkata Port. It is named after the South American
Caribbean country
Suriname commemorating the
indentured migration of Indian workers from this ghat to that country. A total of 64 sailing ships carried 34,300 workers to the country from 1873 to 1917. Suriname ghat is also popularly known as
Balu Ghat. In the Honour of Indian indentured workers who had migrated to
Suriname, an aluminium statue of a plainly-dressed couple carrying a potli which symbolizes the first Indian man and woman to set foot on Suriname was set up as a memorial. It was unveiled by Union External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj on 7 October 2015. The statue is a replica of the Baba and Mai monument in
Paramaribo, Suriname's capital and is gifted by the government of Suriname. ==Geography==