Ask Dr. Claus Heimes about his first month in Kolkata and the answers come with a little bit of everything -curious strangers, chaotic celebrations, Chinese food, Bengali flavours, old streets and plenty of traffic. Four weeks into his new posting, the Goethe-Institut director is getting to know the city not through a checklist, but through its everyday quirks and unexpected encounters. Ahead of his first Durga Puja in the city, Heimes sat down with us for a festive shoot and conversation, sharing his early impressions of Kolkata, the cultural discoveries he is making and what he is most looking forward to as the city gears up for its biggest celebration.
‘Even the strangers are not shy to say hello’
Kolkata has grown for 250 years to be a gigantic city, whereas Bangalore has exploded for 30 years. ” He recalls navigating Bengaluru’s roads to illustrate the difference in urban planning. So that’s one thing. “So that’s something totally different, I think, the pure joy and spontaneity, which you could call also chaos, and the organized, which you might call over-organized in Germany. Because there are a lot of old and new, innovative institutions of considerable size and of very high knowledge — very, very good at what they are doing, actually >My colleagues have made a lot of Durga Puja plans for me, and they have told me about it, and things like biryani and all those things I really enjoy.” >I am getting to know a lot of people from the cultural scene, which is very exciting for me.
I have to learn a lot, but my colleagues have been a wonderful help in getting me introduced to the city and its major stakeholders – on what’s on his agenda while he is here A city shaped by time After just four weeks in Kolkata, Dr.
Are you here with family?’” he says. I think that is something I did not expect,” he says. Kolkata, he says, feels somewhat more fluid by comparison. “There is a lot of traffic here, of course, but I have the feeling it is nothing compared to a city that exploded in 30 years, like Bangalore. ” For him, the difference lies in how the cities evolved: “Otherwise, it feels that traffic is a bit better here because the streets are better planned. Claus Heimes says he would prefer to discover Kolkata without too much of a plan. “That’s something that I did in Bangalore — I just went off walking. ” In Kolkata, too, he says he might only plan where to begin.
What has stood out to Dr. Claus Heimes is Kolkata’s easy warmth and the openness with which people strike up conversations. Compared with the more reserved social interactions he has experienced in Europe, he finds the city’s curiosity refreshing. “People come straight up to you and ask you things. That is not very common in Europe, where people are more reserved and do not go up front to you and ask you, ‘How long have you been in India? Have you been in India before? For him, that willingness to engage is part of what makes Kolkata distinctive. “People don’t hesitate to ask you. They seem to be very open and curious. Between spontaneity and structure For Dr. Claus Heimes, the cultural contrast between Germany and Kolkata becomes especially visible when a celebration moves beyond organized venues and into the streets. Germany, he notes, has its own strong traditions, community festivals and public celebrations, but they tend to follow a more defined structure. In Kolkata, he finds something more spontaneous, a sense that the city itself becomes part of the celebration. “We don’t have so much things that are like in the public space. You have public space things but then they’re more organized and streamlined, so to say. But here everybody’s just going on the street and celebrating. And that is not so usual. He sees that difference not simply as a question of order, but of temperament, the ease with which people here occupy public spaces, celebrate collectively and allow festivities to unfold organically. Kolkata’s culinary surprises Kolkata’s food scene has surprised Dr. Claus Heimes with its sheer range, from neighbourhood eateries to cuisines from across the world. “It is, so to say, the variety — for instance, of restaurants, of things to eat, places to go. It is very differentiated and diverse. Having spent five years in China, he was particularly delighted to discover the city’s Chinese food offerings. “You know, I’ve been to China for five years and I love the Chinese cuisine, and I did not expect there to be so much Chinese food here. It’s so good. But Bengali food has made its own impression too. “I adore what you can do with fish and prawns. That is really good. But since I’ve never been to Durga Puja, I cannot really conceive what that means. It must be a time of craziness, joy and celebration. So, that’s something that I’m very eager to see > I need to understand what the institute has done in previous years and what people in the cultural sphere are interested in, their point of view when it comes to institutions, funding, education and all that. Claus Heimes has already been observing how the city’s history is reflected in its urban landscape. Comparing it with his experience of Bengaluru, he feels Kolkata’s older, more gradual growth gives its streets a different rhythm. “Though I have been in Kolkata only for four weeks, I have the feeling that the city has grown more naturally. “When I went from my house in Bangalore to the airport, I had to go through tiny little streets, with no lights, thinking, ‘Where are we going?’ — and that was the normal way to get to the airport. It once took me two hours to get there. They didn’t grow by accident; they didn’t grow by chance. Box: His kind of Kolkata day If given a day away from official engagements, Dr. “First I would wait for the lower temperatures. And then I would probably try to find places, also just walking, that might be impressive, that might be unexpected. I don’t know where I’m ending in two hours of walking, right? It is a style of exploration he has tried before in Bengaluru. “Maybe I would get information before where it would be wise to start and which direction to go. But that’s something that you just walk and see what happens. You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test Get the latest Lifestyle News and more. Download the TOI app.