The Bangladesh crisis has sucked the lifeblood out of the trade hub of central Calcutta.
Swanky stores that sell saris, sherwanis and salwar suits, eateries that dish out delectable Bengali dishes, hotels, guest houses, travel agents, tour operators, currency changers and even street vendors who peddle cheap accessories — all depend on Bangladeshi patrons.
As Bangladesh burns, many traders in Calcutta are worried about the cash bloodbath here.
Shamsi Fashion on Marquis Street did not have a single customer around 4pm on Tuesday. “Business has been bad since the middle of July. But since Sunday, things have come to a halt,” said an employee, sitting on one of the empty chairs.
The store sells saris and salwar suits.
Half an hour with a Bangladeshi means business worth at least ₹60,000, said one shop hand down the road.
Milan, a popular salwar store near the erstwhile Globe Theatre, had a handful of customers on Tuesday, some from the neighbouring country. Among a dozen-odd employees, only around three were busy.
“Had things been normal, I would not have been able to talk to you. The store would have been packed,” said Chunilal Umrania, the manager.
A store like Milan sells about 400 salwar suits on normal days, the bulk of them to Bangladeshis.
“Our Bangladeshi brothers and sisters buy not just for themselves but for many family members back home. And they do not bargain,” said Umrania.
Nikhil Jain, who owns the popular Rangoli store on Park Street, hopes the slump will be temporary.
“The market has obviously been hit. Until now, we were seeing fewer tourists from Bangladesh. It was not that significant that we had to worry about. But after what happened on Monday, I think a lot of travel restrictions will kick in. Many businesses are dependent on Bangladeshi tourists. Everyone will take a hit. I hope it is not going to be a long-term thing,” said Jain.
Hotels and guest houses in and around New Market reported many empty rooms.
“We have 29 rooms. All are empty,” said Asif Ali Laskar, who manages the reception of Marquis Guest House. Around 4.30pm on Tuesday, Laskar was standing on the road outside, chatting with another person and expectantly looking at every pedestrian who carried a trolley.
Montosh Sarkar, assistant secretary of the Marquis Street-Free School Street Welfare Society, a platform of traders in the area, said the number of Bangladeshi visitors had dwindled sharply.
“There are around 120 hotels and guest houses in this area. Most of them have seen a drop in guests. Many of the present guests are in a rush to return home. But some of them have been forced to come back from the borders,” said Sarkar.
The smell of fish and spices still wafted out but the eateries are not what they used to be.
Earlier, one would have to wait in a queue to find a seat at some of the popular eateries on Free School Street. On Tuesday, Radhuni on Free School Street was
empty around 2pm, which should have been the peak lunch time.
“We are not even having a fourth of the usual footfall. We are using less than 10kg of rice a day, compared to 40kg a few days ago,” said N.C. Bhowmick, the owner.
The buzz around the place had disappeared.
A bus left Calcutta for Dhaka around 1pm on Tuesday. It was the only one to have left for the Bangladesh capital on Tuesday, said operators.
A bus operator had on his office wall pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi flanked by Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
On Tuesday, the Hasina portrait was covered by a calendar.