In the 18th century, a temple in Calcutta served as a watchtower for sailors. Black Pagoda at Chitpore Road stood at 165 ft tall, becoming the first skyline of Calcutta. It was built by a prominent zamindar, Gobindaram Mitra, in the North Calcutta region. It was not merely a place of worship, but a display of wealth and status. But its story does not end here, the monument was doomed to die soon after it was built. Let’s dig into the ruins of this building to uncover its history.
Gobindaram Mitra, also called ‘Black Zamindar,’ was a wealthy and influential person of his time. He worked with the East India Company and amassed huge wealth, operating in local society. In 18th-century Calcutta, temples were more than a source of piety and divine presence; they were a place to show off wealth. A rich zamindar or a businessman would often build temples to boost their social status and show their financial dominance. Gobindaram also opted for this method. In the Black Town (Calcutta was divided into White and Black Towns, with the English and Indians residing there, respectively), on the bank of the Hooghly River, he built the Navratna Kali Temple, near Kumartuli, which the British called the Black Pagoda Temple.
The British loved putting items into convenient labels inspired by their experiences and common knowledge. Hence, the reason they called this Kali temple a Black Pagoda, along with the Konark Sun Temple and Jagannath Puri Temple. ‘Pagoda’ was an umbrella term for all South and Southeast Asian temples.
This temple was a navaratna, i.e., it had a central tower and was surrounded by nine spires with the central one being the tallest. It was taller compared to the Shaheed Minar and often featured prominently in the background of the paintings of many European artists. ‘Gentoo Pagoda and House’ and ‘Govinda Ram Mitter’s Pagoda’ of Thomas Daniell, ‘A View of the Black Pagoda’ of James Baillie Fraser, and ‘Chitpore Road and Black Pagoda of Thomas Prinsep, all show the Navaratna Kali Temple of Calcutta. The sailors used the tall shikhara of the Pagoda to navigate their ships.
But it was not long before this tall Kali temple was reduced to ruins. In 1737, Calcutta was hit by a devastating cyclone and earthquake. The temple was built hastily and had a weak foundation. Obviously, the disaster hit the temple with force and left huge damage behind. The soaring shikhara lay in ruins with only certain parts surviving. This incident changed the landscape of Kumartuli. While it did feature in the paintings of the European artists, it no longer featured the tall spire. Eventually, an iconic landmark got lost among the chaos of the city.
Today, the ruin has been restored to preserve a piece of the cultural heritage of the past, but it certainly no longer bears the fame it once carried.it had a central tower and was surrounded by nine spires with the central one being the tallest. It was taller compared to the Shaheed Minar and often featured prominently in the background of the paintings of many European artists.
