BURRA BAZAAR

Burra Bazar is the bastion of the Marwari business community of Kolkata. It is located to the north of Dalhousie Square.
Nathuram Saraf who originally hailed from Mandwa, was one of the first Marwari immigrants who landed in Kolkata way back in 1830. He was an enterprising young man and soon started working as a broker for the East India Company. In those days, present day Rajasthan was a desolate land of desert with nothing much to do and the news of Nathuram Saraf's success in Kolkata prompted others of his ilk to immigrate to Kolkata. For the quintessential Marwaris, Kolkata was the Mecca of business, much like present day Mumbai.
By 1840, the Marwaris from Shekhawati had truly consolidated their position in Burra Bazaar and started doing business with the British East India Company. The rich Marwari merchants built palatial mansions with distinct Shekhawati architecture in Burra Bazaar which is still visible today, albeit in a horribly dilapidated condition.
There was a time when Burra Bazar or "Bazaar Kolkata" as it was popularly referred to in those days was synonymous with the rich and the famous of Kolkata. As far as shopping was concerned, Burra Bazar was the ultimate place to be in for the crème-de-la-crème of Kolkata. Apart from the servants of the British East India Company, Burra Bazaar was frequented by the quintessential Bengali Bhadroloks(Babus) and wealthy merchants like Basaks and Mullicks. During the British rule, a thriving indigenous banking system was in place at Burra Bazaar along with the wholesale and retail business, all of which were dominated by the prosperous Marwari community.
Today a visit to Burra Bazar is full of chaos. Indeed this bazaar was chaotic right from the inception. The pot holed streets and narrow alleyways coupled with tens and thousands of people who congregate to do trading under shockingly inhuman conditions is unprecedented in the whole of India. As you enter the bazaar premises, sales persons literally barge on you from all sides and compel you to buy goods and stationeries from designated shops. Today, the magnitude of anarchy has reached epic proportions. Add to this, the poor sanitary conditions and reckless building of shops and merchant establishment, what you have is a recipe for disaster.
But, it must be said that in the midst of all this mayhem that exists in Burra Bazar, there are certain images that will forever be etched in your memory. For instance, if you are a keen observer, a visit to Burra Bazaar will teach you a lesson on traditional Indian way of doing business. The Marwaris are known the world over for their business acumen.
A typical scene at a Burra Bazar shop will have an obese Marwari sitting on his "Gaddi"(seat) with a wooden cash box. Most Marwaris are equipped with telephone and mobile phones but it must be emphasized that the old landline phone is still the perennial favorite. Although the younger brigade are tech-savvy and use mobile phones as well as computers for E-mail.
A typical Marwari business uses (Bahe) or Accounts Book in which every day entries for cash and credits are maintained. The younger generation of Marwaris are trained meticulously in mathematics and accountancy. Most Marwari guys can calculate complex sums in heir heads without ever using calculators.
There is a popular saying in Kolkata-"Anything and everything is available at Burra Bazaar. Even the tiger's eye is available here if you pay the right price."