The Parlour and the Street: Elite and Popular Culture in Nineteenth-Century Calcutta (Paperback-)

In this book, Sumanta Banerjee analyzes the development of the folk culture of Calcutta’s urban poor following the establishment of the British colonial system in Bengal. Consisting primarily of traditional artisans who migrated from neighbouring villages, Calcutta’s working-class forged a new urban folk culture from their rural inheritance. Through rich examples of folk performances, Banerjee shows a clash between the culture of the new urban poor and the elite of Calcutta, caught between their aspiration to British social norms and their roots in Bengali society.

Sumanta Banerjee is a cultural historian who specializes in research into popular culture, particularly of the colonial period. He is the author of many books, including The Parlour and the Streets: Elite and Popular Culture in Nineteenth Century Calcutta and Dangerous Outcast: The Prostitute in Nineteenth Century Bengal, both published by Seagull Books.