ABSTRACT
Calcutta had always been a migrants' city. At various stages of its life, it attracted people from different parts of Bengal, the Indian subcontinent, and beyond. Bengali-speaking Muslims had come to Calcutta from neighbouring rural districts and they found work in the service sector, especially among street hawkers, weavers, washermen, labourers, and domestic servants. Being the prime centre of education, Calcutta also attracted young men from elite Bengali Muslim families. The city could boast of one of the finest Muslim educational institutes namely the Calcutta Madrassah. It was also the birthplace of Urdu journalism in the Indian subcontinent and a specific Urdu dialect, known as Ghulabi Urdu, developed here. Popular Bengali dailies like Azad and Ittehad that had their clientele primarily among the Bengali Muslims were published from the city. On 15 August 1947, shortly after a phase of violence, Calcutta was peaceful and jubilant, to an extent that it seemed almost unreal.
