Kolkata trams transformed into art, culture hubs

Kolkata, May 7  To celebrate the legacy and romance of iconic trams, these unassuming electricity-driven transport vehicles were on Saturday transformed into hubs of film screenings, theatre, music and art to help revive them.

Christened "Tram Tales", the two-day event beginning Saturday is the first and largest site-specific interactive mixed media installation centred on tram carriages in a tram depot, according to the organisers.

Carriages at the non-functional Gariahat Tram Depot have been decked up on six broad themes: filmy trams, the drama trams, the 'adda' tram, the music trams, the painted tram and the photo trams.

While the filmy trams will become a mini cinema hall and play 10 short films on trams, the drama trams will play host to theatre groups showcasing their performances.

Turned into cafe-boutiques, the adda trams will be be hang-out zones and the music trams will become the stage for popular city-based bands.

The photo trams are for sharing your tram related images and memories and watching street artists make good use of the vehicles as their canvas.

With an approval of the Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) and support from a host of stakeholders in multiple fields, the 'Tram Tales' team comprises Kheya Chattopadhyay and Aditya Sengupta, trained in theatre, curation, performance and film-making.

The organisers hope the initiative can help prevent the trams from fading away.

According to CTC, the first tram rolled out on the tracks way back on February 24, 1873 and have witnessed both the World Wars and the Indian freedom struggle and withstood the ravages of time to continue operations today.