Mornings are usually a busy time at the Southern Market 'maacher bazaar' (fish market) in Rashbehari Avenue neighbourhood of South Kolkata. The shops are set up at dawn. And, by late morning, the freshest catch is already sold out, aggressively bought out by middle-aged men in starchy panjabis or women in printed chaapa sarees, carrying home the spoils of war in their trusty striped mesh and nylon "bajaarer tholi" (shopping bag), the same one they have used for years, and wearing a tell-tale smirk.
In West Bengal, shopping for fish is not just a daily chore. For many, it's a ritual.
The depth of a "real" Bengali is often measured by their ability to tell good fish apart from the bad. Now, as Bengal awaits the 2026 Assembly election results, this instinct is being put to the test, with Bengali voters looking to sift between the good and the bad fish in the state's politics.
Barik, a "Didi fan", was referring to the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) recent hard launch as a lover of fish and all things Bengali. The party leaders have spent considerable time campaigning with actual raw fish in hand, eating fish on camera, and promising to fill the ponds, rivers, and other water bodies of Bengal with "four times the fish they have now."