Go east: what it's like to sail on a new Hooghly River cruise in India

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It’s just after sunrise and a sweet, intoxicating scent fills the air. I’m wandering through a maze of colour and movement at Kolkata’s Mallick Ghat flower market, one of the largest in Asia, and the latest in a series of incredible only-in-India experiences.

 

Beneath the sweep of Howrah Bridge, one of the longest cantilever bridges in the world, traders balance huge baskets of marigolds, jasmine and roses on their heads. The blooms glow in the early-morning light. 

 

Amid the bustle, florists sit cross-legged in tiny workstations, fingers flying as they swiftly string together garlands that are destined for temples, festivals and weddings.

 

I emerge from within this living kaleidoscope and follow our guide onto the bridge, joining the never-ending tide of more than 100,000 vehicles and 150,000 pedestrians who cross it each day.

 

Before we get back on board the 24-passenger Katha Pandaw for breakfast, Kolkata reveals another of its morning rituals. We visit an akhara, a sacred wrestling ground where devotees practise the ancient discipline of kushti. After praying and stretching, they wrestle each other on consecrated earth mixed with turmeric, milk and mustard oil, then wade into the Hooghly River to bathe. 

 

Getting a glimpse of this daily routine feels like being privy to a part of life that’s far removed from the usual tourist trail.

 

River cruise from Kolkata