Friday, July 24, 2009

TAKI - A wonderful place just 2 hours from Kolkata, West Bengal
























TAKI is an amazing tourist spot in West Bengal. It's just a 2 hour distance from Kolkata. It is located in the banks of Ichamati river. On the other side of Ichamati river is Bangladesh. Taki is the land of a number of a number of zamindars. Most of the zamindar baris (their palatial buildings) are in a dilapidated state. There is hardly any maintenance from the successors or from the government authorities. Taki also has one of the oldest Ramkrishna Missions. Taki Government High School is more than 250 years old. The Taki municipality has also built a mini Sunderbans consisting of the trees - Sundari, Golpata etc which are a rarety and can be widely seen in coastal Sunderbans of West Bengal. If you are very religious do visit the Kali Temple and the Jora Shib mandir (both are more than 300 years old). There is 129 acre Machranga island which you can visit by taking the launch service from the ferry ghat. The Ichamati river is engulfing the island at quite a pace. Another attraction in Taki is the Durga immersion ceremony every year where lots of people on both sides of India and Bangladesh gather to watch the immersion ceremony. It is an auspicious time to reap harmony among people from both sides. Boats from both sides sail to Ichamati for the immersion of Maa Durga.

Don't forget to take the van rides when you reach Taki. They will show you around and will charge around Rs.25-30 per head for a 2 hour ride. While coming back you can buy some jaggery (Patali gur) which is a local sweet delicacy. You can also buy some Gamchas of Basirhat which are quite economically priced and of good quality.

HOW TO REACH: From Sealdah Station take Hasnabad Local train and get down at Taki Road Station. It is a 2 hour journey. Enjoy the local snacks (jhalmuris, chanachurs, dilkhus and sandesh) during your train journey. After getting down at Taki Road station take a cycle van and reach the hotels (Its a 10 minute ride and the charges are around Rs.25 per van). You can also take a bus from Esplanade or drive your car to Taki. By road it will take about an hour.
WHERE TO STAY: There are primarily 4 places to stay: SUHASINI GUEST HOUSE, NIPENDRA ATHITHISALA, TAKI GUEST HOUSE, TAKI TOURIST BUNGLOW. But I personally feel SUHASINI GUEST HOUSE is the best one among the 4. The rooms have balcony facing the breezy Ichamati. Its advisable to go there after doing the bookings from Kolkata. To do the bookings of Suhasini Guest House in Kolkata, please contact +91-9331026585 and +91-9339375915. Numbers of Suhasini Guest house in Taki are (03217)234108 and (03217)322212 and +91-9330826779.
WHAT TO EAT: Being on the banks of Ichamati, you will get good variety of fishes. Rohu, Parshe, Chingri, Pabda, Ilish. Besides you can also enjoy Chicken and Mutton. Meals and breakfasts in the guest house is quite reasonable (around Rs.50 per plate for a lunch or dinner and Rs.15 per place for a breakfast). In the evening enjoy the local snacks - rolls, phuchkas, ghugnis and tea along the banks of Ichamati.
FACT: Recently Gautam Sen's directed bengali movie PAKHI has been released. This movie has been majorly made in the scenic beauty of Taki. The movie stars Soumitra Chatterjee, Debasree Roy, Badsah Mitra, Krishnakishore Mukherjee, Sabyasachi Chatterjee and Kanchana Mitra. A number of scenes of the movie has been shot at Suhasini Guest House, Taki

46 comments:

  1. we can now drive via bantala; going next weekend; will post after the visit
    Shibaji

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you sir, I am from Chennai and am attending my Bengali friends son's marriage there.My friend is settled in Chennai for about 40 years. Thanks for the information.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sir,

    Could you pl. throw some light on the weather conditions in Darjeeling around 30,6, t0 3,7,2010 which I propose to visit and whether we South Indians who are accustomed to hottest weather throughout the year can sustain the conditions there and have our sight seeing. Will be grateful for your reply. We are around 64 and have no health problems as such.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sir,

    For your information our accommodation has been booked in Suahsini Guest house for the marriage.We have otherwise made our travel plans pucca to Darjeeling including hotel accommodation. Thanks and sorry for bothering you.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you Sir for all the great information. My mother is one of the successors you mentioned, of one of the 'Zamindar' families of Taki. She hasn't ever been there and it is my fervent wish to take her there.
    Soutrik Das

    ReplyDelete
  6. thank you sir for giving information about 'TAKI'. Its allso my motherland.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think your tour will remain incomplete if you do not visit nearby village HASNABAD(under Taki Municipality). It is another gateway of Sunderban and hire a boat by afternoon to come back Taki from Hasnabad. Taki Govt. College, Taki Dist. Library, Taki Football Ground are also other major places to see. One can also enjoy Annual Kumarpukur Fair from Taki.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I wish to thanks taki Municipal corporation for their well arrange tourist spost. you are really planed the spot very well for the tourist. I am attracted the beuty of the bank Of Ichamoti river. I request all the visitor of this site you go Taki and enjoy the winter picnic season with yyour frnd, family.

    ReplyDelete
  9. thanks a lot for such an information.

    ReplyDelete
  10. which way is shorter in distance by kilometer from dumdum airport to taki? the science city-p c chandra garden-bantala route or the good old barasat-basirhet route?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The science city -p.c.chandra garden-bantala route is the shorter,road condition is good and less trafick .

      Delete
  11. the road that goes from science city - Kolkata Malancha Road is good. I had been upto Kulti dam..the journey is wonderful. and road is also well maintained......however I dont know about the other two roads...I'd also like to know about it.

    ReplyDelete
  12. It's a very good, clear information about this place..thank you Raja.....keep it up.....

    ReplyDelete
  13. seems to be interesting places both taki and hasnabad.....hope within this december i will be there...the natural beauty is eye catching. BEAUTIFUL BENGAL

    ReplyDelete
  14. Tumi bolcho taki just 2 hours bt seta koto avg speed a gari chalale???

    ReplyDelete
  15. 2 hrs.from which part of Kolkata? The road condition is very bad after Madhyamgram. It is very difficult to maintain even 20km avg.

    _Alokes
    IIT Kharagpur
    West Bengal

    ReplyDelete
  16. 2 hrs. you do not know about Taki

    ReplyDelete
  17. is this possible to finish a tour at taki whithin one day?

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hi Guys,

    Taki is the place of birth of my Mother. It's really a fantastic place to visit and moreover so close to Kolkata. The bank of the river Ichamoti is truly breathtaking for most of Kolkatans. I believe, the local municipality still runs the boat service for the tourists.

    I sincerely thank Mr.Dutta for putting up such a nice article on Taki.

    Whenever I go to Taki, most of the time, I can't afford to spend more than a day over there, which is total in-justice to that place though. So, I think, it is possible to have a quick tour of Taki within a day.

    Also, I got a request for all those guys, who are arguing on the time frame of going there - I think all of you are right. On road its hard to meet that time line as the road base is pretty bad, but on contrary, train service is pretty good and who knows, it might take you to the Taki Station within the 2 hours time frame. So, lets appreciate Mr.Dutta for spending his valuable time on sharing his experiences, thoughts and most importantly some very important informations.

    Thanks.

    Regards,
    Anjan

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hi, Ur Photography is fantastic and collection of photos is awesome. First time get all the valuable information here. See more information about Destinations in India . Thanks for sharing. Happy Hop Around India.........

    ReplyDelete
  20. actually even trains cannot go there within 2 hours .... after barasat the haasnabad line is single line so the train stops every now and then and it is very irritating ... my desher bari is in basirhat a couple of station before taki ....

    ReplyDelete
  21. machhranga dweep jabar ektu details chai..kato bhara ba samay lagte pare...

    ReplyDelete
  22. I am thinking to settle in Taki provided it has seamless internet connection as I run investment business on line. I am originally from Kolkata but for the last 35 years I have been in Mumbai. Please enlighten me on the residential and agricultural land cost in Taki.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have a two storied bldg. on 6-kata land at Basirhat. very close to Basirhat College on the way to picnic spot. We have planned to sell it out at 30 lakh. Adjacent to this, a plot of 4-kata land is also available at 14 lakh to be sold by our neighbor. Any one can contact me-93310-14180

      Delete
  23. Hi
    yes Taki is most amazing tourist place,in time of Durga puja festival a croud of people can come for worship and meet all together again the traditional way at this time,,
    Kashmir tours

    ReplyDelete
  24. Its really nice place. Thanks, I have come across this place because of your blog. Check out all good places to visit in Kolkata.

    ReplyDelete
  25. can i see some pics of the hotel/ guests house rooms and washrooms. also can i get the room rates . please share this information with me . thanks & regards. Sonal Pathak

    ReplyDelete
  26. can anyone give me the phone no of Taki Tourist bungalow? I cannot find it anywhere.

    ReplyDelete
  27. what a place..its really nice place...nisha das..

    ReplyDelete
  28. botanix nature resort I'm so glad you are shared great information thanks ones again man.......

    ReplyDelete
  29. corporate day outing near delhi Nice & Great places images you are sharing thanks man..........

    ReplyDelete
  30. Amazing places of the India to visit. One can also visit the awesome pench national park hotels to see the attraction of Pench and jungle safari.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Well and informative content given about 4 Essentials Tax checks for NRI/ PIO/ OCI purchasing property in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Thanks for given this information here about this blog.
    2bhk Flats in Dwarka Sector-23

    ReplyDelete
  32. Everything sounds fine. We are interested to visit. But by some tourist bus service which goes to Hasnabad.
    Or any Govt bus service. We live in Dum Dum Kolkata

    ReplyDelete
  33. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  34. I will go 22nd December and want to know from you that what are the main tourist spot near taki

    ReplyDelete
  35. I went to Taki after puja this year by driving along Taki road but the condition of the Road was horrible and it took 4 hours to drive from madhyamgram. I had to maintain the average speed 20-30 km/hour and the place of Taki is nothing but a picnic spot as there are a few bagan-baris near the river Ichamati...thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Is it safe to visit Taki for a lady group ? Is the route safe for returning at evening for the ladies ?

    ReplyDelete
  37. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Today Kolkata is visited by large number of visitors from other parts of India as well as from outside India. If you are in Kolkata, then following are some of the places you must not miss.

    Places to Visit in Kolkata

    ReplyDelete