Sandip Roy

Kolkata now has its first food truck: Agdum Bagdum, which hawks Indian fusion food. It was inspired by American food trucks — which were originally inspired by street food in places like Kolkata.

Seen as indestructible in the West, fruitcakes are indispensable in the bustling Hindu city. Bakers of all faiths have the ovens running round the clock to feed Calcutta's appetite for the cakes.

Commentator Sandip Roy says the traditional sari has been falling out of fashion in the new India, but designers are turning to pop art prints and other changes to boost its appeal.

It began like a typical Bollywood story. Boy meets girl in pre-independence India. They fall in love. Her family says no way. So one night, she escapes. NPR commentator Sandip Roy recounts how his great-aunt jumped off a moving train for love, and went on to have a happy 60-year-long marriage.

Commentator Sandip Roy tells the story of classical dancer Alokananda Roy, who was inspired to teach dance to convicted murderers and rapists after a visit to a Calcutta prison.

Women on the subcontinent may have gained more economic and political clout in the past few decades, but many still cannot escape indiscriminate acts of violence known as "eve teasing." Commentator Sandip Roy takes a look inside the problem and at what women are doing to fight back.

Once, moviegoers in India waited patiently for the latest Hollywood releases to trickle their way over. That's no longer true for the big popcorn blockbusters like The Avengers, which was in 39 countries before its U.S. debut. A fan in India welcomes the change.

Centenarian Manohar Aich, also known as India's Pocket Hercules, runs an old-fashioned gym in Kolkata, India. Commentator Sandip Roy visited India's first Mr. Universe, who has little patience with the craze for fancy gym equipment that has swept middle-class India.

Restaurants that cater to the affluent in India are forgoing vegetables in return for ever increasing amounts of meat. Commentator Sandip Roy describes what it's like for a lifelong vegetarian to be confronted with chicken kebabs, mutton biryani and lamb shanks.

Tens of thousands of people are attending the Jaipur Literature Festival in India — including many international literary stars and Oprah Winfrey. Author Salman Rushdie was invited but decided not to attend after a warning that hit men would be after him. Rushdie wrote The Satanic Verses which has been banned in India for more than 20 years.