A US traveller visited a Kolkata tea shop where artist Shyama Prasad Dey drew his caricature. The coffee and sketch together cost just Rs 80.
A US traveller found an unexpected souvenir in Kolkata—a cup of coffee and a hand-drawn caricature. During a visit to a local tea shop, he met artist Shyama Prasad Dey and left with a cartoon version of himself.
Markus, the traveller, shared a video of his visit to the shop run by Dey, who has been running the establishment for around 30 years. What began as a casual stop became a chance to see Dey’s artwork and have a caricature drawn.
Artist Shyama Prasad Dey has been running the shop for 30 years
As Markus looked around, he was fascinated by the drawings displayed inside. He pointed to portraits of Indian personalities and asked about them. One sketch was of former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly.
Markus noticed photographs of Dey appearing on the Bengali television show Dadagiri, hosted by Ganguly. He reacted with surprise at discovering the artist had also appeared on television.
Dey complimented Markus on his face before drawing his caricature. Markus joked that his hair already made him look like a cartoon character.
When the drawing was finished, Markus was taken aback when Dey said the coffee and caricature together cost just Rs 80. He marvelled at getting a personalised drawing for less than a dollar.