Monica Liu: The 'Don' Of Chinatown | Unique Stories from India

Thanks to her, Calcuttans know what Chinese food made by Chinese people tastes like.

When most people look at Monica Liu, they see a smiling restaurant owner in Tangra, Kolkata. But this unassuming grandmother of nine is also known as the Don of Chinatown. Monica Liu owns and runs five authentic Chinese restaurants in Kolkata - Kim Ling & Beijing in Tangra, Tung Fong in Park Street, and branches of her restaurant Mandarin on Sarat Bose Road, and Lake Avenue. She's been awarded the Best Woman Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003.

But Kolkata's woman of steel comes fom humble beginnings. During the Indo-China war in 1962, when Monica was just a child, her entire family was arrested and taken to Deoli Camp, Rajasthan. Finally, it was when Monica and another young boy in the camp wrote a letter to the Home Minister, their release orders were processed. Forgotten for five years in the camp, when the family finally returned to Kolkata, they had lost their home, their friends and almost everything else. 

Starting a new life, Monica's mother would make momos to sell to make ends meet. It was from helping her mother every evening that Monica's journey began. Finally, in 1991, she opened Kim Ling, the family's first restaurant. When goons tried to intimidate the family into giving them free food, Monica responded in kind, eventually earning her the title 'Don of Tangra'.

101 Traces looks at the last of anything: ethnic communities, folk craftsmen, disappearing trades, forgotten people. It sketches portraits of these unique individuals, locked in a battle they cannot win: a battle against the future. Together, they represent the dying whispers of ancient heritage and traditional individuality. As India moves towards homogenized global pop culture, 101 Traces honors the people, the objects, and the skills that connect us to our ancient identity.

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Siddis - In It For The Long Run - 101 Traces

The African community that is India's hope for an Olympic medal.
The Siddis are a community that migrated from East Africa to India between the 15th and 19th century. In 1987, the Sports Authority of India set up the Special Area Games program to scout and train members of the Siddi community to perform as athletes for India on the international stage. Despite the glory they have brought to the nation, the Siddis have to battle racism on a daily basis, often being treated as outsiders in the country that they have given their everything for. 
The Siddis have now settled primarily in the states of Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. They came as merchants, sailors, slaves, and mercenaries, going on to even become rulers. Today, they are India's hope for an Olympic medal in Track and Field. 
101 Traces is an ongoing effort to bring to the limelight stories from dwindling or forgotten communities that are a part of the melting pot that is India's cultural landscape.
Archival footage courtesy: http://www.pmgsports.org
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101India is youth focused YouTube channel serving entertaining videos trying to connect urban Indian audiences. Created by a team of youth television experts, film makers, writers, bloggers, animators, designers. 101India aims to give you a mix of humor, music, travel, people profiles, alternate sports and food. We believe in embracing our differences and celebrating them because this keeps us unique and diverse. Satire and humor are powerful tools for social change and we use this in our content to create movements for change. We want to encourage a freer flow of information and dialogue and our human stories videos are based on culture, sub culture and counter culture.