While driving past, you might have noticed its stained glass windows and the name on the semi circular arch over the grille gate — Iran Society. The Iran Society is India’s oldest functioning centrefor Persian studies and an archive of rare Persian books and journals from the medieval period. The Iran Society had regular cultural exchanges with Iran until Mohammed Reza Pahlavi Shah of Iran was overthrown by the Shia cleric Ayatollah Khomeini. The Iranian government, led by the Shah, used to send Persian language teachers to Calcutta’s Iran Society. It is preserved at the Iran Society alongside weeklies and monthlies such as Shamsul Akhbar and Gulshan-i-Naubahar published from Calcutta.

Source: The Telegraph March 15, 2026 02:31 UTC