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Fish have been around for 500 million years. Fish are cold-blooded, which means their internal body temperature changes as the surrounding temperature changes. All fish have a backbone and there are primarily three classes of fish namely, the jawless, the cartilaginous, and the bony. There are about 20,000 different species of bony fish alive today.

Fishy Tale

Any visit to the fish market is an interesting experience every time. The hustle-bustle of the people is always chaotic. What’s peculiar of every fish market is the peculiar smell that it carries in the air.It is something that is not found anywhere else. And many people that I have interacted with, mention that it is this smell that often puts them off and is the major reason for many to have and not to have it in the first place.

Choices aplenty

Choices Aplenty

I love freshwater fish more than the sea fish. It’s perhaps because I have grown up eating only freshwater fish. Though of late I have developed a liking for the seawater fish. Unfortunately the choices to the fishes that I grew up were limited to 3 or 4. In a market like this, where there is a gamut of choices available, there is always a slight confusion in the mind. You wonder which to go for.

Shall I help you?

And that is where the people selling the fish come into the picture. I had a nice discussion with him and asked about the different fishes on sale, and he explained me about the bigger ones, the smaller ones, the bony ones and the not so bony ones, the cheap ones and the expensive ones, the crowd favorite, and the gourmet’s choice. There is something for everybody.

Small is Delight

Quite often in my conversations with the connoisseurs of the fish, I have heard that its the smaller size fishes that are tastier. On my part, however I associate smaller fish with more and thinner and more irritating bones, and more often than not I settle for the larger size ones. The bones are easier to take out, and as a result makes my whole fish eating experience more pleasurable.

What do you want?

Prior eating experience and the rates are the two prime factors in deciding which to go for. In my case, if I was purchasing, I would have gone for the Rohu fish.

Rohu - the favorite

The Rohu fish (Labeo Rohita) is the crowd (which not surprisingly, has a lot Bengalis in it) favorite and is the fastest selling item on the cart. It is therefore no wonder that the carts of the adjacent vendors are filled with this fish. In Hindi it is called rehu (rawas is the Indian Salmon, which is quite different). It is called rohi in Oriya, rui in Bengali, rou in Assamese and Sylheti.

All set to go

Once the people decide on the fish, they get it to the fish dressing area. This is where its necessary to keep the hygiene in check. If one is not used to the smell of the fish, this dressing area can get really difficult to bear and it is best advised to stay away from far and shoot. I however could not resist going near to the action, as I had to take a few pictures.

Scaly Affair

One of the time consuming part about the Rohu is the removal of the scales on its body. The scales form an interesting pattern on the dressing chopping block.

Ready to be dressed

After the scales are removed, the fish is ready to be cut into pieces and given to the customer.

Cut to the core

At this point, my attention is diverted to some of the other action that is happening in the fish market. I spot other fishes kept in the distance, and have their parts cut out. The site is a bit uncomfortable,

All set to go under the knife

Front Side Only

Another customer has got some fish of some other kind and the vendor is busy in scaling it and making the right pieces for him.

Inside Out

To float forever

Another one bites the dust

The scene gets gory with more bloodshed and I move on.