The Kalighat Kali temple in Kolkata is the Kalipitha of the Pithanirnaya, where by the text the toes of Sati’s right foot fell; the goddess is Kali and the Bhairava Nakulisha. The Government of India’s tourism portal Incredible India also counts it among the 51 Shakti Peethas and calls its Bhairava Nakuleshwar.
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- Deity
- Kali
- Tradition
- Shakta
- Place
- Kalighat, south Kolkata; on the Adi Ganga
- State
- West Bengal
- Country
- India
- Map
- OpenStreetMap (22.5203, 88.3421)
Darshan and aarti timings
| Morning | 5:00 AM to 2:00 PM |
|---|---|
| Evening | 5:00 PM to 10:30 PM |
The hours given by Incredible India (Ministry of Tourism, Government of India); no official website of the temple itself was found. Hours may change on festival days.
Source: incredibleindia.gov.inChecked: Times can change; check the official source before you go.
The image and the temple
According to Incredible India the image of the goddess is of sandstone, made by two saints, Atmaram Giri and Brahmananda Giri; it has three eyes, four hands and a protruding tongue of gold. The present temple was built around 1809 under the patronage of the Sabarna Roy Chowdhury family of Barisha, and the natmandir in front was built in 1835 by the zamindar Kashinath Roy.
According to West Bengal Tourism the compound also has the Shiva linga of Nakuleshwar Bhairava, a Radha-Krishna shrine and a tank called Kundupukur.
How to reach Kalighat
- According to West Bengal Tourism: the nearest metro stations are Jatin Das Park and Kalighat; the main railway stations Howrah and Sealdah; from the Kalighat stop on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road walk down Kali Temple Road. Airport: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata.
Main festivals
Where the sources differ
- Government pages differ on the temple’s history: West Bengal Tourism credits the original temple to Raja Basanta Roy (uncle of Pratapaditya), while Incredible India credits an earlier hut-like shrine to King Mansingh and the present temple to the Sabarna Roy Chowdhury family.
- The name "Kalighata" comes again in the Pithanirnaya’s list for pitha no. 45, which the historian D. C. Sircar places at Juranpur near Katwa; Kalighat in Kolkata is this one, the 19th, the Kalipitha.
- One West Bengal Tourism page counts 52 Shakti Peethas and another 51.
- The count of pithas depends on the text: the Pithanirnaya lists 51, some Bengali lists 52, the Devi Bhagavata (7.30) gives 108 places with names of the goddess, and the early Tantras name only four (Sircar).
Frequently asked questions
Which limb of Sati fell at Kalighat?
By the Pithanirnaya, the toes of the right foot; the goddess is Kali and the Bhairava Nakulisha (Nakuleshwar).
What are the Kalighat temple hours?
According to Incredible India, 5 AM to 2 PM and 5 PM to 10:30 PM. Hours may change on festival days.
Where is Kalighat Shakti Peetha?
Kalighat Shakti Peetha is in Kalighat, south Kolkata; on the Adi Ganga, West Bengal.
What are the darshan timings at Kalighat Shakti Peetha?
Morning: 5:00 AM to 2:00 PM; Evening: 5:00 PM to 10:30 PM. Source: incredibleindia.gov.in, checked 5 October 2026; check the official source before you go.
Which lists of tirthas include Kalighat?
The 51 Shakti Peethas (number 19 of 51 in the list).
How to reach Kalighat?
According to West Bengal Tourism: the nearest metro stations are Jatin Das Park and Kalighat; the main railway stations Howrah and Sealdah; from the Kalighat stop on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road walk down Kali Temple Road. Airport: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata.
Sources
- D. C. Sircar, The Śākta Pīṭhas (Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal 1948; Motilal Banarsidass, 1973): table of the Pithanirnaya pp. 35-37, note on this pitha p. 50 (archive.org)
- Vachaspatyam (Taranatha Tarkavachaspati), "pitha": the list of pithas quoted from the Tantrachudamani (Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries, sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de)
- Incredible India (Ministry of Tourism, Government of India): Kalighat Temple, incredibleindia.gov.in/en/west-bengal/kolkata/kalighat-temple (hours read on 5 October 2026)
- West Bengal Tourism (wbtourism.gov.in): Kalighat Temple (Heritage Tourism page), and the Kalighat page of the old Shakti Peeth section (Wayback Machine copy of 26 November 2022)
- Wikidata Q535970 (Kalighat Kali Temple): map coordinates
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