Archive · 8 Oct 2026
Tipsy Night School Brings Serious Lectures to Kolkata Bars
Two event organizers in Kolkata wanted to make nights out more interesting.
They created Tipsy Night School, where people can hear a professor give a real lecture in a bar.
The ticket includes a drink, and people can ask questions after the talk.
The organizers say the subjects are serious and are not watered down.
Their first lecture was about space and time.
They say the series has held eight talks in about four months.
People of different ages and backgrounds have attended.
Bars have provided spaces for the events.
The next talk is planned for October 8 and will be about Victorian Calcutta.
Out in Kolkata co-founders Proiti Seal Acharya and Analina Sanyal launched Tipsy Night School to combine bar outings with academic lectures.
The ticket price includes a drink and a lecture, followed by a question-and-answer session; organizers say the talks retain academic depth.
Its first event, “Hidden Mysteries of Space and Time,” took place May 31 at AMPM bar, featuring physicist Dr Soumitra Sengupta.
The series has held eight lectures across Kolkata bars in roughly four months and is run without outside investors, according to Acharya.
The next event is scheduled for October 8 at Olive Cafe and Bar, with historian Dr Sarbajit Mitra speaking about Victorian Calcutta.
- Who
- Out in Kolkata co-founders Proiti Seal Acharya and Analina Sanyal organize Tipsy Night School; professors deliver the lectures.
- What
- A series of academic lectures held in bars, with tickets including a drink and a Q&A.
- When
- Launched with its first event on May 31; eight lectures were held in roughly four months. The next event is scheduled for October 8.
- Where
- Bars in Kolkata, India.
- Why
- The co-founders wanted to offer a new cultural event and counter complaints that Kolkata is boring or lacks things to do.
A new cultural night out
Traditional academic setting
Where lectures belong
A new cultural night out
The organizers see bars as an inviting alternative that lets people learn while socializing over drinks.
Traditional academic setting
The lecture format retains classroom-level seriousness and complex topics, rather than treating the talks as simplified entertainment.
Kolkata’s cultural offerings
A new cultural night out
The co-founders created the series in response to comments that Kolkata is boring and wanted to add a new kind of event.
Traditional academic setting
Acharya described the city as still nostalgic for its traditional Coffee House settings; no opposing group or formal counterargument is identified in the article.
- Series
- Tipsy Night School
- Organizers
- Out in Kolkata co-founders Proiti Seal Acharya and Analina Sanyal
- Ticket format
- Ticket includes a drink, lecture, and Q&A
- First lecture
- “Hidden Mysteries of Space and Time,” delivered by Dr Soumitra Sengupta
- First venue and date
- AMPM bar, Kolkata; May 31
- Lectures held
- Eight across Kolkata bars in roughly four months
- Upcoming event
- October 8 at Olive Cafe and Bar; Dr Sarbajit Mitra will speak on “The Opium Eater's Confession: Vice and Virility in Victorian Calcutta”
- Funding
- Acharya said the series operates without outside investors