Kolkata - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the typical dress code at work and in public places? Is formal dress ever required?
Work: Business casual with suits for higher up meetings. Public Places: Women don’t wear shorts or above the knee skirts generally. Very rare to see shorts here. This is a conservative and very traditional dress area. So, lots of kurtas, saris, etc. Men : slacks and short-sleeved shirts. - Aug 2021
Work is typical business. Some events you can wear Indian party wear if you like, meaning local clothes that are a bit facile than daily wear. - Dec 2020
Casual - Sep 2015
Smart casual. - Dec 2010
Generally business casual, the Indian bureaucrats do not wear suits or ties, it's just too hot. - Jun 2009
Business casual at work, the Indians are not formal in the government offices. Shorts and sleeveless shirts on women are uncommon, but if you don't look indian it's not dangerous. However, Indians love to stare and they will stare more the more you reveal. - Mar 2009
The dress code at work is business, though during the summer months you can get by with business casual. In public, people are very casual though no one wears shorts, even in the summer heat. Calcuttans aren't pretentious and you often see industrialists in short-sleeved shirts. It's definitely a place where you can define your own dress code and people will generally accept you. A lot of foreign women occasionally adopt Indian dress. - May 2008
