Should it stay or should it go? The people of MK have their say on Calcutta painting

Posted 15th March 2018

The Milton Keynes public has had their say on the future of a local restaurant’s painting, and now management has made their final decision.

Last month, Milton Keynes’ award-winning Indian restaurant, Calcutta Brasserie, announced plans for an extensive refurbishment, in celebration of their 10th Anniversary. As part of the refurbishment, Calcutta Brasserie, which is housed within a beautiful 17th Century Grade II Listed Chapel in Stony Stratford, announced that they were considering covering their famous “The Creation of Adam” mural, much to the surprise and shock of regulars!

Unsure of what to do, the General Manager of the restaurant, Ali Ajmol, turned to social media to ask the people of Milton Keynes and their customers for their opinion. The response was unprecedented with over 400 people taking to Facebook and Twitter to have their say. Here are some comments posted on social media:

“Having seen the real one a few times, this one is a pretty good replica so – hands off, please. We are fortunate to have it here. So please, please let it stay for generations to come so others might appreciate this wonderful piece of art.” – Michael Allsopp. 

“Please keep the mural- it’s iconic.” – Lesley Loughton. 

“You have to please keep the painting… me and the wife love it, it’s one of best features of the restaurant.” – Opu Zaman.

“Don’t cover it. Went last week and it looked epic. All my friends, many from out of MK, commented on it. Absolutely a feature and part of the building’s history. Find a way to incorporate it for sure.” – Adrian Court.

On Twitter, 85% of voters voted for the mural to stay and on Facebook, 83% voted ‘stay’. With this in mind, the restaurant has decided to support its diner’s opinions and have announced today that the 18-year-old mural will STAY.

The other restaurant refurbishments will begin in the next few weeks and will include a deep clean, painting the walls and ceilings to brighten the interior, updating fittings and fixtures, new seating throughout and of course, the all important new menu!

General Manager, Ali Ajmol said “It is lovely to hear how much people enjoy dining in the restaurant and after hearing how our customers feel about the mural, it will definitely be staying put so it can be appreciated by all. We are excited to be starting our refurbishments very soon and we can’t wait for our anniversary in September as it will be bigger and better than ever.”

Calcutta Brasseries 10th Anniversary will be held in September and it will be an evening packed full of entertainment with fantastic food and of course some bubbles to wash it all down! Full details will be announced closer to the time online at www.calcuttabrasserie.co.uk and via the Calcutta Brasserie social media pages.