In the flat alluvial plains of Hooghly district, roughly 50-70 km northwest of Kolkata, lies a constellation of villages that most travellers whizz past on the Howrah-Bardhaman railway line without a second glance. That would be a mistake. The Itachuna-Khanyan-Antpur heritage belt is one of rural Bengal’s most rewarding cultural corridors: a stretch where 18th-century Maratha palace grandeur, exquisite terracotta temple art and the spiritual birthplace of the Ramakrishna monastic order converge to form a brilliant weekend road trip.