as from foreigners, being the first headquarters of the East India Company and having a long history enriched by the Nawabs of Bengal, Sultans of Bengal, Zamindar and other European colonial forces such as Dutch, Portuguese, English (British Raj) and French. Arts and culture Having patronage from the Nawabs, artists from various field of arts sowed the seed of cultural heritage in this place. The calm lifestyle of this city still evokes a rich cultural environment. Almost all well-to-do parents send their children to at least one school of art. Among them, dancing, acting, recitation, painting, and music are the most popular. Elegant pieces of hand-craft arts can also be found in this region, namely the handcraft in making of carpet, bamboo and jute crafts, and miniature paintings. This city can be considered one of the main cultural hubs of West Bengal. 'Rabindra Sadan' named after Bengal's very own Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore is the place where most of the indoor cultural activities take place. Theatre groups like Berhampore Repertory Theater, Rangasram, Chhandik, Jugagni and Prantik are based out of this town. These groups organise theatre festivals throughout the year mostly during the winter season. These festivals allow people from the city, nearby towns and villages to witness performances from different theatre groups from all over the state, different states and even groups from across the border of Bangladesh. A relatively new theatre group, Berhampore Gangchil, has started their own productions focusing on junior school students. Education Among the government-aided high schools for boys, Krishnath College School, Berhampore, Berhampore J.N. Academy, Iswar Chandra Institution (ICI), Gurudas Tarasundari Institution (GTI) and Saidabad Manindra Chandra Vidyapith (MCV) are the most popular ones. The high school for girls include Berhampore Maharani Kashiswari Girls High School, Mahakali Pathshala, Shrish Chandra Vidyapith and Lipika Memorial Girls' High school. All the above-mentioned schools are affiliated with State Bengal Board and are Bengali medium schools. There are also private schools like Gitaram Academy, Prabharani Public School, Mary Immaculate School, Don Bosco School, Viddyottam Public School which are affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education or Indian Certificate of Secondary Education|Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations are English medium schools. The city also has a Kendriya Vidyalaya, situated close to Babul Bona Road, the first Secondary batch having graduated from the school in 2001. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya is in swarnomoyee road near Berhampore Court Station. University Murshidabad