Obviously there were new changes which happened during the British rule like the introduction of Permanent Settlement of Bengal in 1793 which was an agreement between the British and the zamindars on the land revenue.The zamindars got exclusive rights on their lands and could collect taxes and give a share of it to the government.
But another major change was the compromise on various traditions to cater to the needs of the British. Beef and Ham dishes from the Wilson’s Hotel(Kolkata) were served to the British men who attended the famous Shovabazar Durga pujo.
Shovabazar Durga puja was started by Maharaja Naba Krishna Deb at his rajbari in 1757. This guy along with Mir Jafar,Amir Beg and Ramchand Roy were responsible for the downfall of Siraj Ud Daulah. So Mir Jafar was not the only traitor,there were many more including Naba Krishna Deb.
All these ministers were given about 8 crore from the treasury of Murshidabad and were given lands to rule.Naba Krishna Deb got the region of Sutanuti,Shovabazar(Sutanuti was one of the three villages which formed Kolkata).He built his rajbari in Shovabazar(named after Shobaram Basak who was among the “Seths and Basaks” of Saptagram,these were Jain(seth) and bengali(basak) traders from the earlier port Saptagram which was abandoned once Kolkata was founded because of changing river course of Saraswati).
Naba Krishna Deb used the wealth given to him after the Battle of PLassey to build his rajbari,a few streets in Shobhabazar(Naba Krishna street),a few temples like the Lal Mondir and to celebrate the famous Durga puja festival.
Robert Clive attending the Durga pujo of Shovabazar rajbari-it became a tradition for the British to visit this pujo after Robert Clive
This Durga puja became a fashion and status symbol for the merchant class of Kolkata and compromised on many traditions. It was made into a party with muslim nautch girls dancing.The British men in these parties were offered beef and ham which were completely against Hindu traditions.
Lord Kartikeyar was dressed in European breeches instead of his traditional dhuti-churidar.Interestingly the worship of Lord Ganesha along with the other deities in Shovabazar Durga puja was popularised by the marwari traders of the lineage of Jagat Seth. The Durga idol was dressed with jewellery of the Mughals and Nawabs of oudh.
Worship of Ganesha in Shovabazar Durga Puja(lower left corner)-popularised by the marwari traders of Bengal
This was just one zamindar family.There were plenty of changes brought with time.Making a religious festival into a grand European party was one of them.
Even to this day,we make a lot of compromises to celebrate Durga puja in Kolkata like revealing faces of the idols before Sasthi or making various “themed” puja pandals because it has now become a status symbol.This is often disliked by the more traditional people of Bengal,Assam and Odisha.