They reduced India to 57-3 after Indian captain Virat Kohli won the toss.
Matt Henry led the way in his fifth test, and first since playing Australia at Christchurch in February. He was recalled in place of Ish Sodhi, on the promise the wicket would provide extra bounce and carry.
A local source spoke to Sourav Ganguly, now president of the Cricket Association of Bengal, who expected those attributes from a wicket normally conducive to spin.
Henry relished his chance with the new ball and picked up openers Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay in an opening spell of 6-2-14-2. He was unrelenting with his line and length, forcing the batsmen to play.
Dhawan, returning to the Indian line-up in place of the injured Lokesh Rahul, was drawn into a cut shot outside off stump and played on.
Vijay nibbled at a ball, seaming away from him and feathered an edge to B-J Watling.
Trent Boult followed with the dismissal of Kohli who lashed at a ball pitched about two sets of stumps outside off. He wasn't to the pitch of the ball and Tom Latham grabbed a searing chance at gully.
The rewards were deserved for spells from both open bowlers which were unrelenting with their pace and aggression. Pressure built from both ends, even when Neil Wagner, Mitchell Santner and Jeetan Patel were subsequently introduced to the attack.
In contrast, No.3 Cheteshwar Pujara looked largely untroubled on his way to 31 not out. He continued the form which brought him innings of 62 and 78 in Kanpur and centuries in his previous two Ranji Trophy matches. He produced the shot of the session, off-driving Henry in the sixth over with perfect timing and a high left elbow which even had the press box applauding.
The start to the match was overshadowed by Kane Williamson getting ruled out of the test with a viral illness, a massive blow to New Zealand's chances given his mana as the world's No.2 ranked test batsman.
He was suffering a fever, with his condition described as "dehydrated" and he was rushed into quarantine. The 26-year-old did not train with the side yesterday.
Ross Taylor returned to captain the side which, despite the unfortunate circumstances, marked an extraordinary turnaround from the scenes of December 2012 when he was ousted from the job.
He looked composed in the circumstances and set attacking fields throughout the session as his bowlers responded. Henry Nicholls will bat at No.3 in Williamson's absence. Jeetan Patel also gained his 20th cap and first since January 2013 in place of the injured Mark Craig.
The test is New Zealand's first at Kolkata in 51 years after earning draws in 1955 and 1965. Any prospect of victory would be hard earned at a ground which the hosts have turned into a fortress this century.
India have won six and drawn two of their nine tests at the venue since 2001, when the John Wright-coached side produced a miraculous comeback from a follow-on against Australia.
As an added incentive, if India win the match, they return to No.1 in the test rankings.
- by Andrew Alderson
