The storied historical past of Satyajit Ray’s ancestral dwelling that Bangladesh needs to demolish, India needs to save lots of

Amid strained ties between India and Bangladesh, New Delhi has provided a serving to hand to Dhaka — it has provided to assist restore well-liked filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s ancestral dwelling in Bangladesh after experiences emerged that the ancestral constructing might be razed to make means for a brand new construction.

India’s Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA) in a press release wrote, “We be aware with profound remorse that the ancestral property of famous filmmaker and litterateur Satyajit Ray in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, belonging to his grandfather and eminent litterateur, Upendrakishor Ray Chowdhury, is being demolished. The property, presently owned by the Authorities of Bangladesh, is in a state of disrepair.”

“Given the constructing’s landmark standing, symbolising Bangla cultural renaissance, it might be preferable to rethink the demolition and look at choices for its restore and reconstruction as a museum of literature and a logo of the shared tradition of India and Bangladesh. The Authorities of India could be keen to increase cooperation for this function,” the MEA stated.

However what’s the historical past behind this property? How did India’s Satyajit Ray wind up having property in Bangladesh?

The Ray Chowdhury palace in Bangladesh

Situated on Harikishore Ray Chowdhury Highway in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh is the ancestral home of Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray. Unfold over a 36-acre plot, the home was initially constructed by Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, Ray’s grandfather and an eminent litterateur himself.

Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury is taken into account as the daddy of youngsters’s literature in Bangla language. He’s credited for his science articles for youngsters and a wide range of different works.

A zamindar from Masua in Kishoreganj’s Katiadi Upazila (sub-division), Ray Chowdhury erected the mansion nearly a century in the past. It included a residential palace, a prayer corridor, and a kitchen. Adjoining to the prayer corridor, there was a piece area, generally often called ‘Kachari Bari’. There was additionally a ‘backyard home’, and elephant pond and a play floor. There was a small pond on the again facet of the home and one other pond with concrete ghat with many stairs on the entrance facet.

Notably, Satyajit Ray by no means visited the home in Bangladesh — a undeniable fact that irks many residents, who dwell within the space. Actually, Rofiqul Huq Akhand, a historian, was quoted as saying, “Satyajit Ray by no means got here to this dwelling, and he by no means had any curiosity concerning this place. Then why will we name it Satyajit Ray’s dwelling?”

In line with him, the place needs to be referred to as — ‘The ancestral dwelling of Upendrakishore Ray’, as a result of neither Satyajit nor his father Sukumar Ray bothered to return again right here.

In subsequent years, the property got here underneath authorities possession and in 1989, started to deal with the Mymensingh Shishu Academy. Nonetheless, the deserted and crumbling construction has been out of use since 2007.

Calls to guard Ray’s ancestral home

In line with officers in Bangladesh’s archaeology division, the Ray mansion in Mymensingh has been left deserted for greater than 10 years, leading to it being lowered to ruins.

Owing to the state of disrepair to the home, the officers need to perform the demolition of this construction and change it with a brand new semi-concrete constructing with a number of rooms.

Nonetheless, residents of the world have objected to the demolition of the historic home. Bangladeshi poet Shamim Ashraf was quoted as telling the Every day Star that over time, locals have repeatedly referred to as for its preservation, however to no avail.

“The home remained in a sorry state for years, with cracks forming on its roof — but the authorities by no means cared in regards to the wealthy historical past these outdated buildings maintain.”

Sabina Yeasmin, subject officer of the Division of Archaeology (Dhaka and Mymensingh divisions), additionally advised The Every day Star that the home had not been formally listed with the division, however in keeping with surveys, it was an archaeological heritage.

Actually, in February 2020, the Federation of Movie Societies of India initiated a global marketing campaign for restoration of the ancestral homes of the nice masters Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak and Mrinal Sen.

Indian officers intervene

Shortly after information experiences emerged of Ray’s ancestral home being demolished in Bangladesh, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed concern and urged the Bangladeshi authorities to rethink its determination.

“I learnt from media experiences that the memory-entwined ancestral home of famend writer-editor Upendrakishore Roy Chowdhury in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh metropolis is being demolished. The experiences say that the demolition course of had already begun. That is heartbreaking information,” Banerjee wrote on X.

“The Ray household is among the most outstanding torchbearers of Bengal’s tradition. Upendrakishore was among the many pillars of the Bengal Renaissance. I really feel this home is inextricably linked to Bengal’s cultural historical past. I enchantment to the Bangladeshi authorities and to all right-thinking individuals of that nation to protect this edifice of wealthy custom. The Indian authorities also needs to intervene,” the chief minister added.

Earlier calls to guard Tagore’s ancestral home

What’s attention-grabbing is that this isn’t the primary time that Indian officers have sought intervention in Bangladesh.

Earlier in June, West Bengal CM Banerjee had urged Prime Minister Modi to intervene when a mob had vandalised Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s ancestral dwelling, the Kachharibari in Bangladesh’s Sirajganj district. In line with Bangladeshi officers, the incident occurred owing to a dispute between a customer and museum employees over a motorbike parking price.

Tucked away in Shahzadpur, within the Sirajganj district of Bangladesh, the home was bought in 1840 by Dwarkanath Tagore, Rabindranath’s grandfather, for Rs 13 and 10 annas throughout an public sale.

Fifty years after it was first bought, Rabindranath arrived on the Bangladesh property to handle his household’s property. He spent a number of summers over the following decade, interacting with farmers and locals, overseeing land issues. This home additionally fuelled his literary creativity; in a letter to his niece, he even as soon as wrote, “Right here (in Shahzadpur) I really feel extra impressed to write down than anyplace else.”

Years after his demise, in 1969, it was declared a protected archaeological website and later become the Rabindra Memorial Museum.

With inputs from companies