India Offers to Work With Bangladesh to Restore Satyajit Ray's Ancestral House
On Tuesday evening, Bangladesh's Daily Star reported that the ancestral house of Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, Ray's grandfather and a towering figure in Bengali literary and cultural history, was being razed in Mymensingh city to make way for a new building.
Ray, one of India's most celebrated filmmakers who was awarded its highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, spent his childhood in his grandfather's Kolkata home after losing his father at the age of two.
The Mymensingh property, built over a century ago, came under government control following partition and was converted into the Mymensingh Shishu Academy in 1989.
However, it has remained unused for the past decade.
Officials quoted in the Daily Star report said the demolition had official approval, citing the deteriorated condition of the structure. A new semi-concrete building is being planned to house the Academy's activities.
Reacting to the news, Banerjee posted in Bengali on X that it was 'extremely distressing'.
'This news is extremely distressing. The Ray family is one of the foremost bearers and carriers of Bengali culture. Upendrakishore is a pillar of Bengal's renaissance. Therefore, I believe this house is intricately tied to the cultural history of Bengal,' she wrote.
Banerjee called on the Bangladesh government to preserve the house and also asked the Indian government to 'pay attention to the matter'.
Late on Tuesday, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement expressing 'profound regret' over the demolition, noting that the property was currently in a state of disrepair.
'Given the building's landmark status, symbolising Bangla cultural renaissance, it would be preferable to reconsider the demolition and examine options for its repair and reconstruction as a museum of literature and a symbol of the shared culture of India and Bangladesh,' said the statement.
India added that it was 'willing to extend cooperation for this purpose'.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
21 minutes ago
- Time of India
Our courts confirm we're like this only
It is what it is. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court confirmed that India is not a liberal democratic society that puts the right of freedom and speech on par with - never mind above - the right to dignity . In other words, being offended gets a free hand to take punitive action against the person offending. The 2-member bench was hearing pleas against five standup comedians making 'insensitive jokes' - as opposed to 'sensitive' ones - about persons with disabilities. Where criticism would have been an earlier standard response against offensive remarks (that lie outside the ambit of fomenting enmity between communities), Article 21 of the Constitution, providing right to dignity, as part of right to life and liberty, has been stated to legally 'trump' Article 19, the right to freedom and expression. This observation mirrors the reality of how Indian society weighs freedom of expression Hearing a separate case on the same day, another Supreme Court bench granted cartoonist Hemant Malviya interim protection from arrest. He has been booked over a January 2021 cartoon mocking the PM and RSS over Covid vaccination. Such protection can be considered the limit of Indian liberalism's approach to satire, coming as it does a day after the court criticised Malviya for his 'immature' cartoon that portrayed its subjects in an 'undignified' manner after the accused apologised and deleted the cartoon from social does not share the kind of liberal leeway that countries allowing lampoons of PMs, presidents and monarchs still do. Perhaps, in this regard, it is ahead of the curve in a world growing increasingly truculent against sarcasm and jibes that were once frowned upon by hypersensitive parties, but legally tolerated.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
State ATS to probe edu institute in Nandurbar
Mumbai: The state govt has ordered an ATS probe into the Jamia Islamia Ishatul Ulum educational institution in Nandurbar district on charges of allegedly employing two Yemeni nationals whose Indian visa expired in 2016. It has also lodged cases against the founder and chairman of the institution for allegedly procuring fake documents for them. In addition, minister of state for housing Yogesh Kadam said the ED would probe how the institution received foreign funds to the tune of Rs 728.6 crore. The state has also ordered a probe by a forensic auditor and legal advisor. When asked about the licence of the institution, Kadam said, "The charity commissioner is conducting a probe. If irregularities are found, then its licence will be suspended." After allegations were raised that it purchased land belonging to tribals, Kadam said that the land purchase by the institution will also be investigated. BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar asked if the state will inquire into whether combing operations will be conducted on all madrasas to see if they are harbouring illegal immigrants. In response, Kadam said they will look into complaints they receive. You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai
Deccan Herald
an hour ago
- Deccan Herald
Suvendu says TMC stir aimed to save Rohingyas as Mamata vows to fight BJP 'inch by inch' over Bengali migrants row
'I have now decided to speak more in Bangla from now on. Hold me in detention camps if you can before you throw other Bangla-speaking people in jail,' said Banerjee.
