‘Not Satyajit Ray’s ancestral home’
The authorities yesterday halted the demolition of a century-old house in Mymensingh city following public outcry.
The demolition was stopped on instructions from the DC, Mymensingh District Children's Affairs Officer Mehedi Zaman told journalists.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Meanwhile, talking to The Daily Star last night, Deputy Commissioner Mofidul Alam said the house is not the ancestral home of legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray, as reported by different news outlets on Monday and Tuesday.
The media reports cited Sabina Yeasmin, field officer of the Department of Archaeology (Dhaka and Mymensingh divisions), who claimed the house was the ancestral home of the Ray family.
The DC said, "We have taken opinions from senior residents, archaeologists and researchers in the city. Based on their input, we have come to this conclusion that the house is not the ancestral home of Satyajit Ray."
He added that Rai Bahadur Ranada Prasad Shaha, the eminent philanthropist, occasionally resided in that house, and that Ray's ancestral home was a short distance away.
Earlier in the afternoon, the DC held a meeting with civil society members and researchers where representatives from different government bodies were also present.
The house, located on Harikishore Roy Road, was being demolished to make way for a new semi-concrete structure for the Shishu Academy.
Standing just behind Shashi Lodge -- one of the region's most prominent archaeological landmarks -- the house has fallen into disrepair after years of neglect by the authorities.
After the partition in 1947, the property came under government ownership, and in 1989, it started housing Mymensingh Shishu Academy.
It has remained abandoned for over a decade, and Shishu Academy's activities have been operating from a rented space. A decision was made to construct a semi-concrete building on the site to house the academy, said Md Mehedi Zaman, Mymensingh's district children affairs officer.
THE DEBATE
Earlier, a debate arose over the history of the house.
Some said the structure is the ancestral home of eminent litterateur Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, father of celebrated poet Sukumar Ray and grandfather of Satyajit Ray.
But some others said it was constructed by Maharaja Shashikanto Acharya Chowdhury of Muktagachha.
On Monday, Sabina Yeasmin, field officer of the Department of Archaeology (Dhaka and Mymensingh divisions), wrote to the district children affairs officer, seeking information about the demolition of the house. In her letter, she described the house as the ancestral home of the Ray family.
"This is a historic house belonging to the Ray family. Though not listed as a protected site, it is over a hundred years old and linked to Satyajit Ray's ancestors. It should be considered for heritage protection," she said that day.
Swapan Dhar, a researcher on archaeology in Mymensingh and a part-time lecturer at the Department of Theatre at Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, rejected the claim.
He asserted that the house in question was not the ancestral home of Satyajit Ray's forefathers, but rather one of the houses belonging to philanthropist Ranada Prasad Saha, reports BBC Bangla.
Dhar claimed this information came to light during a 2010 research project jointly funded by the governments of Bangladesh and Germany.
However, the researcher added that there indeed was a house belonging to Satyajit Ray's ancestors on Harikishore Road, but it was demolished about a decade ago.
There is no doubt this road was named after Satyajit Ray's ancestor Harikishore, he added.
A local elderly resident, Rabindranath Paul, 69, also a journalist, told this correspondent the house is the ancestral home of Ray family. Later, Ranada Prasad Shaha bought the house from the Ray family.
Social activist Ali Yusuf in his Facebook post claimed the house was constructed by Maharaja Shashikanto Acharya.
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