Kolkata: Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Wednesday expressed distress over reports that the ancestral home of Oscar-winning filmmaker Satyajit Ray in Dhaka is being demolished by Bangladeshi authorities and urged the Indian government to initiate appropriate bilateral engagement to prevent the loss of what he described as an irreplaceable piece of Bengal’s cultural history.
Taking to his handle on X (formerly Twitter), Banerjee wrote: “I am deeply distressed to learn that the ancestral home of Oscar-winning filmmaker Satyajit Ray in Dhaka is reportedly being demolished by the Bangladeshi authorities.
This century-old property belonged to Ray’s grandfather, Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, a towering figure in Bengali literature and culture.”
He termed the demolition as “an assault on our heritage” and said reducing a site of such historical and cultural significance to rubble was “a blow to the collective conscience of Bengalis everywhere and an erasure of the unparalleled contributions of the Ray family to global art”.
Urging the Bangladesh government to reconsider “this heavy-handed decision”, Banerjee demanded immediate steps to protect and preserve the structure. He also called upon the Indian government to intervene diplomatically to ensure the property is saved.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on Tuesday voiced deep concern over the matter. In a post on X, she appealed to the government and people of Bangladesh to protect the historic structure, and requested the Indian government to take note and act diplomatically.
Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury was a pioneer in children’s literature and printing technology. His magazine Sandesh laid the foundation for an entire genre of literary expression, later carried forward by his son Sukumar Ray and grandson Satyajit Ray.