Panamnagar, November 2009

Yet another Peek
29 November 2009

Panamnagar is now one of my most regularly visited places. I've visited Panam several times during the last few years. My last visit was in January 2009. Each of my visit revealed something new for me. This place is under a so-called restoration process, which has been debated quite a few times in many quarters. This renovation work has given Panam its curse, and given me the reason to record change.

It was Eid-ul Azha. A day out on the second day morning of Eid was a bit too much for many. Had to manage family members at home. It was yet another effort by the TTL buddies ("Through the Lens: Bangladesh" group of Flickr). A short photowalk organised on short notice. Anyway, it ultimately came down to mental strength to get up that early in the morning. I almost goofed up; but Gazi Bhai saved me by giving me a timely phone-call. We all met at Gulistan for the start by around 7:40AM. We, three of us, broke off and took our own vehicle. Others came by bus.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Where time stands.........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Beauty behind bars........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Bricks; old and new.....

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Time window......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Passing history......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Marks of existence.......


Holiday traffic took us to Sonargaon very quickly. It was barely 8:30AM when we knocked on the doors to Panamnagar. Morning light was still trying to peep through. We decided to go off the main Panam street and go the old houses behind Panam before the sun went too high and too bright.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Panam lake.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Marks of stupidity......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Morning worship.....

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Morning works......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Over-growth......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Crystal balls.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Morning surprise!!


This part of Panamnagar is always my most favourite. Environment plays a big part here. Lights and fog mix here at times to create extraordinary settings. It wasn't quite like that on that day, but we enjoyed the warm light from the east. We spent quite a bit of time here exploring the opportuntiy to get some snaps. A considerable amount of time went behind shooting a small butterfly that got completely covered with dew drops.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

A journey through time.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Windows........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

A walk through the past.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Living among history........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Marks of authority?


We switched to Panamnamar main street soon enough. We met with our other buddies there. Panam's old buildings are changing their profiles on short notice. Most of the buildigs are now empty. I've seen a similar state during my last visit, but this time round, the buildings looked emptier. Yet, some of the buildings were still occupied and we saw people in there. Another building had government papers slapped on the doors with orders to evacuate within a week!

Some of the most beautiful of Panam's buildings are still off limits. Some of them have slight openings, through which its possible to get a slight peek, but most of them are completely sealed-off. We saw children playing around these old buildings, giving a feel of timelessness of this place.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, November 2009

Mindless graffiti........

We took group photos at one of the most beautiful buildings of Panam, which I had only visited once, during my last visit. I promied my family that I would be home right after 11:00AM. Dhaka was still in Eid mood; so, I couldn't waste any more time. Visitors were still trickling in. There weren't too many, but enough to make us feel good about the timing. I always prefer early morning visits to Panam.

We left Panam by around 11:00AM and reached Dhaka in an hour. It was a very short tour of the place, but gave me enough reason and thoughts. The next visit would probably be in the same line.

The Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Last Cry of a Legend
29 May 2009
33, Paridas Road, Dhaka, Bangladesh

When my school friend Riel called me and proposed a photowalk, I couldn’t resist. It seemed too good an offer. Riel had access to this building through one of his friends, which gave us such a unique opportunity. All credit goes to Riel for arranging such a wonderful venture.

The building located at 33 Paridas Road in the old parts of Dhaka was over a century old. According to the dwellers, who happen to be relatives of the current owners of the house, the building was around 170 years old. A building of this age isn’t that common in a tropical area like Bangladesh, where stones are not available for building construction. The building was constructed by an individual named Peari Das, who happened to be an important government official working at the municipality. He constructed a narrow road up to his house, and according to the then municipality rules, the short road was named after the constructor. There are many other roads in Old Dhaka with similar history. People who constructed buildings like these were wealthy people, holding important places in the society. Peari Das was no exception. The residents couldn’t mention the exact dates of construction. The building also doesn’t have an inscription.

How did this building become so important to us? When Riel told me that the building was about to be demolished within a short time, I could realize the importance of it. We had to listed to the last cries of this legend. We organized the photowalk using “Through the Lens: Bangladesh” (TTL) group of Flickr. Shawon Da came from Sylhet along with a friend of his. Fakrul Bhai didn’t have to come from Sylhet, as he was already in Dhaka. Our TTL buddy Rezwan joined in, so did Saadi, a childhood friend of mine. Thanks goes to all of them to make this venture a successful one.

We rendezvoused at Gulistan Circle by around 6:30AM and took rickshaw from there to reach Paridas Road. By around 7:05AM, we were there outside the building and we didn’t waste any time there watching. We straightaway unleashed our cameras and began to shoot. Riel had arranged permission beforehand and had some tough time convincing the owners that this venture was not going to harm them in any way. Anyway, we were really lucky to get the go-ahead from the owners. The owners don’t live there.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Its not a child's play anymore..........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

The fate is locked..........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

The western face...........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Windows.........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Old, but stylish.......


The building was a west-faced one. The morning sun was behind the building. The front face was thus a bit gloomy. The front of the building showed off the grand pillars that resembled the days of the Zamindars. The two stories visible at the front had big balconies decorated with pillars. There were some trees surrounding the house, making it very difficult for us to get a clear shot of the whole building.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Morning shines..........01

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Morning shines..........02

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Morning shines..........03


We spent some time shooting at the front, and then moved to the middle of the building after getting permission from the dwellers. The house had a wonderful courtyard in the middle. Morning light was peeping in to hit the western part of the courtyard. The western part was three stories high. That’s the part of the building where Peari Das lived hundred years ago. Some other members of his family lived in the eastern part. There were two kitchens for two types of food habits. One was for the vegetarians and the other one for non-vegetarians. This was related to Hindu culture of those days.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Top view.........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Morning shines..........04

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

In.........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Out.........


We moved to the first floor quickly. This part was not in use for years. We had to maintain caution while moving around the floor. The first floor wasn’t as big as the ground floor. There were some open balconies there along with some rooms. We didn’t go into each room, but would’ve well appreciated that. We got some great view of the ground floor from above.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Closed.........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Of pillars and frames........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Of pillars and designs.......

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Point of contact.........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Metal designs........01

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Stairs and corridors...........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Metal designs........02

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Metal designs........03

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Metal designs........04

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Metal designs........05

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Stairs.........


Anyway, we moved around until we ended up on the western face of the house on the first floor. The grand pillars stood there like guardians. The floor wasn’t that strong in some parts of that big balcony, especially towards the stairs that led to the second floor. Riel repeatedly warned me not to spend time near those stairs. The stairs didn’t have any support below. The walls were also not giving full support. Some parts were being penetrated by overgrowth.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

An untimely death..........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Spotlight on silence........

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Memories.........01

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Memories.........02

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Light still comes in.......01


We moved to the second floor and got stunned. This was the floor that contained most amount of mystery. The floor was in complete ruins. One room was full of destroyed books, newspapers, furniture, and what not. We even discovered some old family pictures in the ruins. The second room was virtually empty, which led us to the big roof. We could now get an idea where the building stood. There were high-rises going up everywhere. No wonder that the owners took the opportunity to hand over the building to developers. There was already a signboard outside the building, showing off the particulars of the developers. The building was counting days.

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

Light still comes in.......02

From Legend of Peari Das, Dhaka, May 2009

The last cry.......


We could feel the heat in the open roof, even though it was hardly 8:15 in the morning. We spend some more time on the second floor, getting to feel the environ and also to find some more ideas. We came down to the ground floor, but couldn’t leave. Our host was just too generous to entertain us with a bit of breakfast. We finally left the building by around 9:00AM.

We walked and tried to utilize the tour even more. We visited the legendary Beauty Boarding and was impressed by the old building beside it, which had an arch constructed under it, letting vehicles to travel under the building. The building was being used by the police. Anyway, we didn’t really spend much time over there. Shawon Da and Fakrul Bhai left the scene and they had some other engagement. The four of us hard breakfast at a local restaurant. After the meal, we found the weather a bit too harsh to continue the photowalk without any problem. It was hot and it was humid. We decided to call it a day. The adda was great, mind you.

To summarize the tour, we had a great experience there among those old bricks. The designs, the textures, the feel of those damped-out walls would be in our mind for some time. It was actually hard to swallow that something as valuable was not in the protected list. We had to accept the inevitable with a heavy heart. I told Riel to keep an eye on the demolishing date. That might be a melancholy experience.

BP Photowalk: Panamnagar, Sonargaon, January 2009

Panamnagar: The Bricks are Changing
BP Photowalk to Panamnagar, Sonargaon
Narayanganj, Bangladesh

30 January 2009

It was planned from some days back. Thanks to Monir for the plan. He selected the venue and called everyone. Bangladeshi Photographers (BP) group of Flickr hasn’t done many photowalks of late. And this one was one of those few. The outing was more of an “adda” than a photographic venture. Being able to meet the friends was more important that clicking. Yet, once someone goes out with a camera, its hard to keep quiet. And an historic site like Sonargaon doesn’t let anyone keep quiet.

It was actually not the easiest to get a lot of people out there. The journey had to start pretty early in the morning, which wasn’t everyone’s breakfast on a weekend. But some did manage to show up; only six of us. We started from the bus stop near Gulistan. Even though our scheduled start was 8:00AM, we couldn’t make it before 8:30AM. Our target was to get there before the chaos started. It was a Friday, a holiday. And holidays are the worst time to visit such places. So many souls gather there on those days that it becomes virtually impossible to find the slightest bit of solitary spot. Early arrival over there gives us the chance to leave the crowd behind.

We knew it’s a short journey from Dhaka to Sonargaon. But you can never be fully certain about the condition of traffic; even on a holiday. Our journey took us right through the traffic-jam infested Sayedabad area and that quagmire made sure that we couldn’t reach Sonargaon before 9:35AM. Straightaway we went for Panamnagar or Panam City as they call it, and finished our breakfast at a local restaurant. By around 10:15AM, we started to move slowly into the realms of Panam.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Panamnagar......... trying to catch up with time?



This was my fourth visit there inside three years. Every time I went there, I observed change. And recording the change became more important to me each time. The “renovation” that’s going on over there is being doubted by many. Although those works can make the buildings last longer, they definitely wouldn’t make the buildings regain their earlier beauty. The old buildings no longer spread the aura as they used to several years back. It was living history back then, but now it’s a bland museum. A eviction process was on the way the last time I visited the place. Most buildings were empty by that time. Now, the buildings are still empty, yet, some of the buildings seemed occupied. The eviction process started the renovation work all right, but the work itself somehow failed to impress me.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Disturbing peace of the past.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Designs of humans and Nature........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Designs of humans and Nature........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Designs of humans and Nature........03

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Textures of a bygone era.........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Glimpses from the past..........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Living in history.............01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Nature catches up..........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Don't forget the light that brings you here..... for this is your beacon
(Model: Shudipto)

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Textures of a bygone era.........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Textures of a bygone era.........03

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Let light come in, and don't you ever close the door..........
(Model: Shudipto)

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Living in history.............02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Textures of a bygone era.........04


We veered off from the main street of Panam and proceeded north towards the solitary buildings that attracted me most during my previous tours there. We were shocked giving our first glance at the open field. There was an old Hindu Moth there on a big field. The north end of the field had paddy fields. Now there’s some stupid real estate people erecting a big structure, ruining the whole beauty of the place. We crossed the “real estate” land and moved into the solitary building complex. This complex is always my prime target. I can’t get tired of this building. A family still lives there. Sunlight was shearing through the thick curtain of tree-leaves. It took us to the past. The textures are simply amazing, though ruinous. We clicked away to our heart’s content. The building complex is in terrible shape; on the verge of ruination. Its not going to be long before this becomes history on photographs only. Sonargaon is also very good place for birdwatching. I saw or heard quite a few brids there. I've noticed this during my previous visits there.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Nature does it better.......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Living in history.............03

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Eating away.........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Designs of humans and Nature........04

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Let there be light...........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Let there be light...........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Let there be light...........03
(Model: Shudipto)

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Let there be light...........04
(Model: Shudipto)



We moved on. Monir led us to yet another building complex. It probably was a former treasury. This complex was a shadow of its past; hardly had anything there. Two small structures were struggling to survive against Nature's game of time. A couple of open wondows there were letting in the sun. I just thought if there were some smog there, it could produce mind-blowing sun-rays. I shared it with Shudipto. And as active as he is, he started working with a definite purpose straightaway! Without a second thought, we found Shudipto fully ready with all the ingredients. There was fire! And there was smoke! And thats what we wanted, wasn't it? Sun-rays sneaked through and the clickers got crazy! The smoke didn't last that long, but this time, Monir took over and he wanted even more fire! There was fire again and we clicked smoke. It was great fun and the results were not short of being truly amazing!

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Fishing...........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Fishing...........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Hope...........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

"I swear, I don't know where my pants gone!!"


We explored the local area a little bit. We watched a little fishing in a local pond and spent some time with village children. I always find the smiles on their faces amazing. They give me hope to think. This is one of the reasons why I never give up trying; I just know there is light.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Disturbed peace..........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Doors.........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Artworks..........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Never forget your past.........
(Model: Mehdi Hasan)

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

The sky had always been there..........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Disturbed peace..........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Disturbed peace..........03

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Heritage in danger........



This is when Mustafiz Bhai and Vashkar Bhai showed up. They came in a separate car and were stuck in a long queue of traffic jam near Narayanganj. But they arrived at least, although a bit tired physically and mentally. We were invited by them over phone to yet another building complex. The complex actually read "factory" outside the main gate. I have absolutely no idea how this "factory" sprung up at a place of historical significance. Anyway, we moved into this building complex, which I remembered from my visit in late 2007. A very beutiful building with lovely designs. The two-storied building was not in the worst shape; and some kind of "renovation" seemed like touched it. At least, the idea came up seeing the sealed-off stairs. Previously we were able to take pictures from the 1st floor; this time we had to be content with shooting from below. We explored the small place as much as we could and took some group photos. Then it was time to move on once again.

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

A veiled attempt at renovation............

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Off-limit.........01

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

This is a building that has many memories..........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Panamnagar..... probably trying too hard to catch up......

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Broken.........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Designs...... hard and soft.....

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

A protest........

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Off-limit.........02

From Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Living in history.............04


We proceeded through the even-familiar street of Panam. Most of the buildings were now off limit. Some had their windows and doors sealed off. Others had some artificial repairings done to them as a part of the "renovation" effort. We paused at a small tea stall to take some rest and then moved out.

I actually hurt my leg a bit during the return rickshaw journey to Sonargaon bazar. This painted my tour a bit, but couldn't wipe off the joy of a nice revisit to Panam. Mustafiz Bhai gave me a lift in his car because of my injury. It was a bit painful for several days, but I recovered in due time; ready to make yet another journey. I hope to visit Panamnagar again sometime late in 2009 or in 2010. Observing and recording the changes there are fascinating subjects for me.

P.S. This blog contains only some of the images from the tour. For more pictures, please visit the following link:
Panamnagar, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, January 2009

Please also check out my other visits to Sonargaon and Panamnagar:
Panamnagar, November 2006
Sonargaon & Panamnagar, December 2007