In this 3-part series, GB brings a fascinating tale of Rabindranath Tagore’s ancestors, the Pirali Brahmins and how they descended from a converted Muslim of Jessore The exact year when Khan Jahan Ali’s set out for South Bengal is not known but it has been established
Part 4: Did laying of Railways lead to Bengal’s Agricultural Decline? Historians have argued that one of the reasons for the Bengal Famine in 1943 was the stoppage of importation of rice from Burma during the Japanese occupation. But they have hardly enquired why, in the
As the mercury starts dipping, we suffer from an irresistible urge for drinking something that offers us the much needed warmth during the freezing winters. Coffee and tea are common in ever weather. But nothing can beat the taste of a hot chimney soup. Chimney
In 1907, Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumdar (1877-1956) compiled a number of Bengali folk tales and fairy tales he had been listening to since childhood, into a book he called ‘Thakumar Jhuli’ (also referred to as Thakurmar Jhuli). It was quite possibly the first time that the
At times photographs can start a lifetime bond! It was the year of 1914, when Rabindranath Tagore went to Allahabad and stayed for about three weeks with Pyarilal Bandyopadhyay, the son-in-law of his nephew, Satyaprasad Gangopadhyay. During his stay there, he spotted a photograph hanging
Part 5: Illustrious descendants of Siraj Sourindrakishore’s first wife, Tripureswari Devi, died under mysterious circumstances. They had one son, Upendra Kishore Roy Choudhury who was brought up at his maternal uncle’s home. Does the name sound familiar? After Tripureswari Devi’s demise, Prasanna Kumar married twice to
Part 3: Watershed Chalan Beel destroyed by Railways The north-western segment of the Eastern Bengal Railway (EBR) contributed to the deterioration of the water regime of Northern Bengal by the way the railway exposed itself to the Chalan Beel. The Chalan Beel was a vast deep
By 1947, there were five faculties and 17 teaching departments at Dhaka University. At present, the university consists of 13 faculties, 83 departments, 12 institutes, 20 residential halls, three hostels and more than 56 research centres. The number of students and teachers has risen to
Part 4: Why Jugalkishore asked his son to relocate to Shillong Jugalkishore’s youngest son, Prankrishnanath Roy Choudhury chose to stay with his parents, Jugalkishore and Yamuna Devi in Kajalsha (or Kajal Sahar) in Sylhet. During this phase, Jugalkishore gradually transformed into an ascetic and led a
Mango pickle, mango jelly, mango chutney, and amsotto (mango bar or mango papad, depending on which part of India you live in) have all had their day. But this most beloved of Indian fruits is capable of so much more! The Bengal Store shows you