Shahbag or Shahbagh (also Shahbaugh, bn, শাহবাগ, Shāhbāg, ) is a major neighbourhood and a police precinct or ''thana'' in
Dhaka
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest ...
, the capital and largest city of
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
. It is also a major public transport hub. It is a junction between two contrasting sections of the city—
Old Dhaka
Old Dhaka ( bn, পুরান ঢাকা, Puran Dhaka) is a term used to refer to the historic old city of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It was founded in 1608 as Jahangirabad or Jahangirnagar ( bn, জাহাঙ্গীরনগ� ...
and New Dhaka—which lie, respectively, to its south and north. Developed in the 17th century during Mughal rule in
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
, when Old Dhaka was the provincial capital and a centre of the flourishing
muslin
Muslin () is a cotton fabric of plain weave. It is made in a wide range of weights from delicate sheers to coarse sheeting. It gets its name from the city of Mosul, Iraq, where it was first manufactured.
Muslin of uncommonly delicate hands ...
industry, it came to neglect and decay in early 19th century. In the mid-19th century, the Shahbag area was developed as New Dhaka became a provincial centre of the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
, ending a century of decline brought on by the passing of Mughal rule.
Shahbag is the location of the nation's leading educational and public institutions, including the
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
, the oldest and largest public university in Bangladesh, Dhaka Medical College, the largest medical college in the country,
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) is a graduate medical university in Bangladesh. It was established in 1965. The university offers postgraduate degrees only, not offering undergraduate medical or dental degrees.
History
Es ...
bazaars
A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in the W ...
. Since Bangladesh achieved
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...
in 1971, the Shahbag area has become a venue for celebrating major
festivals
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival ...
, such as the Bengali New Year and Basanta Utsab.
Shahbag's numerous ponds, palaces and gardens have inspired the work of writers, singers, and poets. With Dhaka University at its centre, the ''thana'' has been the origin of major political movements in the nation's 20th century history, including the All India Muslim Education Conference in 1905, which led to the
All India Muslim League
The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party established in Dhaka in 1906 when a group of prominent Muslim politicians met the Viceroy of British India, Lord Minto, with the goal of securing Muslim interests on the Indian subcont ...
. In 1947, to both the
partition of India
The Partition of British India in 1947 was the change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: India and Pakistan. T ...
and the creation of Pakistan; the Bengali Language Movement in 1952, which led to the recognition of Bengali as an official language of Pakistan; and the Six point movement in 1966, which led to the nation's independence. It was here, on 7 March 1971, that
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengali politi ...
delivered a historic speech calling for the independence of Bangladesh from Pakistan, and here too, later that year, that the
Pakistani Army
The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...
surrendered in the
Liberation War of Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali n ...
. The area has since become a staging ground for protests by students and other groups. It was the site of public protests by around 30,000 civilians on 8 February 2013, against a lenient ruling against war criminals.
Etymology
The neighborhood was originally named ''Bagh-e-Badshahi'' ( Persian for ''Garden of Kings''), but later came to be called by the shortened name ''
Shah
Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...
'' (Persian:شاه, king) ''
Bagh
Bagh ( fa, باغ, link=no, meaning "garden") may refer to:
Places India
* Bagh Caves in Madhya Pradesh, India
* Bagh, Dhar, a town in Madhya Pradesh, India
Iran
* Bagh, Ardabil, a village in Ardabil Province
* Bagh, Larestan, a village ...
'' (Persian: باغ, garden).
History
Although urban settlements in the Dhaka area date back to the seventh century CE, the earliest evidence of urban construction in the ''Shahbag'' area is to be found at monuments constructed after 1610, when the Mughals turned Dhaka into a provincial capital and established the gardens of Shahbag. Among these monuments are: the ''
Dhaka Gate
Dhaka Gate also known as Mir Jumla's Gate or Ramna Gate is a monument believed to be built by Mir Jumla II and enlisted as one of the oldest Mughal architectures in Dhaka. This gate is considered as one of the integral parts of the history of ...
'', located near the
Bangla Academy
The Bangla Academy ( bn, বাংলা একাডেমি, ) is an autonomous institution funded by the Bangladesh government to foster the Bengali language, literature and culture, to develop and implement national language policy and to d ...
in Shahbag, and erected by Mir Jumla, the Mughal subadar of Bengal from 1660 to 1663; the ''Mariam Saleha Mosque'', a three-domed Mughal-style mosque in ''Nilkhet-Babupara'', constructed in 1706; the Musa Khan Mosque on the western side of Dhaka University, likely constructed in the late 17th century; and the Khwaja Shahbaz's Mosque-Tomb, located behind the Dhaka High Court and built in 1679 by Khwaja Shahbaz, a merchant-prince of Dhaka during the vice-royalty of Prince Muhammad Azam, the son of Mughal Emperor
Aurengzeb
Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
. According to legends a
sadhu
''Sadhu'' ( sa, साधु, IAST: ' (male), ''sādhvī'' or ''sādhvīne'' (female)), also spelled ''saddhu'', is a religious ascetic, mendicant or any holy person in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism who has renounced the worldly life. ...
Kali
Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In this tra ...
temple in Shahbag in the 13th century. Called ''kaathgarh'' at the time, it eventually became the
Ramna Kali Mandir
The Ramna Kali Mandir ( bn, রমনা কালী মন্দির) is a temple in Dhaka that was originally built in the time of the Mughal Empire. It was also known as the "Ramna Kalibari". The temple is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess K ...
Bikrampur
Bikrampur ("City of Courage") was a pargana situated south of Dhaka, the modern capital city of Bangladesh. In the present day, it is known as Munshiganj District of Bangladesh. It is a historic region in Bengal and was a part of the Bhawal ...
, one of the
Baro-Bhuyan
The Baro-Bhuyans (or ''Baro-Bhuyan Raj''; also ''Baro-Bhuians'' and Baro-Bhuiyans) refers to the confederacies of soldier-landowners in Assam and Bengal in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period. The confederacies consisted of loose ...
s, apparently built a Kali temple on the site in the late 16th century, and the main temple was built by Haricharan Giri in the early 17th century.
However, with the decline of Mughal power in Bengal, the Shahbag gardens—''the Gardens of the Kings''—fell into neglect. In 1704, when the provincial capital was moved to
Murshidabad
Murshidabad fa, مرشد آباد (, or ) is a historical city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located on the eastern bank of the Bhagirathi River, a distributary of the Ganges. It forms part of the Murshidabad district.
Durin ...
, they became the property of the Naib Nazimsthe Deputy-Governors of the sub-province of East Bengaland the representatives of the Nawabs of Murshidabad. Although British power was established in Dacca in 1757, the upkeep of Shahbag gardens was resumed only in the early 19th century under the patronage of an
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...
judge, Griffith Cook, and P. Aratun. In 1830, the Ramna area, which included Shahbag, was incorporated into Dhaka city consequent to the deliberations of the Dacca Committee (for the development of Dacca town) founded by
district collector
A District Collector-cum-District Magistrate (also known as Deputy Commissioner in some states) is an All India Service officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) cadre who is responsible for ''land revenue collection'', ''canal revenu ...
Henry Walters. A decade later, Nawab
Khwaja Alimullah
Khwaja Alimullah (died 24 August 1854) was the first Nawab of Dhaka. He was the founder of the Dhaka Nawab family.
Alimullah was the nephew and heir of the merchant prince Khwaja Hafizullah, son of Khwaja Ahsanullah, and father of Khwaja Abdu ...
zamindar
A zamindar (Hindustani language, Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian language, Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous Raja, ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughal Em ...
i'' (estate) from the East India Company. Upon his death, in 1868, the estate passed to his grandson Nawab Khwaja Ahsanullah. In the early 20th century, Ahsanullah's son, Sir Nawab Khwaja Salimullah, was able to reclaim some of the lost splendour of the gardens by dividing them into two smaller gardens—the present-day ''Shahbag'' and ''Paribag'' (or, "garden of fairies")—the latter named after Paribanu, one of Ahsanullah's daughters.
With the partition of Bengal in 1905, and with
Dacca
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city i ...
becoming the capital of the new province of
East Bengal
ur,
, common_name = East Bengal
, status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan
, p1 = Bengal Presidency
, flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg
, s1 = Ea ...
, European-style houses were rapidly built in the area, especially along the newly constructed Fuller Road (named after Sir Bampfylde Fuller, the first
Lieutenant Governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
of East Bengal). Around this time, the first zoo in the Dhaka area was also established in Shahbag. Rani Bilasmani of
Bhawal
Bhawal Estate was the second largest zamindari in Bengal (in modern-day Bangladesh) until it was abolished according to ''East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950''.
History
In the late 17th century, Daulat Ghazi was the zamind ...
established a new idol in the Kali temple and excavated a large pond in front of it at this period. In 1924,
Anandamayi Ma
Anandamayi Ma (''née'' Nirmala Sundari; 30 April 1896 – 27 August 1982) was an Indian saint and yoga guru, described by Sivananda Saraswati (of the Divine Life Society) as he most perfect flower the Indian soil has produced Precognition, ...
moved into Shabag and established Anandamayi Asharam inside the 2.22 acres of temple ground.
After the creation of the new nation of Pakistan in 1947, when Dhaka became the capital of
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wit ...
, many new buildings were built in the Shahbag area, including, in 1960, the office of Bangladesh Betar, (then ''Pakistan Radio''), the national radio station, the (now-defunct) Dacca race-course, as well as the second electric power-plant in East Bengal. On 7 March 1971,
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengali politi ...
chose the Ramna Racecourse near Shahbag to deliver his speech calling for an independent Bangladesh. On 27 March 1971, Pakistani Army destroyed the Kali temple and its 120 feet tower. During the ensuing
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali ...
, many foreign journalists, including the
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. new ...
bureau chief in Pakistan, Arnold Zeitlin, and
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...
reporter, H.D.S. Greenway stayed at Hotel InterContinental (now Hotel Sheraton) at the Shahbag Intersection. The hotel, which had been declared a ''neutral zone'', nonetheless came under fire from both combatants in the war—the
Mukti Bahini
The Mukti Bahini ( bn, মুক্তিবাহিনী, translates as 'freedom fighters', or liberation army), also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was the guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military, paramilitary ...
and Pakistani army. At the conclusion of the war, the Hotel Intercontinental was at first chosen as the venue for the surrender ceremony of the West
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...
; however, the final surrender ceremony later took place in the nearby Ramna Park (now Suhrawardy Uddan).
Shahbag is part of the 181st
electoral district
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
of Bangladesh: Dhaka 8. In
2008 Bangladeshi general election
General elections were held in Bangladesh on 29 December 2008. The two main parties in the election were the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by Khaleda Zia, and the Bangladesh Awami League Party, led by Sheikh Hasina. The Bangladesh Aw ...
Rashed Khan Menon
Rashed Khan Menon (born 18 May 1943) is a Bangladeshi politician. He is the president of Workers Party of Bangladesh and was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dhaka-8 in the 2008 general election. Menon was re-elected at the 2014 gen ...
of
Workers Party of Bangladesh
The Workers Party of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের ওয়ার্কার্স পার্টি) is a communist party in Bangladesh. Rashed Khan Menon is the president of the Workers Party of Bangladesh and Anisur Rahm ...
was elected as the member of
Jatiyo Sangsad
The Jatiya Sangsad ( bn, জাতীয় সংসদ, lit=National Parliament, translit=Jatiyô Sôngsôd), often referred to simply as the ''Sangsad'' or JS and also known as the House of the Nation, is the supreme legislative body of B ...
(member of parliament or MP) from the area. In the Dhaka City Corporation ward commissioner election of 2002 Md. Chowdhury Alam (ward 56) and Khaja Habibullah Habib (ward 57) were elected in the Shahbag area.
More than 1,000 people gathered here on 5 February 2013, growing to 20,000 people by 9 February, following the conviction of
Abdul Quader Mollah
Abdul Quader Molla ( bn, আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লা; 14 August 1948 – 12 December 2013) was a Bangladeshi Islamist leader, writer, and politician of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, who was convicted of war crimes and ...
for war crimes by the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal, and his sentence to life imprisonment. Protesters thought he should have received the death sentence for his crimes, as had two other political leaders who were convicted. The protest movement gathered force, as leaders also called for the banning of
Jamaat-e-Islami
Jamaat-e-Islami ( ur, ) () is an Islamic movement founded in 1941 in British India by the Islamic theologian and socio-political philosopher, Syed Abul Ala Maududi.van der Veer P. and Munshi S. (eds.''Media, War, and Terrorism: Responses fr ...
from politics, as two of its top leaders had been convicted of war crimes and followers had conducted violent protests and riots. The 2013 Shahbag protests have influenced national politics, and has been called 'Projonmo Chattar'.
Urban layout
With an area of and an estimated 2006 population of 112,000 Shabag lies within the monsoon climate zone at an elevation of above mean sea level. Like rest of Dhaka city it has an annual average temperature of and monthly means varying between in January and in August. Nearly 80% of the annual average rainfall of occurs between May and September.
The Shahbag neighbourhood covers a large approximately rectangular area, extending on the east from
Ramna
Ramna Thana ( bn, রমনা থানা) is a police jurisdiction in central Dhaka. It is a historic colonial neighborhood. Once the site of Mughal gardens, it developed into an institutional area during British rule in the late 19th centu ...
Park to the Supreme Court of Bangladesh; on the west as far as Sonargaon Road; on the south as far as Fuller Road and from the
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
to the
Suhrawardy Udyan
Suhrawardy Udyan ( bn, সোহরাওয়ার্দী উদ্যান) formerly known as Ramna Race Course ground is a national memorial located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is named after Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Originally it serve ...
(formerly, Ramna Racecourse); and on the north as far as Minto Road, Hotel Sheraton and the Diabetic Hospital.
Shahbag is home to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Control Room as well as a Dhaka Electric Supply Authority substation. The
Mausoleum of three leaders
The Mausoleum of Three Leaders ( bn, তিন নেতার মাজার, also known as the Suhrawardy Udyan National Memorial), located at Shahbag, Dhaka in Bangladesh, contains the graves of three prominent leaders of Pakistan Movement f ...
Bengali statesman
A.K. Fazlul Huq
Abul Kasem Fazlul Huq ( bn, আবুল কাশেম ফজলুল হক, ur, ; 26October 1873 — 27 April 1962), popularly known as Sher-e-Bangla (''Lion of Bengal''), was a British Indian and Pakistani lawyer and writer who present ...
(1873–1962), former Prime Minister of Pakistan,
Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy
Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy ( bn, হোসেন শহীদ সোহ্রাওয়ার্দী; ur, ; 8 September 18925 December 1963) was a Bengali barrister and politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1956 ...
(1892–1963), and former Prime Minister and Governor-General of Pakistan, Khwaja Nazimuddin (1894–1964)—are all located in Shahbag. The major academic bodies around Shahbag Intersection and in Shahbag ''Thana'' area include: University of Dhaka, Dhaka Medical College, BUET, Bangladesh Civil Service Administration Academy,
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) is a graduate medical university in Bangladesh. It was established in 1965. The university offers postgraduate degrees only, not offering undergraduate medical or dental degrees.
History
Es ...
Bangladesh National Museum
The Bangladesh National Museum ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জাতীয় জাদুঘর), is the national museum of Bangladesh. The museum is well organized and displays have been housed chronologically in several departments like dep ...
, the Central Public Library, and the Shishu Academy, the National Academy for Children.
The Shahbag Intersection, the nerve centre of the neighbourhood, is the location of many Dhaka landmarks. Well-known ones include Hotel Sheraton (formerly Hotel Intercontinental, the second five-star hotel in Dhaka); the
Dhaka Club
The Dhaka Club (formerly spelled as Dacca Club) is the oldest recreation organisation and the largest of elite clubs in Dhaka. Originally it was an all-white association in British India.
Description
Dhaka club has been described as "an oasis of ...
, the oldest and largest club in Dhaka, established in 1911; the National Tennis Complex; Shishu Park, the oldest children's entertainment park in Dhaka, notable for admitting underprivileged children ''gratis'' on weekends; ''Sakura'', the first bar in Dhaka; and ''Peacock'', the first Dhaka bar with outdoor seating. The Shahbag Intersection is one of the major
public transportation
Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...
Maghbazar
Maghbazar or Mogbazar ( bn, মগবাজার) is the name of a neighborhood in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is located near the neighborhoods of Tejgaon, Ramna and Malibagh. It is under Ramna thana and administered by the Dhaka South City Corpora ...
.
The thana also contains a hospitals complex, which is a major destination for Bangladeshis seeking medical treatment. The Diabetic Association of Bangladesh (DAB) is located at the Shahbag Intersection, as are
BIRDEM
BIRDEM, the Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders at Shahbag, Dhaka, Bangladesh, is a 600-bed multidisciplinary hospital complex of the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh. The hospital ...
(Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders) and the BIRDEM Hospital. Flanking BIRDEM hospital is the Ibrahim Memorial Cardiac Hospital, named after Dr Muhammad Ibrahim, the founder of DAB and BIRDEM. Other facilities in the area are BSMMU Hospital (at the Intersection) and the Dhaka Medical College Hospital at the southern end of Shahbag.
Located at the juncture of two major bus routes – Gulistan to Mirpur and
Motijheel
Motijheel ( bn, মতিঝিল) is a ''thana'' (administrative division) of Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is at the heart of the city (the General Post Office is considered the zero point of Dhaka). Motijheel is the major business and commercial hu ...
to
Uttara Uttara, which means "north" in Sanskrit and many other South Asian languages, may refer to:
Places
* Uttara Export Processing Zone, Bangladesh
* Uttara, a suburb north of Dhaka, Bangladesh
*Uttara East Thana
*Uttara West Thana
*Uttaradit, a city i ...
– Shahbag Intersection serves as a public transport hubs in Dhaka, where the population commutes exclusively by the city bus services. The Intersection also has one of the few taxi stands in Dhaka. The
thoroughfare
A thoroughfare is a primary passage or way as a transit route through regularly trafficked areas, whether by road on dry land or, by
extension, via watercraft or aircraft. On land, a thoroughfare may refer to anything from a multi-lane highw ...
s of Shahbag has been made free of cycle- rickshaws, the traditional transport of Dhaka.
''Shahbagh Square'', also known as ''Shahbagh Circle'', is a major road intersection and public transport hub located in Shahbagh thana. The intersection connects some of the important areas of Dhaka such as Gulshan, and
Farmgate
Farmgate is a area in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It is one of the busiest and most crowded areas of Dhaka city. From the early 90s', the area has seen the massive building and construction boom. Consequently, the area has gained commercial ...
. It is also surrounded by some significant landmarks including Bangladesh National Museum, Suhrawardy Udyan, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University. Throughout its history, Shahbag square has been a place of protests and demonstrations, most notably the 2013 Shahbag protests.
Historic mansions
Also located in Shahbag are several mansions built by Dhaka Nawab Family in the 19th century. These mansions not only figured prominently in the history of Dhaka, but also gained mention in the histories of both
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
and
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
.
A well-known Nawab family mansion is the Ishrat Manzil. Originally, a dance-hall for the performances of '' Baijees'', or dancing women, (including, among the famous ones, Piyari Bai, Heera Bai, Wamu Bai and Abedi Bai), the mansion became the venue for the All-India Muslim Education Society Conference in 1906, which was attended by 4,000 participants. In 1912, Society convened here again under the leadership of Nawab Salimullah, and met with Lord Hardinge, the
Viceroy of India
The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...
. The Ishrat Manzil was subsequently rebuilt as Hotel Shahbag (designed by British architects Edward Hicks and Ronald McConnel), the first major international hotel in Dhaka. In 1965, the building was acquired by the Institute of Post-graduate Medicine and Research (IPGMR), and later, in 1998, by the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).
Another Nawab mansion is the Jalsaghar. Built as a skating rink and a ballroom for the Nawabs, it was later converted into an eatery and meeting place for students and faculty of Dhaka University and renamed
Madhur Canteen
Madhur Canteen ( bn, মধুর রেস্তোরা, Modhur restora, Madhu's canteen) is a familiar name in the history of the Dhaka University as well as in the national politics of Bangladesh because of its association with various poli ...
. In the late 1960s, Madhur Canteen became a focal point for planning student protests against the West Pakistan regime. Flanked on one side by the Dhaka University's
Faculty of Fine Arts
In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...
and on the other by the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), the Madhur Canteen remains a powerful political symbol.
Nishat Manjil was built as the princely stable and clubhouse for the Nawabs, and served as a venue of receptions for the statesmen of the day, including
Lord Dufferin
Frederick Temple Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava (21 June 182612 February 1902) was a British public servant and prominent member of Victorian society. In his youth he was a popular figure in the court of Queen Vict ...
Governor of Bengal
The Governor was the chief colonial administrator in the Bengal presidency, originally the "Presidency of Fort William" and later "Bengal province".
In 1644, Gabriel Boughton procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them t ...
), Sir Steuart Bayley (Lt. Governor of Bengal), Sir Charles Alfred Elliott (Lt. Governor of Bengal), and John Woodburn (Lt. Governor of Bengal).
The Nawab's Paribag House was built by Khwaja Salimullah in the memory of his sister, Pari Banu. Later, with the downturn in the family's fortunes, his son, Nawab Khwaja Habibullah, lived here for many years. The ''hammam'' (bath) and the ''hawakhana'' (green house) were regarded as marvels of design in the early 20th century.
Sujatpur Palace, the oldest Nawab mansion in the area, later became the residence for the Governor of East Bengal during the Pakistani Regime, and was subsequently turned into the
Bangla Academy
The Bangla Academy ( bn, বাংলা একাডেমি, ) is an autonomous institution funded by the Bangladesh government to foster the Bengali language, literature and culture, to develop and implement national language policy and to d ...
, the Supreme Bengali Language Authority in Bangladesh. Some of the palace grounds was handed over to the TSC (Teacher Student Center) of Dhaka University, and became a major cultural and political meeting place in the 1970s.
Culture
Shahbag is populated by mostly teachers and students, and its civic life is dominated by the activities of its academic institutions. Its commercial life too reflects its occupants' intellectual and cultural pursuits. Among its best known markets is the country's largest second-hand, rare, and antiquarian book-market, consisting of ''Nilkhet-Babupura'' Hawkers Market, a street market, and ''Aziz'' Supermarket, an indoor
bazaar
A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in t ...
. Shahbag is also home to the largest flower market (a street side open air
bazaar
A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in t ...
) in the country, which is located at Shahbag Intersection, as well as the largest pet market in the country, the ''Katabon'' Market. In addition, Elephant Road features a large shoe market and, ''Nilkhet-Babupura'', a large market for bedding accessories.
Shahbag's numerous ponds, palaces and gardens have inspired the work of artists, including poet
Buddhadeva Bose
Buddhadeva Bose (; 1908–1974), also spelt Buddhadeb Bosu, was an Indian Bengali writer of the 20th century. Frequently referred to as a poet, he was a versatile writer who wrote novels, short stories, plays and essays in addition to poetry. ...
, singer
Protiva Bose
Protiva Bose (also spelled Pratibha Basu; bn, প্রতিভা বসু) (March 13, 1915 – 13 October 2006) was a singer and one of the most prolific and widely read Bengali writers of novels, short stories, and essays.
Biography
She was ...
poets of 19th-century Dhaka, Obaidullah Suhrawardy and Abdul Gafoor Nassakh.
Shahbag was at the centre of the cultural and political activities associated with the Language movement of 1952, which resulted in the founding here of the
Bangla Academy
The Bangla Academy ( bn, বাংলা একাডেমি, ) is an autonomous institution funded by the Bangladesh government to foster the Bengali language, literature and culture, to develop and implement national language policy and to d ...
, a national academy for promoting the
Bengali language
Bengali ( ), generally known by its endonym Bangla (, ), is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Bengal region of South Asia. It is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh and the second most widely spoken ...
. The first formal art school in Dhakathe Dhaka Art College (now Faculty of Fine Arts)was founded in Shahbag by Zainul Abedin in 1948. Later, Mazharul Islam, the pioneer of modern architecture in Bangladesh, designed the art college as one of his early projects. In the 1970s, Jiraz Art Gallery opened as the first commercial art wing in the Shahbag area. Other cultural landmarks in the area include
the Bangladesh National Museum, the National Public Library, and the Dhaka University Mosque and Cemetery, containing the graves of
, the national poet, of painters Zainul Abedin and Quamrul Hassan, and of the teachers killed by Pakistani forces during the
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali ...
of 1971.
The Shahbag area has a rich religious history. In the late 1920s, Sri Anandamoyi Ma, the noted
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
ascetic, also known as the ''Mother of Shahbag'', built her
ashram
An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions.
Etymology
The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (<
Ramna Kali Mandir
The Ramna Kali Mandir ( bn, রমনা কালী মন্দির) is a temple in Dhaka that was originally built in the time of the Mughal Empire. It was also known as the "Ramna Kalibari". The temple is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess K ...
, or the Temple of
Kali
Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In this tra ...
, at Ramna. Her presence in Dhaka owed directly to Shahbag, for her husband, Ramani Mohan Chakrabarti, had accepted the position of caretaker of Shahbag gardens a few years earlier. In 1971 the Temple of Kali was destroyed by the Pakistani Army in the Liberation War of Bangladesh. A well-known local
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
saint of the early 20th century was Syed Abdur Rahim, supervisor of the dairy farm established by Khwaja Salimullah, the Nawab of Dhaka, at Paribag. Known as the ''Shah Shahib of Paribag'', Abdur Rahim had his ''
khanqah
A khanqah ( fa, خانقاه) or khangah ( fa, خانگاه; also transliterated as ''khankah'', ''khaneqa'', ''khanegah'' or ''khaneqah''; also Arabized ''hanegah'', ''hanikah'', ''hanekah'', ''khankan''), also known as a ribat (), is a buildin ...
'' (Persian: خانگاه, spiritual retreat) here; his tomb lies at the same location today. Katabon Mosque, an important centre for Muslim missionaries in Bangladesh, is located in Shahbag as well. In addition, the only
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
Gurdwara in Dhaka stands next to the Institute of Modern Languages in Shahbag.
Since 1875, the Shahbag gardens have hosted a famous
fair
A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks.
Types
Variations of fairs incl ...
celebrating the Gregorian New Year and containing exhibits of agricultural and industrial items, as well as those of animals and birds. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the gardens were the private property of the Nawab of Dhaka, and, although a portion of the gardens had been donated to Dhaka University in 1918, ordinary citizens could enter the main gardens only during the fair. In 1921, at the request of the Nawab's daughter, Paribanu, the organisers of the fair set aside one day during which only women were admitted to the fair, a tradition that has continued down to the present. Today, the fair features dance recitals by girls, '' Jatra'' (a native form of folk theater), ''putul naach'' (puppet shows), magic shows and
Bioscope show
A Bioscope show was a music hall and fairground attraction consisting of a travelling cinema. The heyday of the Bioscope was from the late 1890s until World War I.
History
Bioscope shows were fronted by the largest fairground organs, and these f ...
s. Historically, Shahbag was also the main venue in Dhaka for other recreational sports like '' Boli Khela'' (wrestling) and
horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...
.
The '' Basanta Utsab'' (Festival of Spring) takes place every 14 February—the first day of spring, according to the reformed Bangladeshi calendar. ''Basanta Utsab'' has become a major festival in Dhaka since it was first celebrated in Shahbag in the 1960s. Face painting, wearing yellow clothes (signifying Spring), music, and local fairs are typical of the many activities associated with the festival, which often also includes themes associated with
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, thr ...
.
Shahbag is also a focal point of the Pohela Baishakh (the Bengali New Year) festival, celebrated every 14 April following the revised Bengali Calendar, and now the biggest carnival in Dhaka. From 1965 to 1971 the citizens of Dhaka observed the festival as a day of protest against the Pakistani regime. Other local traditions associated with the festival include the ''Boishakhi Rally'' and the ''Boishakhi Mela'' begun by the Institute of Fine Arts (now Faculty of Fine Arts) and the Bangla Academy respectively. In addition, Chayanaut Music School began the tradition of singing at dawn under the Ramna Batamul (Ramna
Banyan
A banyan, also spelled "banian", is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adventitious prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as a ...
tree). In 2001, a suicide bomber killed 10 people and injured 50 others during the Pohela Baishakh festivals. The Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, an Islamic militant group, was alleged to be behind the incident.
Books and movies figure prominently in the cultural life of Shahbag. The biggest book fair in Bangladesh is held every February on the premises of the Bangla Academy in Shahbag. The only internationally recognised film festival in Bangladesh—the Short and Independent Film Festival, Bangladesh—takes place every year at the National Public Library premises. The organisers of the film festival, the
Bangladesh Short Film Forum
Bangladesh Short Film Forum (BSFF) is an organization of young Bangladeshi film makers. It was formed on 24 August 1986 by a group of young independent filmmakers and activists who were then campaigning for creative and aesthetically rich cinema.
...
, have their offices in Aziz Market. Aparajeyo Bangla, a sculpture in memory of Bangladesh Liberation War, is also in Shahbag.
Notes
References
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* Old files and documents preserved at Ahsan Manzil Museum and Nawab State's Office
* Ahsanullah, Nawab, Personal Diary (Urdu) preserved at Ahsan Manzil.
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External links
* {{cite web , url=http://www.dmp.gov.bd/static/view_map.php?thana_name=Shahbagh&map_img=file~31.jpg , title=Map of Thana Shahbagh , website=Dhaka Metropolitan Police , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311014333/http://www.dmp.gov.bd/static/view_map.php?thana_name=Shahbagh&map_img=file~31.jpg , archive-date=11 March 2007
Anandamoyi Ma website Neighbourhoods in DhakaThanas of Dhaka