India offers support to restore Satyajit Ray’s ancestral home in Mymensingh as demolition begins

India has shown interest in aiding the restoration and reconstruction of the ancestral home belonging to film maestro Satyajit Ray's forefathers in Mymensingh city following reports of its demolition.

According to media reports, the Mymensingh District Shishu Academy has begun tearing down the over 200-year-old historic building located on Harikishore Ray Road.

The demolition of the house -- once belonging to Ray’s grandfather and eminent litterateur Upendra Kishor Ray Chowdhury -- has drawn concern not only from the Indian government but also from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

On Tuesday night, India’s Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement expressing profound regret over the demolition, saying: “The property, presently owned by the Bangladesh government, is in a state of disrepair."

Highlighting the building’s historical and cultural significance, the statement proposed its restoration.

“Given the building’s landmark status, symbolising Bangla cultural renaissance, it would be preferable to reconsider the demolition and examine options for its repair and reconstruction as a museum of literature and a symbol of the shared culture of India and Bangladesh,” it read.

The Indian government added that it would be willing to extend cooperation for this purpose.

Meanwhile, after seeing the news, Mamata called the demolition unfortunate in an X post on Tuesday, and appealed to the interim government to preserve the heritage-laden house.

She also urged “conscientious individuals” to step forward and advocate for its preservation, calling on the Indian government to intervene in the matter.

"This news is extremely distressing. The Ray family is one of the foremost bearers and carriers of Bengali culture. Upendra Kishor is a pillar of Bengal's renaissance. Therefore, I believe this house is intricately tied to the cultural history of Bengal," the chief minister was quoted as saying in a post on X by NDTV.

The single-storey house of Satyajit Ray’s forefathers in the city had been used by the Shishu Academy. Reports say the institution recently began demolishing the house, which is located next to the BNP office in the city.

The academy started using the building in 1989. However, the abandoned and crumbling structure had been out of use since 2007.

A small playground lies in front of the house.

Harikishore Ray was a zamindar at Masua in Kishoreganj’s Katiadi and an ancestor of the early patrons of Bengali children's literature, including Upendra Kishor Ray Chowdhury, Sukumar Ray, and Satyajit Ray.

According to Banglapedia, at the age of five, Upendra Kishor Ray was adopted by Harikishore Ray Chowdhury from his birth father Kalinath Ray (also known as Shyamsundar Munshi).

Under his patronage, Upendra Kishor began his education and passed the entrance examination with a scholarship from Mymensingh Zilla School in 1880.

The news of the demolition has sparked widespread criticism and concern on social media.