Shakhari Bazar

Shakhari Bazaar is one of the oldest mohallas (a traditional neighbourhood) in Puran Dhaka (Old Dhaka), located near the intersection of Islampur Road and Nawabpur Road; the two main arteries of the old city and only a block away from the Buriganga River. Shakhari Bazaar stretches along a narrow lane, lined with thin slices of richly decorated brick buildings, built during the late Mughal or Colonial period. Despite rampant modifications, accretion, extension over time, even redevelopment, many still bear the testimony of a rich tradition.

History

Shakhari Bazaar is the manifestation of the irrational policies, lack of adequate development control rules and distorted legal framework, all of which have left their indelible mark on this precious little mohalla that shares a long history of more than 400 years with Dhaka city itself.The history of Shakhari Bazaar goes back to the pre-Mughal days if not earlier. The first mention of Puran Dhaka can be found in the writings of Mirza Nathan, the general turned historian, who traveled with Subahdar Islam Khan. He mentioned Puran Dhaka, as the area between Dholai Khal and Buriganga river covering Shakhari Bazaar, Tanti Bazaar, Bangla Bazaar, Lakhsmi Bazaar, Bangla Bazaar, Kamar Nagar, Sutar Nagar, Goala Nagar, etc. Each mohalla belonged to separate communities depending on their craft and trade. The influences of the Mughal vocabulary in the planning of the spaces are literally evident in the use of Persian names to identify different spaces.

Prior to the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, the Shakharees used to get the raw material for their craft, the conch shell or the shankha, directly from Calcutta, through their agents, where the shells were imported from South India and Sri Lanka. After 1947, import from Calcutta, stopped altogether and only direct import from SriLanka began. They had to buy from Dhaka agents from other parts of Bangladesh and collect the raw material for their mahajans.

The mass exodus of the Hindu community, to India, as the result of riots following the partition in 1947, left Shakhari Bazaar completely deserted. It was only through pacts at national levels that things started simmering down when repatriation took place. This was followed by some extra effort by the government to bring back some semblance of order in the area. trade. Two organizations started operating. Apparently, by 1953, at the behest of the government, reorganization took place.

Shakhari Bazaar overview

The mohalla belongs to the Shakhari Community, who borrowed their name from Shakha, a richly decorated bangle crafted from slices of Shankha or conch-shells. Shakha is the symbol that indicates that a Hindu woman is married. Besides Vadya Shankha used as a trumpet, for mangal-dhoni (tune of good omen), other crafts include Jal-shankha for offering holy water to the deity and other decorative ornaments. Almost every use of Shakha has some sort of a religious connotation. Apart from Shakha a number of other traditional crafts are widely seen in the mohalla, to name a few are, musical instruments, paper crafts, Shola-pith or crafts using jute straw and Styrofoam sheet, Clay Statues for Puja or other religious purpose, stone craft etc. In recent times there has been a remarkable rise in the goldsmith shops in Shakhari Bazaar.

Shakhari Bazaar has a distinct urban fabric. It is a 600 ft long narrow street lined by thin slices of brick buildings (150) 200-300 years old. These buildings are 10-12 ft in width and 70-100ft in length going up to 2-3 storeys. A few of the buildings were 4 stories in height. Each building with its richly decorated elevation in the Mughal or colonial style is characterised by a narrow long corridor and narrow winding staircases placed intermittently between rows of rooms. Each building has 2-3 courtyards. The staircase goes up to the open courtyard on the top floor, surrounded by a richly decorated verandah. A temple room opens into the courtyard.During the last 20 to 30 years a lot of demolition has been done for speculative redevelopment. About 40 percent of the old buildings have been demolished for new 6-7 storied buildings.

Over the ages Shakhari Bazaar has been elevated to the level of the most popular centre for religious festivities. As one of the most densely populated areas in the world Shakhari Bazaar also has the largest concentration of the Hindus in Dhaka. At present there are about 10,000 people living in Shakhari Bazaar and that within an area of 4.6 acres of land makes it one of the highest density areas of the world. Along with adjacent mohallas viz. Tanti Bazaar, Go-al Nagar, Jhulan Bari, Pannitola, it's also like a sanctuary to the Hindu community.

The social significance of Shakhari Bazaar is equally important. Here we have a community that had remained totally insulated over the ages through intermarriages within the community, which is also known as the Shankha Vaniks. Even today the traditional institutions like panchayet remains the ultimate decision maker for the community. A distinctive social structure is based on the hierarchy of the Shakhari trade. The traditional pattern whereby the craftsmen, merchants and workers lived and worked in integrated communities are being rapidly replaced by a new pattern.

Many temples dot this narrow street. The street is dotted with at least 20 temples along this short stretch of lane. On major religious festivals, for the Hindu community in the Dhaka City, Ramakrishna Mission and Dhakeshwari Mandir are the two major venues where the formal events take place. But it is Shakhari Bazaar that enjoys the status of the most popular choice for the major festivals as well as the other festivals round the year. It is said that the din of the cymbals of puja never stops at Shakhari Bazaar. For the residents of Shakhari Bazaar festivities of different religious events are just their way of life. It is also like a sanctuary for the Hindu community. Its unique way of setting up a series of overhead stages covering the road adds a special dimension of the festivities. In a way, Shakhari Bazaar epitomises the concept of urban blight. In fact over the last two years Shakhari Bazaar has received more publicity for its infamous urban problems which are many.

Architectural significance

The architecture of Shakhari Bazaar is unique. A creative approach to the problem of congestion is evident especially in the way the courtyards have been built which are used not only for functional efficiency but as devices to incorporate the environmental factors like ventilation, light etc.Shakhari Bazaar displays a blend of different architectural styles belonging to different periods starting from the Mughals, to the Raj. Stylistic variations in Shakhari Bazaar reveal at least three major stages based on chronologically identifiable features- the late Mughal, early colonial and the Raj. Though the Mughal and colonial style dominated the forms and the geometry of the buildings, motifs from Hindu legends and mythologies are widely found in the surface decorations and architectural details of the buildings. But there are certain architectural elements like the temple courtyards and the juxtaposition of the courts at different levels, which are unique to this mohalla.

The division of elevation in three bays along with tri-foil, multi-cusp arches is a Mughal legacy. The short decorative free columns with bell shaped capitals, round pedestals and intricate surface decorations suggest a lineage that goes back to the architecture of Dewan-I-Khas. By the mid 19th century the architecture of Shakhari Bazaar has taken a turn. The vocabulary was derived from the Mughal style but far less grand versions of the original ones. The graceful proportions were gone though the arches and the columns were retained. The religious following of the codes and orders were not to be found any more.

By the late 19th century a stylistically distinct neo classical style could be seen in Shakhari Bazaar. The architecture varied depending on the house type mentioned earlier. The architecture of this style reflected more of the classical elements in the decoration of the buildings. Use of classical orders in the columns, Pilasters, engaged columns, cornices, entablatures, stylised dentils all reflect a shift toward this new style. Among the different orders used, the preference for the Corinthian style is easily visible. Intricately decorated wrought iron columns, carved wooden posts, use of wrought iron railings are among other features that gives this period a distinctive style. In some of the houses the contemporary British influence can be seen in the Edwardian vocabulary used in the elevations. During this period Shakhari Bazaar went through a wave of refurbishment in the front facade of the buildings. Roadside verandahs came in as a new architectural element, covering up the setback spaces or Ro-aaks at street levels.

Present condition

Since the collapse of a multi-storied building at Shakhari Bazaar, the stream of criticism from the media and different segments of the society, as well as the government have never ceased to pour in. In fact over the last two years, Shakhari Bazaar has regularly hogged the headlines of the print and electronic media, mostly for the wrong reasons. Whenever there is an issue of safety of buildings, the typical example given is Shakhari Bazaar. It has been stereotyped as the ultimate example of congestion, blight, and dilapidated buildings. What has essentially been missed is the unique and exotic cultural heritage, which Shakhari Bazaar as a custodian has nurtured and nourished for centuries.

Besides the heritage issues, the problems faced by Shakhari Bazaar are mainly two-folded, environmental (physical) and socio-economic. These problems stem from the issue of the vested property and the discriminatory attitude of the city fathers towards this traditional community.Over the last half century, while being repeatedly subjected to dislocation and exodus, due to communal riots, legal harassment (promulgation of the enemy property act) and social discrimination, the community suffered irreparable damage, during the war of independence, in 1971. Ever since, very little has been done to redress the injuries inflicted upon this community over the decades; the riot of 1990 only exposed the vulnerability of the community. Living in a state of perennial dislocation, this community has huddled together, in a ghetto like space, seeking security in numbers and beau geste from successive governments over the decades.

Absence of adequate development control rules, complicated by discriminatory land ownership laws compounded by illegal extensions and constructions has resulted in a very complex ownership pattern. Lack of maintenance and repair has resulted in a worn out appearance. Some of the buildings have actually gone beyond any repair due to lack of services and utilities and other urban amenities, multiple ownership of buildings, density of population and the aspirations of the residents.

The steadily deteriorating state of the art of Shankha making and other traditional crafts has resulted in the diminishing incomes and impoverishment of the Shankha artists. Over the last 15 years the wage and the income of the Shankha shilpi has effectively, decreased, rendering the Shakharees poorer and economically marginalized.

References