The strategic location of Cape Coast in Ghana made it a lucrative spot for a permanent presence of European imperial powers from the mid 16th century. It was an ideal location for the extraction and export of gold, ivory, timber and slaves from Africa into…
In the previous two episodes from my trip to Ghana, I wrote about the history of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade that spanned over four centuries and how the coast of present day Ghana (erstwhile Gold Coast) came to be the hub of this trade. We…
Often unknown to us, the workings of the universe mysteriously resonate with that of our innermost selves. Nina had recently put up on Facebook this beautiful photograph of our daughter Minnie, captured by her first Dance guru, Lubna Marium, during a performance. Taken with her…
Bengali Scholar in Freetown When I moved to Sierra Leone in West Africa a year ago, I did not expect to find many South Asians, let alone any Bengali speakers here. A few months into my stay in the country, however, I learn from two…
Lakka Beach is barely half an hour drive from the center of Freetown city and despite its proximity to the city, it is largely pristine and spotless clean. The sands are fine, light golden yellow and the beach itself has a wide sweeping curve. Charlotte…
One can never say enough about this maestro, this legend of Indian classical music. An ace student of Ustad Baba Allauddin Khan of Brahmanbaria (Bangladesh), Pandit Ji belonged to the Maihar Gharana — the “house of music” which his formidable Guru created in the early…
My trip to Bureh-Town beach was unusual. Located in coast of the Freetown peninsula, Bureh-Town beach may be easily reached by road and that doesn’t take more than an hour and half from where I live. Nevertheless, when I went to Lakka beach over an extended weekend,…
The Original Hand-Crafted Indian Constitution Very few Indians probably know that the original Constitution of India that we adopted on 26th January 1950 was not a printed one, but a hand written one. Very few people also know that this exquisite original hand written edition…
‘Collective art’ is not an individual ‘leisure time’ occupation, added to life; it is an integral part of life itself, corresponding to a basic human need. It means the same as ritual; it means to respond to the world with our senses in a meaningful,…
From various historical accounts, folklore and religious texts, it appears that very fine fabrics were available in Bengal as far back as the first century BCE. Once such celebrated fabric of the subcontinent is the Jamdani of Dhaka (present day Bangladesh). The Jamdani weave as…
Banana Islands is a spectacularly beautiful place off the Freetown peninsula, at its eastern end. Taking off from Lakka Beach on a small motorized country boat early one Saturday morning, it took me about two hours through the choppy deep blue waters of the North…
Dr. Sanjida Khatun [along with the late Waheedul Haq and many others] is one of the principal architects and leaders of the Bengali cultural nationalist movement in this country. Along with Haq and other comrades, she founded the Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Shangsthan and Chhayanaut —…