Brief
On 21st February, a rally of students were coming towards Dhaka Medical College during the Language Movement in 1952. The police shoot towards the rally and instantly some of the protesters of the first line were killed immediately. One of them was Shahid Abul Barkat (1927-1952). Few days after, the Central Shaheed Minar was built in here and from 2000, UNESCO declared 21 February as the Mother Language Day.
Previous History: In 1947, Pakistan got independence from India. There was two parts of Pakistan- the east and the west. Eastern Pakistan was green by the bless of river God and populated with a lot of people and on the other hand, the western Pakistan was nothing but a desert, population was also low. Demographic, social and economical lifestyle of these two parts of land were completely different, language was different too. But the capital was established in the west and the rulers ruled the entire country living in the west. From 1947, Urdu was the only state language of Pakistan whereas the students of Dhaka university always wanted to make Bengali as a secondary language. Finally in 1952, after some students were killed in the language movement, the government decided to make Bengali as a second language. Later, the eastern part of Pakistan became an independent country by the liberation war in 1971 named Bangladesh.
Early Life of Abul Barkat: Abul Barkat was a student who came to Dhaka for his higher studies. He was born at Murshidabad, West Bengal (now India). He stayed at his maternal uncle’s home during his stay in Dhaka. He was a student of Masters level while he is being killed by the police open fire on 21 February, 1952 (aged 24).
The Abul Barkat Memorial Museum: Abul barkat was died in Dhaka Medical College hospital on 21st February after 8:30 PM. Many people were killed on that day. It is strongly believed that, more than 90% of the dead bodies were hidden by the government which did not receive any ritual and never found. Abul Barkats body might be one of them but fortunately his body was found and identified and buried in the Azimpur Graveyard, Dhaka according to proper procedures of Muslim believe. Many stories have written about the killings of 21 February in the Bengali Literature.
The Memorial Complex is actually a library, a seminar hall and a gallery of photographs of the language movement. It was built and inaugurated in 2012 in the Palashi, Dhaka University area by the funding of the government. It is actually a language martyr museum not only just for Abul Barkat. It is just named after Abul Barkat. The Museum is open 6 days a week from 10 AM to 4 PM, except Fridays and national holidays (only 21 February & 16 December is an exception). No ticket or entry fee is needed to enter into the two storied memorial complex. From December to March, the institute arranges special video programs for the young students to let them aware of the language movement and the liberation war.
The Language martyr Abul Barkat was honored with the “Ekushee Padak” (the highest non military achievement in Bangladesh) by the Governmnet of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh in 2000. His grave is situated in Azimpur Graveyard in Dhaka.
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[name] => Lalon Academy and Museum
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[post_content] => Lalon Shah is the father of folk music in Bengali and the Emperor of the Baul (বাউল) empire. He was not only a singer and poet but also a great thinker and philosopher. He had knowledge on all religions and people did follow him for his diverse knowledge.
Nobody knows from where Lalon Shah came from. According to locals, in 1774 an honorable Muslim man of locality named Molom Shah found Lalon floating over a river. Lalon was very sick and was going to die almost. But Molom Shah took very well care and gradually Lalon became well. After getting a new life Lalon became a follower of a great thinker and singer Shiraj Shah. But Shiraj Shah found something strange inside of Lalon and he became the follower of Lalon.
Lalon Academy-Museum and The Shrine of Lalon Fakir is two adjacent building. The collection of this Museum is not so rich.
Lalon Academy:
The place where the tomb is situated is very nice. It has been developed now with a VIP Auditorium, an indoor and an outdoor Auditorium, a complex building of Lalon Academy, a car parking area, a market and a museum. There is also a beautifull garden inside of the area.
Lalon Museum:
If a traveler wants to see the tomb only then it’s free of cost. But if someone wants to see the museum then he/she will have to pay 5 taka for the Bangladeshi and 20 taka for foreigners as entry fee. In the gallery of this Museum traveler can discover some utensil being used by Lalon Shah. There are also some paintings of Lalon Shah inside the museum.
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[name] => Bagerhat Museum
[post_id] => 18666
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In 2001, after receiving a fund from the UNESCO, a museum has built by the government at Bagerhat in the UNESCO world heritage site "Shat Gombuj Mosque" complex. It is now being used as a learning center to let people aware about the ancient city named Khalifatabad established by Khan Jahan Ali which is known as Bagerhat today.
It is a one storied building. It has two large galleries to display antiques. Antiques found in Bagerhat are categorized into two parts. One of them are the earthen materials and another is wooden and slate (rock/stone). There is a photo gallery too to display the rare photos of artifacts and ruined architectural structures.
The building is built later but the designers made it with a beauty of ancient structure visibly similar with the mosque because of the dome so that the museum does not look odd in the complex. During the summer time, it is opened from 9 am to 6 pm for the visitors. The entry fee for the complex is 20 taka for Bangladeshi citizens and it is also the ticket of the museum, there is no separate ticket is needed.
The latest collection of this museum is the skin of the alligator (named Kalapahar) of Khan Jahan Ali. After its death, the skin is preserved and being displayed at the museum.
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[name] => Nazrul Memorial Center
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Our National poet Kazi Nazrul Islam was born in Churulia of Burdwan(বর্ধমান) district, West Bengal on May 25, 1899. He spent a year of his boyhood in Kazir Shimla (কাজীর শিমলা) and Darirampur (দরিরামপুর) in Trishal, Mymensingh. He studied at Darirampur High School when he was in Class Seven and lodged at the house of Bechutia Bepari (বিচুতিয়া বেপারী) at Namapara, as his school was far from Kazir Shimla. In that regard, Namapara is given more importance than Kazir Shimla, say locals. Later, Kazi Rafizullah, a sub-inspector of police, took Nazrul to his village home at Kazir Shimla in 1914.
Nazrul memorabilia is symbolized by two Smriti Kendro (স্মৃতি কেন্দ্র) (Nazrul Memorial Center) in villages Kazir Shimla and Namapara, of Darirampur, Trishal draw the attention of visitors far and wide.
Nazrul memorabilia housed at the two center owns gramophones and records (released by His Masters Voice Company); manuscripts in Bengali, English, Hindi and Urdu and some rare black and white photographs of the poet. The memorabilia can be seen on the second floor of the center. The memorial centres also house a library with books authored by Nazrul and literary works on Nazrul by other writers.
Though the memorabilia collection is meagre, visitors flock enthusiastically to have a view. As every year, there has been a rush of visitors to the two Nazrul Smriti Kendra (memorial centres) at Kazir Shimla village and Darirampur in Trishal just ahead of the birth anniversary of the National Poet.
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[name] => Bikrampur Museum
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After the migration of Jogunath Babu, a piece of land of his belonging was taken by the government and then a Museum was built in here. It is now open 6 days a weak except its weekly holiday, Thursday. It was inaugurated in 2013 by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
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