On Marriage Anniversary in Jocund Company

In Purnea we have a small group of music lovers. Raman, Bihariji and Amar are my musical associates aimdst whom i often present displays on instruments like sitar, flute, tabla and harmonium whatever i had learnt at home as well as at Netarhat. Unlike me, others prefer classical bhajans, khayals and several other forms of hindustani music which they had learnt from the royal Guru Kumar Shyamanand Singh of the earstwhile Banaili royalty. I too enjoy their variety of vocal presentations. The only performer amidst us is Amar who is also a music teacher. Raman is a good writer He has a command over languages and formats of literature. They are good happy go lucky travellers. They are religious and well known pilgrims. Unlike them i enjoy most in the company of undergraduate students in my department. There are less post graduate students these days since most of them have various engagements. Outside the college campus, i enjoy most in the aforesaid jocund company.Our group also has a rule to enjoy home made food on occasions like birthdays, musical gatherings, marriage anniversaries and so forth.I and Raman prefer less rich while Bihariji and Amar prefer rich food intake. We all enjoy to drive a vehicle to cover distant places in the region only though Raman and Amar prefer to drive for days together. Raman's son drives throughout the nation quite often. We also disagree but forget and forgive such lapses. As we are growing we find a trend to talk less and keep silence even sitting together.Music remains the whole and sole key factor to bind our souls with the growing age. Tonight we had a memorable round of musical rendezvous. Bihariji could not join.

Between Pedigrees: F E Part 3

An interesting piece of narrative belongs to a strange beginning of my connection with the Bengal-based royalty namely the mansab of malduar during or before the arrival of the British in the region. According to the famous three authors Datto, Majumdar and Roy Chaudhuri of The Classical Age, regarding the history of Bengal, they held their view that this maithil royal lineage had been founded during the 11th century under one Bengoli prince namely Ishwar Ghosh with a donation of five revenue villages to that princes family Guru, akin to the beginning of the Darbhanga royalty. Their such findings might be based on a copper plate inscription still in the possession of the family. My father and uncles had another story that a saint had given an idol of Shyamrai(Krishna and Radha) to a poor brahman family cautioning them that if they worship HIM, they would become highly influential but one day, their descendants must return the same to that sage. It is noteworthy that the owners always held themselves as caretakers and the family diety Shyamrai, held their superior lord and real owner of all their possessions. More precisely, after obtainment of the power as a result of the famous battle of Buxar amongst the East Ind. Co., the Nawab of Bengal and the Mughal emperor- the new ruler sent their revenue officers cum surveyors in their possessions, one of them had been J. Rennell (the Agent Surveyor) who had taken his detailed inquiries and had found a certain defined territory of the then Malduar ruler under undivided Suba of Bengal, through his first published Map on 15th of August 1779, also found in the present day revenue records in Purnea collectorate. The famous Bucanan Hamilton, an author of various gazetteers of Dinajpur and Purnea regions in early 19th century had given some details of this family. We can thus conclude from these sources of knowledge that the family lineage may take vexing and serpentine overtures regarding Malduar genealogy but the final part of the same had its relatively recent pedigree connected with a maithil shrotriya brahman infant adopted as the only successor of the Malduar family. The minor child was declared as the heir to the household and thus had started a fresh lineage of descendants. Subsequently the surname of the heir infant was changed. From Ramlochan Jha, he became Ramlochan Chaudhuri. The new seat of his royalty was shifted to Ramganj from the old one rooted at Rajour. According to Bucanan H. the surname of the former ruling family was Roy which had been more common surname for the chieftains under the Mughal Rule in India. Chaudhuri had become a popular surname among such families specially in the East India Company regime. To conclude i may add here that my grand fathers great grand father was the same person .

FE-Part 2 : About infatuation and the need

Just after the birth of father, grand father had been honoured by the British title for zamindars those days _ the raja of Ramganj as such some special care had been taken to bring up that child. A trusted relative and a caretaker for 24 hours besides other normal favours provided to all the offsprings of the raja were some speciality measures to look after his youngest son. The raja always had wished his sons and nephew to get high quality education as he had championed the issue of good education for the relatives and other deserving persons in general. Despite the said favours from his father, my father was deprived of his fathers care at the age of 3 due to the demise of the raja in 1928.The Dinajpur DM took charge of the estate as the crown prince - the eldest son of the raja- had desired that the govt. should handle the management of the Malduar estate after the demise of his father.My grand mother had been a caring mother as well as a strict guardian of all she had cared for.Still she had not lived for long and her life had ended in 1938. Under this situation as the youngest properietor my father had to live at their Dinajpur situated Malduar house with his pre-determined local guardian and one care-taker like a shadow besides others. He had learnt a very disciplined life as pre-empted by the DM who had even a weekly menu, place with route-path of visiting and a personal interview monthly for a long time till the court of wards had been lifted in 1944 when father had completed 18. Thus the actual independence for him had started then only. He had been fond of several things the first and foremost being the Bangla language which he spoke and wrote more fluently followed by his Bengoli friend circle which he had maintained allalong. He opted for the Bengoli cuisine more than his native one for a sizeable period, specicially till his old personal caretaker having been an excellent cook had not retired from his service in 1959. He was fond of talking to the people of Bengoli lineage. In distress due to the partition of the country he had personally cared for such people in his Bihar-phase of life who had become his life-long friends in Bihar at Sonaili and other properties since the Malduar estate had also a significant presence on the Indian side of West Begal and Bihar. This much of introduction is needed to understand his infatuation for the home-land in East Pak at Ramganj and also in Dinajpur township. After they had to abandon their home-land which truly constituted abundant resources in every perspective, they had to raise everything afresh in Bihar side except one prominent property which had been created long back in the name of grand mother Rani Jayarama Devi Chaudhurani (W/o the raja of Ramganj). This had been a property under one Tahsildar of the estate who had maintained his deep loyalty for this royalty. This property was also in existence till the enactment of land ceiling in Bihar. From 1947 end to 1951, his visits to the home-land had supported both physically and mentally to finally accept the reality that he should no longer re-visit the former and make the latter his fate. Indeed he had lived during a difficult period and had learnt to overcome the odds rather bravely. He always ignored his difficult times and never talked about any hardship. He told about the past in a light humour. His stories of encounter with crocodiles during bird-hunting, assembling after dismantling pistol, revolver, gun and rifle and devoting time in rectifying intricate electrical - electronic goods were amazing. My father and uncles had a deep interest in instrumental music. The musical interest is a long legacy for us. We had learnt from my father and uncles the lessons of simplicity amidst abundance, humbleness amidst confidence and futility to show off as an upstart culture with a Bengoli saying - China bamoner poita lage na.

Family Episode : Part I

In the past century, Mithila covered a vast tract of land in present parts of Nepal as well as Bangladesh nations. Nepal still has a vast land area known as Mithila because of the maithil inhabitants. Bangla Desh does not have this any longer, except some names in its google records so often shown in the political and geographical presentations. One such prominent name is King Tonkonath whose name is presented after his past zamindari area falling under police station Rani Sankoil, also known as the earstwhile Malduar estate with its head quater situated near Katiyar Haat. His palace ruins, ponds and more prominently his family diety in a small temple are quite preserved also through the govt. records available in the administrative offices. These facts were specially brought into lime light by a maithil gentle man who had been adament to know about this long forgotton place and its inhabitants. Indeed there are more maithil people to know the whereabouts of that place and the raja who still holds popularity in the mind of the present day inhabitants in that foreign land. The real story begins at this point. In short, so many zamindars owned their revenue estates during the British period. Some important maithil zamindars are still well known since their belongings had remained intact but this had not been as fortunate after losing significantly due to the partition of India witnessing lost as enemy properties. ere officials in the local govt. office had wished the heirs of that estate should come to take stock of their recorded land and other properties or if not interested then allow the govt. to take charge of the same. He further narrated that although the real owners had abandoned these, yet the family member of the last muslim manager of the estate had been receiving all the benefits and they had sent a message to the real owners never to look back or interfere in their interests and as such had shown the obvious hostility. Irrespective of these details, there are so many stories heard from the father and uncles who had themselves faced the burning times of partition. Jumping their vehicle across the big ditch dividing the two countries to safely come from Ramganj palace in August 1947 was an interesting narrative for us as we were then small children. My father had come after dodging some police constables to prevent him to leave his estate. In fact the division of India had witnessed a mass exodus of hindus and the then govt under Pak PM Liyaqat Ali Khan had wanted to save their face by trying to prevent the royal families to follow the suit at that time. Hence the govt. at that time wanted that my father as the only present owner of the Malduar estate must not be allowed to go to India. He was alone as the rest of the family members had already crossed the border. He finally rode on his motorcycle ariel along with two staff and left in the dead of night from Dinajpur town and through a jungle or countyside road crossed the border. In fact he had a deep love for that region and till the issuance of passport had not left the endeavour to shuttle between Sonaili as his later residence in Bihar and Ramganj the former one.The stories are still ripe in my memory of how tasty the Mandas, Lichus, mangoes, fine rice Katarivog and so many eatables had been carried from there. Only costly items like dosalas or zari materials were not allowed to be carried. Fathers last visit to Ramganj was perhaps in 1951 when the Dinajpur DM had issued a notice why he had visited his Dinajpur estate after several months and why therefore he should not be banned to go back to India if all his properyies had been located in Dinajpur district of East Pak? Due to his illness in 1950, he had not visited Dinajpur for more than six months or even longer. In ffact his regular visits had been noted by the administration but the interruption had raised their fear that he too as the only owner of the estate had shown an apathy to take stock of the estate. On the other hand my father had been making these visits to that region out of infatuation as well as a necessity. (to be contd.)