Tag: Peshawar

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government’s decision to buy and restore the house of Bollywood legend Dilip Kumar located in Peshawar’s historical Qissa Khwani Bazaar – or Street of Storytellers – has won the actor’s heart who took to social media to express his excitement. The legendary actor also requested his fans residing in Peshawar to share photos of his ancestral house on Twitter.

Later, Kumar’s manager Faisal Farooqui penned a thread on Kumar’s “sentiments on his ancestral home” which he had shared in a blog post in 2011.

“I am at once full of fond remembrances of my parents, grandparents and numerous uncles, aunts and cousins who filled the house with the sounds of their chatter and hearty laughter,” Kumar, 97, had written in his blog.

“I have memories of the sitting room where the family gathered for high tea in the evenings, the large room where the ladies prayed, the terrace, the bedrooms, everything. I can vividly recall the piggy rides on my grandfather’s back and the scary stories my grandmother cooked up to forbid me from wandering out of the house alone,” he wrote further.

He continued: “I have lovely memories of Qissa Khwani Bazaar, where I received my first lessons in storytelling, which later provided the impetus to choose meaty stories and scripts for my work. Every day as the trading closed in the market of Qissa Khwani Bazaar, a storyteller would sit in the centre of the square narrating stories of valour and victory, deceit and retribution which I would listen to with wide-eyed attention, seated next to my father and uncles.”

Restoration work underway

As per the latest reports, the Peshawar district administration visited Kumar’s house as well as the Kapoor Haveli on Wednesday for a survey and measurements. According to details, the deputy commissioner and revenue staff will determine the value of the land. Both buildings are in dilapidated conditions. While only the outer walls of Kumar’s house remain, the Kapoor Haveli is in a better condition. The owners of the houses had planned to demolish them and build plazas instead but the government has registered cases against the owners and prevented them from tearing them down. Reports have further suggested that the owner of the house has demanded Rs 2 billion for Kumar’s house.

The Archaeology Department has already allocated funds to buy the houses and plans to restore them and convert them into museums are already underway. According to details, the museums will feature biographies and photographs of the actors, their affiliation with Peshawar, along with other records of the two artists and their families.

Director of KP’s Archeology and Museums Department Dr Abdul Samad said that the plan to restore the Havelis is “part of the Peshawar revival plan.”

Read more – Rishi Kapoor’s unfulfilled wish: a visit to Pakistan

Earlier, Kumar’s wife Saira Banu had praised the government’s decision to restore her husband’s childhood home.

“I wish the provincial government success in its efforts and sincerely hope that this time the dream comes true. MashAllah,” the actor had said. “My heart fills up with joy each time I receive the same news about the ancestral home of Yousuf Saheb in Peshawar which the provincial government has been repeatedly trying to turn into a monument for posterity. It has come up so many times in the past and I have appreciated the tenacity with which the government is pursuing the mission of turning the house into a museum for the public to visit and feel the vintage charm of the house where Dilip Saheb grew up like any bright boy of the province.”

It is pertinent to mention here that Shah Rukh Khan’s ancestral home is also located in the old city of Peshawar. Khan is reported to have visited the city twice during his childhood.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has allotted Rs 50 million for the renovation and restoration of 15 historical sites in the province including the Kapoor Haveli and Dilip Kumar’s house located in Peshawar’s historical Qissa Khwani Bazaar.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, the ancestral homes of Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar are among the 15 historical sites recently identified for restoration by the KP government. It is pertinent to mention here that while Kumar’s residence was declared protected heritage by the Directorate of Archaeology and Tourism in 2013 and later a protected monument, under the Antiquity Act 1997, the Kapoor Haveli was reported to have been converted into a museum in 2012. Despite the special status awarded to the buildings, little to no attention was paid to them and the former residences of the Bollywood stars currently stand in dilapidated conditions. Officials have often cited a lack of resources and funds and legalities surrounding buildings’ ownership as the reason behind their dismal condition.

But as per the latest details, the archaeology department of the province has forwarded a recommendation to Chief Minister Mahmood Khan under which the provincial government will buy the two buildings and restore them.

“The buildings’ ownership had been a long-standing hurdle in the way of their restoration. Certain individuals had claimed their right over the historic properties and there had also been attempted demolitions in the past. But now that the Directorate of Archaeology and Tourism has decided to buy the building and start the long overdue renovation work, the buildings are also expected to open their doors to tourists in the near future,” an official of the archaeology department told the publication, adding that the buildings hold great historic value.

Kapoor Haveli located in Dhakki Munawwar Shah locality is the birthplace of Raj Kapoor, who is considered to be the greatest showman of the subcontinent cinema.

Directorate of Archaeology Director Dr Abdul Samad also shared that restoration work at Peshawar’s ancient Mahabat Khan Mosque is already underway.

Meanwhile, the Awami National Party (ANP) on Friday urged the KP government to acquire and preserve the historic Kapoor Haveli.

In a statement, the party’s provincial spokesperson Samar Haroon Bilour said that the archaeology department was not taking any action to preserve the Kapoor Haveli, adding that the provincial government had been claiming that it had allocated funds for its preservation. Bilour said these claims were incorrect as the building was still private property and funds cannot be allocated for private property. She also offered assistance to the KP government in the conservation of this heritage site.

Earlier in 2018, Rishi Kapoor had requested the Government of Pakistan to preserve his ancestral home and convert it into a museum.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi, at that time, had said, “There was a call from Rishi Kapoor. He requested that his family’s home in Peshawar should be made into a museum or some sort of institution. We have accepted his request.”

Read more – Rishi Kapoor’s unfulfilled wish: a visit to Pakistan

Similarly, Shehryar Afridi, who was serving as the Interior Minister at that time had shared that the actor had called him personally with his request.

“He had called me and talked about making his ancestral home into a museum. Now the federal and provincial governments are working on this and will transform the house into a museum soon,” Afridi had stated.

Rishi had last visited Pakistan with Shashi Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor in 1990. They had travelled to Peshawar to see their family’s house and also took some soil from the house to keep their heritage intact. In 2017, Rishi had expressed his desire to visit Pakistan again before he dies but his wish remained unfulfilled as he passed away in April 2020.