Godighar: The last legacy of Rayerbazar’s Pal potters

The arrival of the 13 Pal households in Rayerbazar dates back to the reign of Emperor Jahangir, when they migrated from Rajmahal in present-day India. They chose to settle in the area primarily because of their profession: Rayerbazar had an abundance of the red alluvial clay needed to make earthen pots.

Godighar served as the heart of the Pal community. It played a central role in the Pals' business activities, dispute resolution, marriages, and other social affairs. 

The Rayerbazar Pal Samity Trust was established in 1876, although it was officially registered much later, in 1918. The Godighar was also established that same year to serve as the trust's office.

Historian Muntassir Mamoon has described James Wise (1835–1886), the civil surgeon of Dhaka, as a pioneer of anthropological studies in Bangladesh. In his widely cited book 'Notes on the Races, Castes and Trades of Eastern Bengal', Wise wrote about Rayerbazar, "The area along the Buriganga was inhabited exclusively by the Pals. The settlement developed during the Mughal period. The potters were a highly organised community. They established a Godighar in Rayerbazar to maintain their accounts."

Rayerbazar is believed to have been named after the Roy Chowdhury zamindars of Baliati in Manikganj, who held a land estate in the area. However, this naming could not have occurred before the British period, as the Baliati zamindars expanded their influence only after the fall of Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah. By then, the Pal population had increased severalfold. The memory of the original 13 households survives today in the name Tero Ghar Para (neighbourhood of 13 houses).

"It was 1960. On one hand, the Language Movement had spread across East Bengal. On the other hand, non-Bengalis were arriving in large numbers and settling throughout Dhaka. A non-Bengali colony was established beside our village of Rayerbazar. From then on, the exodus of the Pal community began."

Sadananda Pal, Author

As the population grew, the Pals spread into six smaller neighbourhoods, including Nimtoli Para, Pulpara, Tero Ghar Para, and Madhyapara. The Godighar remained the common institutional centre that linked all of these settlements.

The Pals—also known as Kumbhakars or Kumors (traditional potters)—of Rayerbazar earned a reputation throughout Bangladesh for producing earthen cooking pots used for rice and salun (curry). They developed a distinctive pottery-making style that potters from other regions were unable to replicate. Their craftsmanship became so renowned that shops not carrying Rayerbazar pots often struggled to attract customers.

The finished pots were loaded onto large boats from the Rayerbazar Canal and transported to markets across Bangladesh. Stretching approximately five miles, the Rayerbazar Canal was excavated under the supervision of the Godighar. The canal connected the Buriganga River with the Turag River, providing a vital waterway for trade and transportation.

Sadananda's 'Eka Kumbha'

In his book Eka Kumbha: The Clay-Stained Memoir of a Displaced Potter, author Sadananda Pal wrote, "Nearly one hundred thousand earthen pots were produced here every day."

"The potters had their own guild, known as the Godi. All pottery was sold through this institution, so no one had to travel to local markets. Large wholesalers arrived by boat and purchased goods with the assistance of the Godi. The Godi had its own brokers, who kept track of which workshops or households had what products in stock. They assisted wholesalers in every possible way."

"After a wholesaler made a purchase, the workshop owner issued a slip indicating the value of the goods. Based on that slip, the Godi charged a commission of two paisa per taka. The brokers received a monthly allowance from the Godi, and in many cases, their children later inherited the profession."

Sadananda Pal was born into a Pal family in Rayerbazar. In 1964, he migrated to West Bengal with his family. Eka Kumbha is his account of the pain of displacement and the struggle to rebuild a life in a new land after becoming a refugee.

How the Godi regulated the pottery trade

The first chapter of Eka Kumbha is titled Janmabhita (birthplace). In it, Sadananda Pal provides further details about the Godi, "No one who purchased pottery in the village could leave without obtaining a dispatch slip from the Godi. It even had its own checkpost." 

"The Godi's governing body was made up entirely of members of the Pal community. Elections were held every five years, and those elected were accountable to the community. They were honoured with the title of 'Member.' Disputes from the village rarely reached the courts. The income generated by the Godi supported a temple, a mosque, and a primary school. The Godi later upgraded that school into a high school."

Sadananda Pal's memoir also reveals that the Godighar arranged accommodation for wholesale traders in both the temple and the mosque. It even maintained its own decorating service, the equipment of which was provided free of charge for ceremonies and social events within the Pal community.

Before the Partition of India, the Pal community had around 8,000 registered voters. Marriages were almost exclusively arranged between boys and girls from within the same village.

The secret of Pals' fitness

On 15 July, when I left home, the sky was clear. But as I reached Rayerbazar High School, a sudden downpour began. After the rain eased, I made my way to the Godighar area.

Near the Akhra Temple, I found a stationery shop. I asked the shopkeeper if anyone was still alive who had witnessed the 1960s. He immediately mentioned Bishwanath Pal, who has served as president of the Palpara Samity Trust since 2001 and as president of the Akhra Temple since 1977.

I found Bishwanath Pal inside the temple, busy making preparations for the Rath Jatra, which was to take place the following day. He is now 81 years old, yet remains remarkably fit.

When I asked him the secret of his vitality, he smiled and said, "We are sons of the Pal community. We learned to keep moving from an early age. My father put me to work preparing clay. From morning until night, we worked hard. We never had a life of comfort, and even now comfort doesn't suit us. You could say that's the secret."

Inside potters' homes

Bishwanath was one of five brothers and three sisters. Most members of his family migrated to India. He went too but returned because he did not like living there. Today, community service occupies most of his time.

Recalling the old days, Bishwanath said, "A Pal family's homestead was rarely smaller than two to two-and-a-half bighas. Since we worked with clay, we needed plenty of land. Our homes were surrounded by drumstick, jackfruit, papaya, banana, and mango trees. Every household had a tulsi plant on a raised brick platform. There was also a well for drinking water. Each home had a cowshed, and milk and yoghurt were part of our daily diet."

By 1958, Bishwanath had entered his teenage years. His family lived in Madhyapara (Middle Para). Their house consisted of five rooms, one of which was the puin ghar—the room where earthen pots were fired. It housed the kiln used for baking pottery. The houses had mud walls with corrugated tin roofs, while the puin ghar alone was covered with clay tiles because of the heat generated by the kiln.

There were no beds or wooden cots in Bishwanath's home. The family slept on bedding spread directly on the floor.

A typical day of a potter

Every potter's household functioned as a workshop. Work began at dawn, as soon as the Fajr call to prayer was heard. Children were mainly responsible for kneading and preparing the clay. The older men shaped the rims and necks of the pots on the potter's wheel and were also in charge of firing them in the kiln. Women made the bases of the pots and applied the finishing layer of clay.

The Pals ate rice three times a day. Breakfast usually consisted of fanabhat (rice soaked in starchy rice water) and boiled potatoes, while lunch included vegetables and sour lentils. After lunch, they were allowed about an hour of rest before returning to work. They tried to finish before dusk, but if production targets were not met, they continued working into the night by the light of kerosene lamps, Bishwanath Pal recalled.

Bishwanath Pal has been serving as president of the Palpara Samity Trust since 2001 and president of the Akhra Temple since 1977.

Sadananda Pal wrote, "According to our community's custom, Saturday was market day. On that day, the potter's wheel remained idle in every household. Depending on demand, workshop owners assigned production quotas to each worker."

"By 6pm in the evening, almost everyone had completed their assigned work. Those who worked especially fast finished by 4pm in the afternoon. Afterwards, until about nine at night, the community gathered for Harikirtan (devotional singing), readings from traditional manuscripts, and rehearsals for folk theatre performances."

Bishwanath Pal added, "Boys in the Pal community usually married between the ages of 16 and 18. Marriage meant one more working hand for the household, so early marriage became customary. The groom's family contributed two taka and the bride's family one taka to the Godighar as a community subscription. The money was kept by the Godighar as a fund for emergencies."

Bishwanath's family owned three potter's wheels. Every two days they produced four loads—about 400 earthen pots. Workshops also employed contract artisans. Those who did not own a wheel or a kiln worked as hired craftsmen in other people's workshops.

Bishwanath described the network of occupations that supported the pottery industry, "First were the cart drivers, who used bullock carts to transport clay from the pits to the workshops. A cartload of clay cost Tk2. Then there were suppliers of dry water hyacinth and rice straw, which were used in pottery production."

"Firewood merchants supplied fuel for the kilns; at the time, one maund of firewood cost one and a half taka. Most of the pottery was transported by the large cargo boats from Bajitpur. Labourers carried the pots from the workshops to the boats. Another group, known as bharni, loaded the boats, while sajani workers carefully arranged and stacked the pottery for transport."

Rayerbazar in its heyday

Rayerbazar once had six ponds. Those who finished work before evening would bathe there and then gather on the veranda of the grocery store to smoke tobacco. The Godighar also had a long veranda where many people spent their evenings in conversation.

There were only three or four tea stalls in the area, but eight to ten sweet shops. The Godighar employed several sarkars (accountants), Nepali watchmen, and Bihari cleaners responsible for sweeping and maintenance.

The local market had several grocery shops supplying the daily necessities of the Pal community. Sadananda Pal singled out the shop owned by Binod Pal as one of the largest. It sold cattle feed, food for people, ritual items, saris, dhotis, umbrellas, and wooden sandals. Binod Pal's homestead occupied about three bighas of land.

He also wrote about Pannalal Pal, who, besides making pottery, was skilled at repairing bicycles, daylight lanterns, pressure lamps, and gramophones.

Born in 1939, Sadananda Pal opened the first chapter of Eka Kumbha with these words, "Dhaka College and New Market had not yet been built. There was a cattle market in Mirpur, an airport in Tejgaon, and the famous cannon at Sadarghat. Ramna Maidan still existed. To the east of our village, Rayerbazar, stretched the green paddy fields of Dhanmondi."

Another chapter titled 'Radhamani' recounts events from 1960. Sadananda wrote, "It was 1960. On one hand, the Language Movement had spread across East Bengal. On the other hand, non-Bengalis were arriving in large numbers and settling throughout Dhaka. A non-Bengali colony was established beside our village of Rayerbazar. From then on, the exodus of the Pal community began."

Leaving behind his livelihoods, loves, and childhood playgrounds, Sadananda also migrated in 1964. He never returned.

What remains of the Pal community

Today, around 70 Pal households remain in Rayerbazar, but none of them continues the traditional occupation of pottery. The old homesteads have largely disappeared as well.

Leaving the Akhra Temple, Bishwanath Pal walked toward the Pulpara area. Stopping in front of the house of Moron Chandra in Durga Mandir Lane, he said, "Moron Chandra was one of the most distinguished people from our neighbourhood. No one among the Pals of Rayerbazar achieved greater recognition than he did. He was a simple man and a man of integrity."

Godighar was once the heart of the Pal community and a hub for business, dispute resolution, marriages, and social affairs.

Moron Chandra earned international recognition as a ceramic artist. He modernised the traditional hand-moulded clay doll, creating a style that later became known as "Moron Chandra's dolls." 

During his visit to Bangladesh, US President Bill Clinton admired his clay sculpture titled Mother and Child and took it to the White House. Folklore scholar Henry Glassie gave prominent attention to Moron Chandra's work in his book 'Art and Life of Bangladesh'. Moron Chandra belonged to the first graduating class of the Ceramics Department at the Institute of Fine Arts and later taught there for nearly four decades. He passed away in 2013.

Although around 70 Pal families still live in Rayerbazar, there are no longer any potter's wheels or kilns. Many now earn their living by running grocery stores, selling vegetables, and working in other trades. The last working potter, Gunmani Pal, stopped turning his wheel about 15 years ago.

Only the Godighar remains. Its plaster has fallen away, leaving the exposed bricks looking as though they are smiling through broken teeth. As president of the Pal Samity Trust, Bishwajit Pal is currently fighting a legal battle to reclaim the historic Godighar from illegal occupation.