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.”
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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.
