Like
many others, I too had passed by the Myanmar (Burma) Buddhist Temple on Eden
Hospital Road (now Dr. Lalit Banerjee Sarani) in Calcutta (Kolkata) many times without being aware of it, until
the evening the white sign with red and green letters caught my eye. A Burmese
Buddhist Temple in Calcutta is not all that unusual. Burma, or Myanmar as she
is now known, was once part of the British Indian Empire. Many Indians,
especially Bengalis were settled in Burma and had to leave their homes and
return to India during the turbulent years of the Independence struggle. There
was a small but significant Burmese presence in Calcutta (Kolkata) as well of
which few vestiges still remain.
The Myanmar
(Burma) Buddhist Temple is devoid of any external architectural significance;
just another decaying building in a mostly decaying neighbourhood with masses of
unruly electrical wiring hanging from every conceivable place. That’s because
this was not really a purpose built temple, unlike the Chinese Temples of
Tiretta Bazar, nearby. The building was purchased from an Indian in 1928 by a
Burmese national, U San Min, for the sum of Rs. 47,000. U San Min named it the
“Burma Buddhist Dharmasala, Calcutta”. The first presiding monk was Rev. U
Nandawuntha. In 1932, U San Min handed over the temple to the monks and ever
since the Burmese have been electing monks who are sent over to Calcutta to
take charge of the temple. The ground floor of the building on 10 A, Eden Hospital Road is leased
out to shops. The first floor functions as a guest house for visitors from Myanmar. The temple is located on the second floor. The gate on the
ground floor is almost always locked. I had arranged for permission to visit
and photograph the temple through the help of my friend Shabnam and her family.
As I walked up the stairs, I felt like I had passed through some kind of portal,
and entered a different world. The signs on the walls were all in Burmese! The
only sign I could read said “Please remove your shoe”.
