GUWAHATI, Oct 24 - In the early part of the 20th century, that is around 1910, the first still photography studio of Gauhati, nay the present-day Assam, S Ghosal and Co, was set up by a Bengalee Brahmin, late Sasadhar Ghosal. The studio, set up on (Tyagbir) Hem Barua Road, in front of the present-day Panbazar Khadi Bhandar, is still there. The grandsons of Sasadhar Ghosal are still running it and they live in the Athgaon Someswar Choudhury Road locality of the city, said noted writer Kumudeswar Hazarika.
The Nehas of Rehabari area, a prominent bicycle dealer�s family, are also among the old Gauhatians. Pleader Pabitra Gupta, a resident of Barsola Beel Professor Para locality, was also an eminent Bengalee citizen of Gauhati in the early 20th century.
There are some other old Bengalee families in the Panbazar Lakshmi Chatterjee Lane locality, Panbazar Barpetiapara locality, Ulubari Manipuri Basti, Ulubari B Borooah Road Sitalabari area and Paltanbazar Ram Mandir and Silpukhuri areas.
Of the Lakshmi Chatterjee Lane locality, Satish Ghosh and his son Siben Ghosh were famous guitarists. At Barpetiapara, there was a famous physician PK Roychoudhury, husband of the first Assamese lady physician of Gauhati late Dr Tilottama (Das) Roychoudhury, daughter of veteran freedom fighter Dr Hari (Hare) Krishna Das.
Two other prominent Bengalee persons � Nirode Roy, a well-known photographer, and Amalendu Bagchi, a film technician of repute, who were residents of the Panbazar Hari Sabha area, made significant contributions to the Assamese cinema world.
Ganesh Sen, a nephew of Rai Bahadur Kalicharan Sen of Panbazar Danish Road, as well as a businessman, was the producer of the fifth Assamese film Badan Barphukan, directed by Kamal Narayan Choudhury. Ramesh Sen, a prominent ayurveda practitioner of Gauhati, was a son of Kalicharan Sen. He was popular as Ramesh Kabiraj.
There were two other Bengalee doctors, who were family physicians of many old Assamese families of Gauhati. One of them was the famous ophthalmologist late Dr NK Bose, a resident of Panbazar SC Goswami Road, opposite Hari Sabha. The other one was the general medical practitioner Ratish Chandra Kar, who lived on the southwestern side of the Paltanbazar end of the Paltanbazar-Panbazar-linking railway overbridge. Incidentally, Labanya Bose, who was the wife of Dr NK Bose, was an Assamese lady.
Amalendu Banerjee was a son of Atul Banerjee of Phansi (Fancy) Bazar. He was a good actor, a leading Praja Socialist Party leader, and later, he retired as principal of the Dhubri BN College. His son was late Dr Dipankar Banerjee of Gauhati University history department.
Of this Phansi Bazar Banerjee family, late Ardhendu Banerjee, a teacher of Cotton College, was also a known figure of Gauhati. Late Dr Dipankar Banerjee of the Gauhati University history department was his nephew.
The Durga Banerjee family of Paltanbazar Ram Mandir area was also a remarkable old Bengalee family of Gauhati. Rajendra Lal Bose, manager of the Gauhati Electric Supply Company Ltd, owned by Dr Bidhan Roy, was also a prominent Bengalee citizen of Gauhati.
Dr Anil Ghosh of Paltanbazar Ram Mandir area was a general practitioner for the poor Gauhatians. He used to treat the priests of Kamakhya. Another Bengalee physician Dr Jagadish Chatterjee of the Barsola Beel Professor Para locality was the family physician of the Marowari residents of Gauhati.
The Das family of Panbazar College Hostel Road, is also an old Bengalee family of Gauhati. Anil Das of this family is a renowned Assamese stage and film actor. In the Ulubari part of the Manipuri Basti area, there lives the Guha family, to which belonged the famous social scientist Dr Amalendu Guha. Dr Guha died recently.
On the GS Road Lachit Nagar area, former forest officer late Suresh Chandra Deb also headed an old Bengalee family of Gauhati, said Hazarika.
