The Roots And The Divide: A First-Person Account Of Being A Bengali Hindu In Bangladesh

Last Updated:January 06, 2026, 08:00 IST

The 'ghoti versus bangal' divide may persist in Bengal but in Bangladesh, the Bengali identity opens doors. Political divisions fuel distrust, yet cultural ties and warmth endure

Protests have become part of daily life in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, with residents either taking part as political parties jostle for power after an uprising last year -- or avoiding them. (Image: AFP/File)

There are two types of Bengalis in India: ghotis (originally from West Bengal, who consider themselves “true-blood Bengalis") and bangals (those who migrated from the erstwhile East Bengal, now Bangladesh, to Bengal).

What was once a fierce battle between the two sides, with ghotis looking down upon bangals, has now become friendly banter.

I am a bangal. My ancestors were from Faridpur, which is in Bangladesh. In West Bengal, ghotis might not consider me and my family to be true-blooded Bengalis, but in Bangladesh, I am “their own daughter".

The Bangladeshi capital Dhaka is naturally warm, not only in terms of weather but also when it comes to its people. But, times have changed.

Politicians have ensured that distrust has penetrated to the lowest level. It is now common for tempers to rise and confrontations to occur between Hindus and Muslims, between people who once trusted each other.

This is what Dipu Das is facing. His village in Tarakanda was one where Muslims and Hindus lived peacefully together for years. Overnight, everything changed.

We arrived in Dhaka with a lot of trepidation and fear, almost got deported, but my language and background saved me. Despite the acrimony and mutual distrust, if a scratch reveals you are a Bengali, it works like magic here.

Doors open, people are ready to talk, and hesitant smiles turn into warm ones. When they know I am from Faridpur, the warmth multiplies.

While on a shoot, I suddenly hear Rabindra sangeet. I follow the music to a CD shop.

“Didi, the fight is only done by politicians. I have run this shop for 15 years. Hindi movies and Bengali songs have topped my sales. This has not changed. This animosity has been created by the politicians," the shopowner Shajid tells me.

In the 10-odd days our team has been here, we have not confronted hatred. On the few occasions we were suspiciously looked at, my Bengali broke the barrier. Many then told me: “Didi, you are our own."

But this would not be good news for some politicians. Not when elections are around the corner.

For the Jamaat, this division is fodder as they pursue a radical Islamic ideology. To them, the Bengali Hindu is a pariah.

Their condemnation of attacks on Hindus is mere pretentious outrage. The Hindu-Muslim division is their politics, at which they hope they will succeed.

But for the public, the umbilical cord with Bengal cannot be cut. The food, the music, even the mishti doi ensures this.

In private, a majority of Bangladeshis talk about and wish for harmony. It is not just about culture; it is also about the economy. Much of the specialised work is done by Bengalis with roots in Bengal.

Being a Bengali Hindu in Bangladesh has given me two different responses. While many have extended warmth towards me as I am from Bengal, as long as the head count of Bengali Hindus rises in rural Bangladesh, this homecoming of sorts for me is tempered and marred with violence. Bangals may have have been imbibed in the ‘ghoti versus bangal‘ fight of West Bengal, but when will Bangladesh extend the same warmth to bangals?

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