National News Desk
Islamabad: Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has set the price of the ancestral houses of legendary Bollywood actors Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor in the heart of the city at Rs 80,56,000 and Rs 1,500,000, respectively. In September, the provincial government decided to purchase their ancestral houses in order to conserve historic buildings that are in dilapidated condition and under threat of demolition.
The two buildings, located in the heart of the northern city of Pakistan, have been declared a national heritage site. Deputy Commissioner of Peshawar Muhammad Ali Asghar, following a report from the Communications and Works Department, fixed the price of Dilip Kumar’s four Marla house for Rs 80,56,000 (USD 50,259) while that of Raj Kapoor’s six Marla house for Rs 1500000 (USD 93,529).
Marla, the traditional area unit used in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, is considered to be 272,25 square feet or 25,2929 square metres. The Archeology Department sent a formal request to the provincial government to release Rs 2 crore for the purchase of both historic buildings, where the two great Indian cinemas were born and raised in their early days before the partition.
The ancestral home of Raj Kapoor, known as Kapoor Haveli, is located in the famous Qissa Khwani Bazar. It was built between 1918 and 1922 by Dewan Basheswarnath Kapoor, the legendary actor’s grandfather. In the building, Raj Kapoor and his uncle Trilok Kapoor were born. The provincial government has declared it a national heritage. Veteran actor Dilip Kumar’s over 100-year-old ancestral house is also located in the same location. The house is in ruins and was declared a national heritage in 2014 by the then Nawaz Sharif government.
In the past, the owners of the two buildings made many attempts to demolish them for the construction of commercial squares in view of their prime location, but all such moves were halted as the archaeology department wanted to preserve them, keeping in mind their historic importance. In the past, however the owner of Kapoor Haveli, Ali Qadar, said he did not want to demolish the building and made many contacts with officials of the Archeology Department to protect and preserve this historic structure, which is a national pride. The owner asked the provincial government to sell Rs 200 crore to the government.
In 2018, the government of Pakistan decided to convert the Kapoor Haveli to a museum, following the request of Rishi Kapoor, who died in Mumbai this year. The announcement to this effect, however, did not materialise. There are about 1,800 historic buildings in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, over 300 years old.