Masudul Hasan Masud, Bhuapur (Tangail)

The palanquin, the traditional vehicle of the Bengalis, is lost. There was a time when rural Bengal even wanted a palanquin for a city wedding. As if the palanquin was a symbol of an aristocracy. The palanquin was involved with the emotions of the women. And without a palanquin, a village wedding could not be imagined. Before the advent of modern vehicles, elite people used to travel in palanquins.

The use of palanquins for brides and grooms at weddings and other auspicious occasions has long been practiced in remote areas of Bengal. Palanquins were also used to transport sick patients to and from the hospital.

There was a time when four or six well-built male palanquins along the sweet path of the village used to run towards their destination with the sound of ‘Hunhuna’, ‘Hunhuna’, in a melodious rhythmic sound. Gai's bridesmaids, mothers-aunts and even young, restless girls used to gather along the road to see the bewilderment of the waiters.

Seeing the bride sitting in the palanquin, they too would get lost in the realm of imagination with the prince. How many smiles, jokes, stories surround the palanquin, it is like a seductive environment. Poets or lyric poets have also expressed in their writings poetry or palanquin songs.

Palanquins come in different shapes and designs. The smallest and simplest palanquin (duli) carries two. The largest palanquin carries four to eight palanquin carriers. Palanquin bearers are called Behara or Kahar. People of Hadi, Mal, Dule, Bagdi, Baudi etc. carry palanquins. Beharas carry their palanquins in a certain rhythm. They also sing in special rhythms while carrying the palanquin. The rhythm of the song changes with the speed of their movement.

In Bengal in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, European merchants used palanquins to travel to the markets and to carry their goods. They became so accustomed to using palanquins that even a low paid general employee of the company kept a palanquin for travel in the country and paid for it. But in order to bear the expenses of the palanquin, the employees resorted to various methods of illegal income. As a result, the Court of Directors in 1758 imposed a ban on the purchase and use of palanquins by the general public.

After the abolition of slavery in the middle of the nineteenth century, palanquin bearers from Bihar, Orissa, Chhotanagpur and Madhya Pradesh started coming to Bengal. Many Santals work as palanquin carriers. In the dry season they would come to the country from their area and in the rainy season they would leave again. Every year at the end of the monsoon season they would go to certain areas and set up temporary huts somewhere to make temporary accommodation.

With the introduction of steamers and trains as a means of transportation in the mid-nineteenth century, the use of palanquins began to decline. With the gradual improvement of the road system and the introduction of animal-powered vehicles, the use of palanquins as a means of transportation has almost ceased. The use of palanquins has been on the rise since the introduction of rickshaws in urban areas in 1930. However, some things could be seen in the countryside. At present this vehicle is not seen anywhere else.