Without my father, this house feels empty: Chanchal

Over the last couple of days, renowned actor Chanchal Chowdhury has been staying in his hometown of Kamarhat, in the Pabna district.  Recently, the artiste's father passed away. Now, he has returned home for his father's Shraddha ceremony.

Sitting in his village home, Chanchal Chowdhury reminisced about his late father while speaking to The Daily Star.

Even a few days back, I did not understand my father's absence. But now I understand it. I feel the emptiness.  This house, without my father in it, feels so empty. It feels as if he left a gaping hole behind him, when he passed away. No one will understand this pain, except perhaps those who have also lost their father.

Previously, whenever I returned to this house, I would hear it filled with my father's voice. He would call me by my name, filled with love and affection. Now that he is gone, I will never hear him calling out for me. Never again will I be able to hear him say, "Chanchal, have you eaten? What are you doing? How are you, my son?"

I've been here for a couple of days now and all of them have been filled with emptiness. Days go by, nights come again and again, but I can no longer see my father pacing around this house. I miss him during every waking moment. I will always remember my father and will continue to remember him in the days to come.

Our house is here. The trees next to it, the pond, the chairs and tables, everything is here except my dear baba. This pain and grief that I feel in his absence will forever haunt me.

My father was a school teacher. He was very serious about his job and I remember all of the students were afraid of him. I was even afraid of him. Yet, there was always so much to learn from him. Over his career, he taught thousands of students, giving them knowledge to use in their own lives. I remember just how much joy he found in teaching his students. He loved seeing people become enlightened through education.

Baba was the ideal man. He was renowned for being a disciplined, principled and ideal teacher. He was always honest, and this honesty has manifested into all of our siblings. My father was able to educate all of my brothers and sisters. This was his greatest achievement.

My father loved watching me acting.  Whenever people would talk about my acting, his face would light up. He was a simple man, who lived a simple life. So, I am very proud of him.

After I started becoming more and more famous, people from all over would come to visit my father. Never once did this anger him. Instead, he would be happy to see my success.

Baba lived till the age of 90. Of them, he spent 34 years teaching. I hope I can continue to make him proud, for the rest of my life. He truly had a heart of gold.

We have a flower garden, where my father would spend countless hours of his days. He was the person taking care of the garden. Now, he has left us, this house and even his precious flower garden behind.