The demolition of Dushanbe's history

In the centre of the Tajikistan capital, the start of the demolition of a historic tea house, a world-famous meeting place for writers and artists, to make way for new modern buildings, is sparking heated discussions. The Lokhuti theatre, itself a masterpiece of Tajik architecture, also seems destined for the same fate.

Dushanbe (AsiaNews) - A new development has caused great consternation among the inhabitants of Dushanbe and all of Tajikistan, with the start of demolition work on the legendary Chaykhanah Rokhat, the ‘Tea House of Rest’ built in 1958, in Soviet times, in the centre of the capital, where it was considered one of the main attractions.

In addition to the special tea they produced, the Chaykhana offered tastings of traditional Tajik dishes such as plov (meat and carrot risotto), lagman (lamb soup with noodles and vegetables) and manty (dumplings filled with meat and chilli).

In 2017, the American television network CNN included Rokhat among the 11 best tea houses in the world, and in various surveys it was awarded first place. The following year, however, the city authorities began to talk about demolishing it, in order to use the land to build modern buildings.

This proposal was initially withdrawn, but then surprisingly resumed and started again in March of this year, as the construction was considered obsolete.

The actor and director Ortik Kodir, who for many years worked alongside the Rokhat in the Lokhuti theatre, expressed his disappointment, as ‘it was not just a chaykhana, but a meeting place for men of letters and the arts’.

Every day the intellectuals of Dushanbe would start the day by meeting to drink tea without haste in the Rokhat, and among them were personalities such as Asli Burkhonov, one of the most beloved actors and theatre directors, and other great actors such as Makhmud Tokhiri, Burkhon Radžabov, Makhmudjon Vokhidov, Khošim Gadoev and many others.

Not only men of culture are devastated by the demolition of the Rokhat, but also the inhabitants of the capital in general, who have posted an appeal on the web to preserve the historic building.

The authorities, however, seem to pay no attention to the feelings of the citizens, and the president of the Committee for Building and Architecture of Dushanbe, Nizom Mirzozoda, in a meeting with journalists, pointed out that the Rokhat is located right next to the new building of the Tajikistan government, and does not correspond to contemporary urban planning requirements.

However, he promised to build another Chaikhan Rokhat in a new location, ‘in the same architectural style, with the same national motifs and decorations and the same elements, we will make it even more beautiful and effective’.

Despite the promises, with the start of the demolition work two enormous mosaics on the façade, famous throughout the world, have already been completely destroyed and, given the fate of the mosaics, the future of the frescoed ceilings with national motifs and the sculpted columns is unknown.

The presidential administration officials who are following the work informally confirm to Radio Ozodi correspondents that ‘it was technically impossible to preserve the mosaics and the columns’, some of which are now in pieces, promising at most to recreate the mosaic based on photographs in the new building that will be constructed.

Many, however, had proposed dismantling these elements and transferring them to another location, but still in the city centre, so as to make them available to tourists and the many foreigners who came to admire them.

The Lokhuti theatre, another masterpiece of Tajik architecture, seems destined to suffer the same fate as the Rokhat, and in their place fountains will probably be installed to inspire admiration for the palaces of power.

ùAs the citizens of Dushanbe say, the Rokhat was ‘our history and our calling card, recognised all over the world, and now we ourselves no longer recognise our city’.

The city authorities talk about the ‘general plan for the revival’ of the capital, demolishing many buildings in series to build new, more modern and more solemn ones, but with a soul that is now alien to the history of Tajikistan.