Chapainawabganj, Rajshahi
A Mughal-era brick building beside a large pond, said to have been built by Shah Shuja, with a three-domed mosque and the tomb of the saint Shah Niamatullah nearby.
The tomb of Shah Niamatullah is a place of devotion; visitors come to pray, and gatherings are held on the saint’s anniversary. Check locally for dates.
Tohakhana is a building of the Mughal period, traditionally credited to Shah Shuja, the son of Emperor Shah Jahan who governed Bengal in the mid-1600s. It is said he built it for the saint Shah Niamatullah Wali, who lived here, and stayed in it himself when he visited.
The name is usually explained as “cold room”: the building stands on the bank of a large pond, and its lower floor was kept cool by the water. Its rooms, arches and thick brick walls are a rare example of Mughal domestic building in this part of the country.
Next to it stand a three-domed mosque and the tomb of Shah Niamatullah, which still draws devotees. The pond, the old trees and the buildings together make a calm complex, a few minutes from the sultanate mosques of Gaur.
Take a bus or CNG from Chapainawabganj town towards Sona Masjid.
See the sultanate mosque first, then hire an auto-rickshaw for the area.
Walk round the building by the pond, the three-domed mosque and Shah Niamatullah’s tomb.
Head back via Kansat for lunch or, in season, mangoes.
October to February
From Chapainawabganj town, take a bus or CNG towards Sona Masjid (about an hour). Tohakhana lies at Firozpur, a short auto-rickshaw ride from Choto Sona Mosque.
