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Siliguri man on CM Mamata Banerjee’s photo mission

“I once asked a man eating something on a piece of newspaper at a roadside eatery what he would do…

Siliguri man on CM Mamata Banerjee’s photo mission

Representational Image (Photo: SNS)

“I once asked a man eating something on a piece of newspaper at a roadside eatery what he would do with the paper that had chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s photo. He told me he would throw it away.

I didn’t feel good about it and I took the piece of paper from him. That particular photo of Miss Banerjee is now among my collection of thousands of pictures of the Trinamool Congress supremo.”

Meet Ansar Rahman, 53, a resident of Santinagar, BouBazar, in Siliguri, who is an artist by profession.

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He is on a mission to collect as many pictures of the CM as possible, and in doing so, he has collected more than 10,000 photos that he got from various sources, including newspapers and magazines.

Mr Rahman, who runs art classes in his house, further dreams of opening a small ‘museum’ where he would showcase his collection.

Mr Rahman’s mornings begin with him scanning almost every vernacular newspaper and magazine that the can lay his hands on. He only sees if they have the CM’s photos.

“I have even asked my wife, Archana, to collect pictures of the CM wherever she finds one,” Mr Rahman says.

“It all started way back in 1984 when I first encountered Miss Banerjee in a rally in Kolkata,” he says, adding, “My first impression of her was that she would do well to have her name in the annals of Bengal’s politics and history. It was then that I started collecting pictures of her. And how right I was then; she is now the chief minister.”

“I have photos of her from her college days. I am not sure if people have seen some pictures of her that I have, and I plan to build a museum of her photographs in Siliguri,” Mr Rahman adds.

According to him, he is a “die-hard fan” of Miss Banerjee and wishes to meet her someday soon.

“West Bengal is witnessing rapid growth and progress under Miss Mamata Banerjee. Her initiatives to combat child marriage and ensure education for girls is awe-inspiring,” he says.

Apart from collecting pictures, Mr Rahman also paints Miss Banerjee’s pictures and sells them. “I have painted eight pictures of her so far, and all of them have been sold. The price depends on the size of the painting, ranging from Rs 300 to Rs 6,000. I mostly do canvas painting,” he says.

 

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