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Rajshahi is the largest city of North Bengal and the seat of Rajshahi Division, spread along the north bank of the Padma River close to the border with India. Known as a city of education for its many colleges and its university, it has also been praised by The Guardian as the cleanest city in Bangladesh, with greener streets and much cleaner air than a decade ago.
The city lies in the ancient region of Pundravardhana, and epigraphic records at the shrine of the Sufi saint Shah Makhdum date its foundation to 1634. Dutch traders came for silk in the eighteenth century, and Rajshahi silk, especially for saris, is still the city's best known product, along with the mangoes of the surrounding orchards.
Visitors see the Varendra Research Museum, the Dutch-built Boro Kuthi and the riverside parks along the Padma, then head out to the temples and palace of Puthia and the old mosques of Bagha and Kismat Maria.
The Varendra Research Museum in central Rajshahi, founded in 1910, is considered the oldest museum in Bangladesh and is run by the University of Rajshahi. It grew from the collection of the Varendra Investigation Society, and the rajas of Rajshahi and Natore donated their own collections.
The Shrine of Shah Makhdum in Rajshahi marks the resting place of Shah Makhdum Rupos, a Sufi from Baghdad who spread Islam in the Varendra region from the 13th century. Legend says he crossed the Padma on the back of a crocodile, and the grave of that crocodile is still shown beside his tomb.
Boro Kuthi on the Padma riverbank in Rajshahi is a two-storey building put up by Dutch traders in the eighteenth century for the silk and indigo trade. It later passed to the East India Company, became the first administrative office of Rajshahi University in 1953, and is now a heritage building.
Rajshahi silk is the fine fabric that made the city famous, from a silk tradition in the region dating back to the 13th century, and it is prized above all for saris. Granted geographical indication status in 2021, it can be seen at silk mills and showrooms a few kilometers from the center.
T-Bandh is an embankment on the Padma River in Rajshahi that gives a fine view of one of the largest rivers in South Asia. It is at its most impressive in the monsoon season, when the water level rises, and it is a popular place for city dwellers to walk and watch the sun set over the river.
Lalon Shah Park was built in 2015 on the bank of the Padma near the Shah Makhdum Eidgah in Rajshahi, to give residents a place to enjoy views of the river. Its open-air stage, the Lalon Shah Mukto Moncho, is named after the mystic poet Lalon and hosts cultural events by the water.
Shaheed A.H.M. Qamaruzzaman Central Park and Zoo lies beside the Padma River in Rajshahi and is one of the city's most popular public places. Its wide grounds of lawns and shady trees hold a lake, a Ferris wheel and children's rides, together with a zoo housing a variety of animal species.
The University of Rajshahi, founded in 1953, is the second oldest university in Bangladesh, and its green, well planned campus lies a few kilometers from the city center. Visitors walk its leafy avenues to see the Shaheed Minar and the memorials to those killed in the struggles of 1969 and 1971.
Puthia Rajbari, about 23 kilometers east of Rajshahi, was built in 1895 by Maharani Hemanta Kumari Devi in memory of her mother-in-law. Its Indo-Saracenic facade looks over an open field, ditches surround the palace, and it now houses a museum telling the history of Puthia and its neighbors.
The Puthia Temple Complex east of Rajshahi has the largest number of historic Hindu temples in Bangladesh, built by the Puthia Raj family around Shyam Sagar lake. Among them are the towering Shiva Temple and the terracotta-covered Govinda Temple, mixing the Jor-bangla style with other influences.
Bagha Mosque, about 40 kilometers southeast of Rajshahi, was built in 1523 or 1524 by Sultan Nusrat Shah of the Husain Shahi dynasty. An earthquake in 1897 brought down its ten domes, but terracotta plaques of mangoes and flowers still cover its walls, and a large dighi pond lies in front.
Kismat Maria Mosque stands in the village of Maria in Durgapur Upazila, a short drive from Rajshahi city, and was built around 1500. This small rectangular mosque with three entrances is a protected monument, and beside it stands a small two-storey building known as the Bibir Ghor.
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