Bookworm Bangladesh, one of the pre-eminent English bookstores in the country, is shutting the outlet at the Old Airport Road in Dhaka’s Tejgaon after catering to readers for three decades.
Amina Rahman, managing director of the bookstore, said they plan to find a new address for the outlet after Air Force's instructions to vacate the place.
"We tried our best to keep the shop but the tides of change are upon us," Bookworm announced on their social media page on Wednesday, reports bdnews24.com.
Frustrated readers shared their memories with the bookstore and urged them to relocate somewhere soon.
Describing it as 'upsetting news', journalist Syed Badrul Ahsan wrote, "This is a place from where I have collected many books. It was a pleasure to come here and go home with a bag full of books. I will miss it [the bookstore] very much.”
Another reader, Rushmila Khan, wrote, "There are many beautiful memories of adolescence from childhood on each shelf of Bookworm. I am devastated. I hope they come back soon.”
Bookworm’s Amina told bdnews24.com that the Air Force planned to build new facilities around this place. In September, it had issued a notice asking them to vacate the place.
The bookstore with a collection of about 20,000 books was supposed to close at the end of October, but after updating its customers on Facebook, it received a positive response from the readers and the Air Force as well, she said.
They hope to run the outlet for at least two more months at the current location.
“I don't blame the Air Force, they have given us the space for so long. We’ve a very good relationship with them. I’d a meeting with them. I told them that it was not enough to chase after money. We should also protect our knowledge and culture.”
Bookworm Bangladesh closed its Dhanmondi outlet in 2019, a few days after its inauguration.
They had closed the outlet in Dhanmondi as the current location range was widened, which they have to leave now, said Amina.
She hopes to continue the book business again in a good place.
Taher Quddus, a former Group Captain of the Air Force, opened the bookstore in 1994 next to Jahangir Gate which soon became one of the foreign book kingdoms.
Bookworm Bangladesh was at the centre of attraction for readers of all ages with its diverse book collections and contemplative atmosphere.