Show and Tell

Art patrons Nadia and Rajeeb Samdani open the doors to their family home in Dhaka—which houses one of the most impressive art collections in South Asia—and share the story behind their mission to turn Bangladesh into a cultural hub

- Oliver Giles

A singing voice greets me when I step off the bustling, dusty streets of Dhaka and into the hushed home of Nadia and Rajeeb Samdani. “I’ll just keep on, till I get it right,” it sings. There’s a pause, then it sings the line again. And again. The voice is not Rajeeb or Nadia’s, nor that of any of their three daughters—it’s a work of sound art by British artist Cael Flover that plays on a loop in the Samdanis’ entrance hall.

“When people come to visit, they sometimes get confused whether they’re in a house or a gallery,” says Rajeeb. That’s understandable. Flover’s voice echoes around a slick cube of a room filled with works of art from near and far. One of Anish Kapoor’s signature shimmering steel dishes dominates one wall, while a stone sculpture of a strange humanoid figure by Pakistani-American artist Huma Bhabha stands imperiously by the doorway. It’s so tall that visitors can stare directly into its spray-painted black eyes. “The only piece of furniture in this whole room is that chair by Zaha Hadid,” admits Rajeeb, gesturing towards a sofa that looks more sculpture than seat. “People ask us, ‘Why would you want to have a space like this in your house?’”