The Lion House holds significant history, serving as evidence of one indentured labourer’s success story, but it has been left to fall into disrepair.
While its walls carry the weight of history, neglect has taken a toll on the structure, which now sits behind galvanised barriers.
With its 100th anniversary fast approaching, Baldath Maharaj, President of the Chaguanas Chamber of Industry and Commerce, is optimistic that the historic site will be restored to its former glory.
“As you would see, that house would turn a hundred years old next year, and of course it’s the ideal time for restoration. We signalled at one of our meetings that we will try to, through the Indian Embassy, contact some Indian businessmen who are very philanthropic, who will do the restoration without cost to the government. There are few heritage sites in Trinidad, and I think we wouldn’t want to lose this one.”
Beyond the structure, Mr. Maharaj said the Lion House embodies the success of Pundit Capildeo, an indentured immigrant who became a liberated, successful landowner and businessman.
It was also home to intellectual figures like mathematician and politician Rudranath Capildeo and distinguished author V. S. Naipaul, whose childhood was spent there.
“We have to bear in mind that when Pundit Capildeo came from India, he used that very design that he had in the village he came from, which is Gorakhpur, and that very building is what he replicated here, and of course there’s a lot of history in that house. There’s Sir Vidia Naipaul, that was his birthplace and his early childhood, and of course Simbhoonath Capildeo and Rudranath Capildeo, they are all part of that legacy.”
While he admitted that there have been efforts to preserve the site, Mr. Maharaj said that there have also been constraints.
“There has not been any feedback. I know that the mayor tried to get in touch with the beneficiaries of the house. My understanding is that it’s a joint tenancy where the family, the siblings, can’t agree on the way forward. Maybe one way might be for the government to use their powers and purchase the actual Lion House. If you take a picture of that, you will realise that it is really dilapidated. The trees are even growing from the house, and it’s bigger than the house itself. I’m not sure whether the building will last another five or ten years.”
The Lion House lives on as a symbol of authority in the beloved classic, “A House for Mr. Biswas” as The Hanuman House. However, in reality, passers-by often view it as another old building that’s closed off and falling apart.