weekend 229

Dhaka Tribune | vol 2 Issue 29 | FRIDAY, DeCembeR 5, 2014

12AmAAn & AYAAn AlI KhAn6 sChool FoR

blInD ChIlDRen 15 bIhARI meChAnICs

ALL TOGETHER NOW

ALL TOGETHER NOW

Editor’s noteAll together, nowAs the year slowly runs towards its close, it’s not

unusual to find oneself mulling over existential concerns. What are the forces that bind us? What

makes us tick? Where is our place in the grand scheme of things? This week, we went seeking through the heavens above and the ground beneath our feet to explore the forces of nature and culture and see how they tie in to shape us the way we are.

With winter getting a foot in through the door, let’s travel Bangladesh and explore its rich vegetable treats in one handy infograph (page 4). Fly around the country on colourful wings with our gorgeous photo-story about butterflies (pages 9-11). When the stars come up, look to the skies with Bangladesh Astronomical Association, as they have been observing the heavens for a quarter of a century now (page 20).

We’ve just completed a week of non-stop classical music, and so we take a look back at this veritable feast of culture (pages 6-7). Speaking of culture, we engaged in a little cross-border debate about Tagore’s influence. Check it out in our Post-Riposte section (page 17).

And after we’ve looked back, we look forward to the future, which lies in the hands of our children. In observance of World Disability Day, which passed us by on December 3, we have a special feature on a school for blind children (pages 12-13). We also look at the lives of young Bihari children in Dhaka (page 15).

Here’s hoping you have a wonderful week ahead.

Sabrina Fatma Ahmad

Photo: Syed Zakir Hossain

WEEKEN D TRI BU N E | FRI DAY, DECEMBER 5, 2014

1CONTENTS

Volume 2 | Issue 29 | December 5, 2014

News 2 News

3 Meanwhile

Features 4 Infograph Winter veggies

5 Rant Spoiled for choices

8 Conservation The butterfly effect

15 Feature Bihari Mechanics

17 Post-Riposte Rabindranath Tagore

regulars14 Legalese

16 Tough Love

18 Stay In

19 Go Out

EditorZafar Sobhan

Executive EditorShahriar Karim

Managing EditorJahangir Hyder

Features EditorSabrina Fatma Ahmad

Weekend Tribune TeamTasnuva Amin Nova

Mark BaidyaFarhana UrmeeFaisal MahmudFarina NoireetTausif Sanzum

Art Direction/PhotographySyed Latif Hossain

CartoonsSyed Rashad Imam Tonmoy

PriyoRio Shuvo

ContributorsJennifer Ashraf Kashmi

Rumana HabibMd Monwar Hossain

Hasan MasoodDina Sobhan

Sabrina ToppaKaneta Zillur

GraphicsMd Mahbub Alam

Tahsin Momin

Colour SpecialistShekhar Mondal

ProductionMasum Billah

CirculationMasud Kabir Pavel

Websitedhakatribune.com/weekendfacebook.com/WeekendTrib

Email your letters to:[email protected]

SPOTLIGhTAMAAn & AyAAn Ali KHAn

6

CONvERSaTION BAnglAdeSH

ASTRonoMicAl ASSociATion

20

PhOTO STORyBuTTeRflieS

9

FEaTuREScHool foR Blind cHildRen

12


2 NEwS | This week

The world at a glance

Obama settles on Ashton Carter as Pentagon chief Obama has settled on the 60-year-old Carter as his fourth defense secretary, with an announcement expected in coming days once he is thoroughly vetted.

Carter will replace former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel who, like his predecessors Robert Gates and Leon Panetta, complained about White House micromanaging of the Pentagon and felt he had a lack of influence over decision-making, according to sources familiar with Hagel’s tenure.

The next defense chief will join a national security team facing crises on multiple fronts – from the us-led fight against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, global efforts to contain Iran’s influence and an increasingly assertive China.

Carter, a theoretical physicist with no uniformed military experience, has toiled away in high-ranking positions within the Pentagon in recent years, largely outside the glare of the media. His roles include deputy defense secretary – the Pentagon’s No 2 job – from 2011 to 2013 and a stint as an assistant secretary of defense for Democratic ex-President Bill Clinton.Photo: AP

Pakistan adds home-made fighter jets to PAFThe head of Pakistan Aeronautical Complex said Tuesday that Pakistan had added 50 home-assembled multi-role JF-17 Thunder fighter jets to its Air Force.

Air Marshal Javed Ahmed, chief of the state-owned PAC, said the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had already received 50 of the home-made aircrafts and that the supply of a second tranche would start this month.“The five aircraft of the next block

would be inducted (into PAF) this year,” Ahmed told AFP on the sidelines of the International Defence Exhibition And Seminars in Karachi, an arms fair that brings together dealers from all over the world.

Pakistan has been manufacturing the JF-17 aircraft since 2009 with the help of a Chinese group.

“JF-17 is a modern aircraft, it fulfils all the needs of PAF. It is affordable, the cockpit is very user-friendly,” Ahmed said.Photo: Reuters

Russia to carry out large-scale military drills in 2015russia said on Monday, it would carry out more than 4,000 military drills next

Weekend Tribune Desk

Bangladesh 14th in TI corruption index

Bangladesh has been ranked at 14th position in the Transparency International Perceptions Report 2014.

The anti-corruption group published the report on Wednesday.

In the index, Somalia is the most corrupt country while Denmark is the lowest in corruption ranking.

Bangladesh scored 25 on a scale of 0-100 by sliding down two steps from the position in 2013.

Bangladesh ranked 145th among 175 countries by going down nine notches than the last year’s 136 position, said the report.

year, with the largest involving “tens of thousands” of servicemen next summer.

Russia has increased the number of military drills to test and improve its military capabilities as ties with the West deteriorated over the crisis in Ukraine.

“The exercises will take place in the summer period simultaneously on several training grounds within Russia and abroad,” Yaroslav Roshupkin, a spokesman for Russia’s Central Military District, said of the planned “Centre 2015” drills.

“They will be extended in time and bring together under unified command tens of thousands of servicemen of the Central Military District, branches and types of the armed forces, as well as other security ministries and agencies.”

He said new weapons would also be tested during the exercises.

The Defence Ministry said next year’s plans mark an increase from more than 3,000 drills carried out this year. Photo: Reuters

Indian IS recruit ‘goes home after having to clean toilets’An Indian student who travelled to Iraq to join the Islamic State group has returned home disillusioned after jihadists made him clean toilets and do other menial jobs, according to media reports.Areeb Majeed, 23, left for Iraq with three friends in late May amid fears by authorities that IS militants were attempting to recruit from India’s large pool of young Muslim men.

The engineering student flew home Friday to Mumbai where he was arrested and charged by India’s elite National Investigation Agency (NIA) with terror-related offences.

Majeed told NIA officers he was sidelined by the jihadists for whom he fetched water and performed other tasks such as cleaning toilets, instead of taking part in the deadly offensive like he wanted, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Scarlett Johansson weds in secret Montana ceremony

Scarlett Johansson and longtime partner Romain Dauriac were secretly married this fall in western Montana. The couple tied the knot in the small, scenic town of Philipsburg, Granite County Clerk of Court Carol Bohrnsen said Tuesday.

“It’s a beautiful little spot,” Bohrnsen said.

Johansson and Dauriac, a French former journalist, had been engaged since September 2013. They welcomed a daughter, Rose, in September.

Bohrnsen said the couple went to the Granite County Courthouse themselves to get a license. The document, later filed with the county, shows the wedding took place Oct 1.

It wasn’t known exactly where the nuptials were held, though Philipsburg is home to The Ranch at Rock Creek, which bills itself as a luxury ranch resort.

Last year, Bohrnsen issued a wedding license to actress Kate Bosworth and film director Michael Polish. They wed at The Ranch at Rock Creek.

Johansson previously was married to Ryan Reynolds. Her recent acting credits include “Lucy,” ‘’Chef,” and “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”Photo: AP


3meanwhile ... | NEwS

You’re welcome

How to arrange a conference1. write down your goals and agenda: You will need to clearly define what you hope to accomplish with this conference because this will shape the rest of your decisions.

2. Develop your budget: There is no way that you can do anything else without knowing how much money you have to spend overall, and then breaking that down into allocations such as conference venue, materials and speakers’ fees.

3. Choose your conference venue: When scouting locations, keep in mind the number of participants, the convenience of the location, parking and proximity to public transportation, airports and hotels. Your goal in finding a place to hold the conference should be making it as easy as possible for participants to attend.

4. enlist the help of venue staff:If you have chosen a venue that is known for holding conferences, then tap into this invaluable resource.

5. Insist on a walk-through: After you have gotten through the bulk of your conference organising, don’t leave anything to chance by walking in with the rest of the participants when the conference is set to begin.

Seven-year old Swapna, with her little brother in her arms, gazes at the row of students of the school for street children in Mohammadpur’s Beribadh area. Swapna cannot study in this school as she has to stay home and take care of her sibling and look after her old grand father

as her father is a rickshaw puller and her mother works in garments factory. Photo: Mehedi Hasan

Photo of the week

Say what? Kim possible!

In North Korea, there can be only one Kim Jong Un.

A South Korean official said Wednesday that Pyongyang forbids its people from using the same name as the young absolute leader.

The measure appears to bolster a personality cult surrounding Kim, who took over after the death of his

dictator father Kim Jong Il in late 2011. Seoul officials have said Pyongyang also banned the use of the names of Kim Jong Il and the country’s founder, Kim Il Sung.

The South Korean official said Kim Jong Il in early 2011 ordered citizens with the same name as his son to get new names and demanded that

authorities reject birth registrations of newborn babies with the name.

The official requested anonymity because he wasn’t authorised to speak publicly. He refused to disclose how the information was obtained. Photo: Reuters


4 INFOGRaPh | winTer veggies

Faisal Mahmud

Vegetables in different districts

Dhaka

Comilla

Munshiganj

Mymensingh

Sylhet

Khagrachari

Bhola

Borguna

Shatkhira

Gopalganj

Magura

Chuadanga

Pabna

Rajshahi

Gaibandha

Lalmonirhat

Rangamati

Cox's Bazar

Noakhali

Chandpur

PatuakhaliKhulna

Pirojpur

Madaripur

Jhinaidaha

MeherpurManikganj

Gazipur

Brahmanbaria

Nator

SunamganjJamalpur

Jaipurhat

NilfamariThakurgaon

Habiganj

Panchagarh

Netrokona

Tangail

Chittagong

Barisal

Narail

Narsingdi

Rajbari

Nawabganj

Bogra

DinajpurKurigram

Maulvibazar

Bandarban

FeniLakshmipur

JhalokatiBagerhat

Jessore

Kushtia

Shariatpur

Faridpur

Narayanganj

KishoreganjSirajganj

Naogaon

Sherpur

Rangpur

BAY OF BENGAL

18

42

17

3,12

24,33

38,54

15,16

3,12

30,49

9,15

22,23

29

41

44

54

19

15,22,52

5,7,47

15,35,41

37,39,40

29

15,22,52

1,6,7,8,9,15,39

6,7, 32, 39

10,17,20,21

15,16,35,39

3, 5, 6

2,38,49

1,24,32

13,25,54

SI. No.English name of vegetablesLocal name of vegetables

1Bitter gourdKarala

2Yard long beanBarbati

3OkraDherosh

4Bottle gourd/DudhiBottle gourd

5Ash/wax gourdJali Kumra

6Snake gourdChickingal Kohi

7Sponge gourdDundul

8Green chilliKacha Marich

9

sl# english name of vegetables

local name of vegetables

1 Bitter gourd Korolla

2 Yard long bean Borboti

3 Okra Dherosh

4 Bottle gourd Dudhi

5 Ash/wax gourd Jali Kumra

6 Snake gourd Chickingal Kohi

7 Sponge gourd Dundul

8 Green chilli Kacha Morich

9 Ridge gourd Jhinga/Tury

10 Pumpkin/Sweet gourd Mishti Kumra

11 Pointed gourd Potol

12 Teasle gourd Kakrol/Kantola

13 Cucumber Shosha

14 Broccoli Shobuj Phulkopi

15 Hyacinth bean Deshi seem

16 French bean French bean

17 Small cucumber Khira

18 Potato Gol Alu

19 Egg plant/brinjal Kalo Begun

20 Taro Pani Kochu

21 Eddoe Mukhi Kochu

22 Coco Yam Dudh Kochu

23 Yautia Moulavi Kochu

24 Giant Taro Mankachu

25 Aroid Kochu

26 Stolon of Taro Kochur Loti

27 White Yam Mattay Alu

28 Air potato Peshta Alu

29 Elephant foot yam Ol Kochu

30 Green Papaya Kacha Papay

31 Drumstick Shajna

32 Plantain Kacha Kola

33 Banaba Flower Kolar Thor/Mocha

34 Water Lity Shapla

35 Pea seed Motor Shuti

36 Stem Amaranth Danta

37 Red amaranth Lal Shak

38 Indian Spinach Puishak

39 Spinach Palong Shak

40 Kangkong Gimakalmi Shak

41 Sweet potato Mishti alu

42 Jute leaf Pat Shak

43 Rajatpata Rajatpata

44 Belet leaf Pan

45 Stem Amaranth leaf Danta Shak

46 Leaves of Aroid Kachur pata

47 Stem of Aroid Kochur Doga

48 Naga hot chilli Naga Morich

49 Onion leaf Piaj Pata

50 Matured Wax gourd Chuna Jali Kumra

51 Stem of Banana Kolar Anaj

52 Hyacinth bean seed Seemer Bichi

53 Bottle gourd leaf Lau Shak

54 Cabbage Badha Kopi

55 Coriander leaf Dhoney Pata

Infograph: Mahbub Alam

Over the last 20 years, vegetable cultivation in different parts of the country has increased by around 135%, according to the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute. Currently, around 54 types of vegetables are commercially cultivated in 0.278 million hectares across the country, producing around 2.50 million tons of vegetables annually.


5spoiled for choices | RaNT

choosing right is a challenge

Kaneta Zillur

The choices we make

Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took the road less travelled by And that has made all the difference -- Robert Frost

As a student, I was often faced with the colossal challenge of choosing between catching up on

much needed sleep or spending that time finishing up assignments. Likewise, a company CEO goes through a somewhat similar routine of looking at choices, only in his case, he has to choose between different strategies, implementing the one that will surely put smiles on the faces of his stakeholders. To look at an even bigger picture, politicians have to choose between policy decisions that will, in the long term, help the country or make the citizens happy and get their party re-elected. And let’s not forget that with every choice we make, there is the value of best alternative we forgo attached to it. So then the question to ask is: With so many choices, do we have one that is right? And if so, what prompts us to make that choice?

Economical ‘choice’ Choices and the value of the best alternative forgone, or what economists call “opportunity cost,” are key factors in the field of economics. While in some scenarios the choice is somewhat easy to make, the difficulties become prominent when, for example, a company has to decide on a business strategy that will determine its profits. Or perhaps when a policy decision has to be made that has impact on the lives of thousands if not millions.

It is during those situations, when ultimate results are difficult to foresee, that we seek the help of game theorists, such as the winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Economics, Jean Tirole. What makes the work of economists such as Tirole so important is because even assessing simple issues like “what is the right

price” can become exceedingly difficult in market situations characterised by information asymmetry and unequal market power.

With his work on game theory and information economics, Tirole has attempted to boil down the complications that companies face in determining the right price for their product. It is because the company has to be able to contemplate what the other players (other companies in this case) might do in reaction to the price being set, in addition to understanding what their own price point will be. A larger public policy question that Tirole’s work addresses is optimal regulations that offers incentives to both regulators and firms to do things that are in the public interest.

Political ‘choice’Let us get back to the issue of choices. Take the world of politics. In this particular field, “choice” has always been an important player. The choices we make, as individual agents in a nation, helps determine who will lead the government. While choosing the “right” leader is absolutely crucial for a country and hence an important area to study, an equally interesting role of choice comes in during the determination of policies and political or economic agendas.

Traditionally, one would expect for the members of a country’s government to be aware of how powerful their political actions can be in affecting people’s lives. However, more often than not, ministers or political leaders are preoccupied with making a choice that will bring greatest benefits to themselves, or to people in their own circles.

In a developing country, like Bangladesh, this issue is a widespread

phenomenon. More often than not, existences of such personal agendas mean other, more urgent, public agendas get little attention. This can be exemplified no better than by the tragedy that took place in 2013, when eight floors of the Rana Plaza on the outskirts of Dhaka came tumbling down to the ground, killing over a 1000 garment workers. This was a direct result of the government and industry leaders not enforcing proper safety rules and building code in the garment sector. While the government has made initial steps towards righting this wrong (the Bangladesh Labour Amendment Act has been enacted, promising to improve labour conditions). Only time will tell whether these first steps actually transform into a more sustainable change for the garment industry.

Personal ‘choice’Determining whether a choice is right can be a complicated matter. What is slightly less complicated is to understand what prompts people to make the choices they make. Youth choice can be driven by a whole array of things. A vast number of incoming college freshmen go through an agonising routine of trying to choose the “right” major. “Will I get a job after I graduate?” “Will this major help me earn money?” These are some of the many questions that they want

answered before locking down on a subject to pursue. In the past, the decision was partly driven by one’s own desires and by an attempt to please the parents. However, that has been widely replaced by this frenzied attempt to find the major that will maximize monetary stability in the future. Given the stupendous rise in competitiveness around the world, I really wouldn’t blame them for doing so.

Determining ‘choice’The field of economics has approached the issue of choice with a mathematical, albeit technical, angle and opportunity cost becomes the most important factor when making a choice. In politics, more often than not, it is a game of greed, corrupted minds and a complete lack of understanding of what is good for the country that prompts political decisions. But should this really be the only way? Don’t titans, like Lincoln in an earlier era and Mandela in ours, demonstrate another infinitely more uplifting mission of politics?

As a member of today’s youth who has just crossed one threshold (undergraduate studies), I fret and ponder on the next choices to make. Nothing comes easy. But if all else fails, I can always seek the help of the magic eight ball to make my choices. n

Photo: Bigstock


6 SPOTLIGhT | amaan and ayaan ali khan

Rumana Habib

In town for the Bengal Classical Music Festival earlier this week, sarod players Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan agreed to

meet me for this interview – much to the envy of my female friends.

As we spoke, certain themes emerged again and again, like an Indian classical raga called “Take nothing for granted,” which embroidered a refrain of the same five notes: Stay humble, be pure, love father, fear god, have faith.”

Still in their 30s, the brothers have already enjoyed great success in their careers. They each debuted at age 8, have performed at venues like Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center in the US, and have recorded numerous albums, one of which was nominated for a Grammy.

“God’s been kind,” Amaan said. “When the audience applauds, I just shut my eyes and thank the Almighty and my teacher. It’s because of them that I am where I am.”

They also have a lot to live up to. Their father is Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, the great sarod master (who played the closing session of Bengal’s music festival Tuesday morning). They are the seventh generation of a musical lineage known as the Senia Bangash School. In fact, their forefathers are credited with the invention of the sarod nearly 200 years ago.

A famous family can sometimes be

a drawback: “The price Ayaan and I have to pay is, expectations are very high. As the sons of Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, you have to deliver. If you don’t, you’re not considered talented or hard working, you’re just a brat.”

But anyone who meets these gracious and grounded young men could not think that for long.

“Abba’s main mantra has been: humility before technical brilliance,” Ayaan explained.

“He always said: ‘Eight hours of practising sarod, then being disrespectful to the domestic help in your house, will not let you achieve your goal ... Be the tool through which music flows. You should never be arrogant or proud.”

Amaan expands upon this thought later on: “The idea is not to take yourself too seriously. In a fraction of a second, you can have a small little vein go up here [he points to his shoulder] and your hand will never work again.”

“It can all disappear in a moment. It can all come back also. Music has a lot of magic. It comes and goes very easily,” he added.

Has music really come and gone for you? You’ve been playing your whole life.Ayaan: Yes, music was pretty much the air we were breathing and the language we were speaking from the

time we were born. Amaan: The way I’ve started

connecting with music in the past few years is new. I’ve never been able to produce things I’ve wanted to produce. Now it’s coming out.

Ayaan: We each have our relationship with music. For my father, music is life and life is music. For me, it’s my soul and it’s my passion, but I can also disconnect from it completely. However, when I open that frequency again, I can get completely mad and passionate about it.

Likewise, what Amaan bhai is saying of what he’s producing now, it’s also a journey.

What has allowed you to connect more deeply now?Amaan: There’s a line in Urdu: “Niyat saaf, manzil ahsan (the more pure your intentions are, the more easily you can see your goal).”

When you come up as a young musician, you have a lot of dreams about who you want to be and what you want to do. You’re missing the point. Then you forget all that, and just want to be pure. You don’t chase success. You don’t chase anything. You just chase those seven notes of music.

Have you ever considered a different career path?Amaan: I was more intrigued by

playing sports, horse-riding. But I was never a rebel, Somewhere I knew this would be my calling one day. I was not very into it, and my father never forced me into it. Because he believed in his God.

Ayaan: I was no Mozart, but I was into playing and I was very clear that this is what I wanted to do. Later in life, when I saw my friends going to universities, I did question: Is this for me? Can I survive? But I just followed my heart.

Being an older brother, Amaan bhai also made sure I was not relaxing – in a good way. There’s a queue of talent. You feel fortunate but you never take who you are for granted, or what stage you get for granted.

Amaan: Sometimes you find your destiny, sometimes destiny looks out for you. Somewhere you come together and never look back.

Ayaan: Like my father rightly says: It’s a very long journey. When someone like him says it, it really must be true.

Amaan: In your case it’s a really long journey.

Ayaan: In my case…Amaan: I’m just kidding.Ayaan: Ha, I don’t know how

things are going to turn out for me. But even my father says: “I’m still looking for perfection, for how to play sarod the way it should be played.” It’s a never-ending process.

The princes of sarod Photo: Khan Hasan Muhammad Rafi Photo: Khan Hasan Muhammad Rafi


7

The princes of sarod

How does your interaction on stage compare to your interaction in real life?Ayaan: When we play together there is no rehearsal. Your personal equation translates onto stage. We did start our careers as soloists, but by and large we are invited together. I think it’s perhaps more appealing to see people interact on stage. It’s easier to sell perhaps.

Do you guys always get along so well? You’re brothers after all.Amaan: We have our differences but we are very much in love with the fact that we have to make it big for our father. We want to make our father bigger.

Ayaan: And we always see the larger picture. We’ve had our epic arguments. We still do. But we do come to a meeting point. The intention is to chase excellence or you think about the whole thing.

Amaan: At the end of the day, your brother or sister is a reflection of your parents.

Ayaan: In the west, when a child is 18, he’s asked to leave his house. On some level they’re making it very clear: Now go live your life and…

Amaan: …stand up on your feet.Ayaan: Yes, stand up on your feet

and take your journey.

Is that what happened with you? Your father was also your teacher. Did he push you out into the world at 18?Amaan: He said when you sit with me on stage, with thousands of people: Don’t misunderstand this for your audience. When you start performing by yourself you might have two people, three people, 300 people or 3,000 people. Build your own audience.

My father is a very humble man, and he’s made his message very clear: work hard, have fear of god, have fear of arrogance, be humble, be patient.

So how did you feel about the 55,000-person crowd last night?Ayaan: Last night was like magic. From the moment we sat there was…

Amaan: … some vibe… Ayaan: … a fantastic energy. There

was something happening that was very special, and it lasted until the time we got off.

Amaan: The house was very warm. Not even for a second did I feel there

was any negativity in the audience. People were patient. They were there to have a good time. They were not there to judge you. People were all very receptive. It was one of the nicest, better audiences I’ve seen in a long time.

Ayaan: They were very connected to what we were doing. There was no disconnection at any given point.

Amaan: As a musician, when the curtains go up, you know within five minutes what the vibe is. Sometimes the vibe is very impatient, like if you’re tuning, people start chattering. You know you don’t have much control. Sometimes the curtain goes up and you know you have control. With time you learn you’ve got to take charge of a situation, even if it’s not favourable. That comes with experience.

But you didn’t need to do that last night.Amaan: No but you always need to edit your music. If I go slow, and I take 45 minutes to get the percussion in, it’s boring. This is a festival, people are here to have fun, so we tried to keep the energy high.

Amaan: I was getting a lot of energy from the audience too. I was on a high, getting very excited, and I wanted to… I was getting very charged up.

Ayaan: Everything can inspire. Amaan: Inspire, conspire…

Would you come back?Ayaan: Inshallah, I hope there is an invitation for at least one family every year. This festival is incredible. It’s also a huge congregation of musicians. Usually we only meet members of the fraternity in airports.

Amaan: They don’t have anything like this in India for sure.

What’s next for you?Ayaan: We are really looking forward next week, thanks to my father, to performing at the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony. I’m really looking forward to meeting Malala. I’m taking my iPhone with me!

It’s so beautiful that there’s one Nobel laureate from Pakistan, and she has requested Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and one from India, Kailash Satyarthi, who requested my father. It’s quite a big honour. n

work hard, have fear of god, have fear of arrogance, be humble, be

patient

Photo: Reza Amin

Photo: Reza Amin


8 CONSERvaTION | The buTTerfly effecT

A thing of beauty is a joy forever

In the recently held Butterfly Fair at the Jahangirnagar university campus on dec 5, nature-lovers and scientists came together to celebrate the butterfly and all it has to offer, which, according to recent discoveries, go well beyond just visual appeal

Md Monwar Hossain

The butterfly, although a member of the insect group, has since childhood fascinated our imaginations, in that, we

hardly consider it a bug – it shares the same space in our minds, along with bright flowers and chirpy birds and everything merry and beautiful.

The butterflyMost butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers, but some butterflies extract their food from pollen, tea sap, rotten fruits, rotten leaves, dung and dissolved minerals from wet soil.

The process by which butterflies uptake minerals from damp soil is called puddling. Whilst puddling, male butterflies frequently visit moist ground, dung, perspiration and excrement to suck water and dissolved nutrients and transfer those nutrients to females during copulation along with spermatophore.

Besides, they take nectar from various flowers and their foraging activities increase on sunny days. This is because their body temperature is very important for their physiological activities. Butterflies can only fly when their body temperature is above 860F.

THE BUTTERFLY FAIRThe Butterfly Breeding Centre at the Jahangirnagar University campus was established for the conservation of threatened butterflies, to be reared in captivity and then released into the wild.

To create awareness regarding butterflies and its conservation, the Centre has been organising the annual Butterfly Fair since 2010. The main objectives of this event are: creating awareness about this insect that works as a climate indicator, to know and expedite the research work

and then contribute in the butterfly research arena.

We have identified 301 species of butterflies out of possible 500 species in Bangladesh. Out of these 301, we have identified again 115 species in Jahangirnagar University Campus.

THE JUNGLEGLORY DISCOVERYOn one of my recent expeditions, I had discovered a photonics butterfly, Jungleglory (Thaumantis diores) from Thanchi in Bandarban district.

This species was described first by Doubleday (1845) from Sylhet and later by Marshall and Niceville from the same place in Bangladesh in 1882. But this time, I recorded it from a different location in Bangladesh after 132 years of its last record by Marshall and Niceville (1882).

The rediscovery of the species was made on 30th March, 2014 at Thanchi during a tour under the project “IUCN Updating Species Red List of Bangladesh” funded by The World Bank.

Scientists from Japan and China claim that the wings of butterflies like Jungleglory contain photonic structures that are effective solar collectors.

These wing photonic structures are the best structural models in the design of photoanodes for dye-sensitised solar cell (DSSC) to improve light harvesting and solar electricity conversion efficiency.

The fabrication process is simpler and faster than other methods, and could be useful in manufacturing commercially valuable devices, powering homes and businesses as well as other bionic designs for military applications.

THE TRUTH CAN HURTFor the fulfilment of our modern

demands, we do a lot of things that are hazardous to the environment. These type of activities, like urbanisation and industrialisation, hampers the total animal world.

Each and every organism, whether simple or complex, plays an important role in nature as it is the part of one or more food chains. Due to environmental changes and degradation of forests, many species have become extinct and many more are threatened.

One of these victims is the butterfly. Butterflies are one of the most important food chain components of birds and reptiles. They are also extremely good

indicators of environmental changes and respond immediately to the disturbances caused due to alterations of their habitat.

Therefore for our own benefit, it is important to remain aware and protect butterflies and their habitat.

In Bangladesh, we have a rich butterfly biodiversity and over 300 butterflies have been recorded already. Therefore, we have a great prospect to benefit from its research and industrial uses. Especially where power crisis is acute, present finding of a butterfly with photonic structure can open a new possibility to ease the situation. .

Dr Monwar Hossain is a professor at the Department of Zoology of Jahangirnagar University. He is also an environ-mental activist and freelance photographer

Photos: Courtesy


9buTTerflies | PhOTO STORy

The flying jewelPhotos: Hasan Masood

Turn for more photographs

The butterfly is a creature that has always been consistent with all things beautiful. Although it has a life span of only two weeks, its unique life cycle that includes the process of metamorphosis, transforming its initial form of a leaf-consuming caterpillar into a winged creature of enchanting beauty, is something that mesmerises the world of literature and science alike.

Their beautiful wings, apart from providing visual appeal, play an important function in the lives of its bearers by allowing them protection from predators through camouflage. Some types of butterflies, with unique wing patterns that resemble other, scarier insects, even use their wings to fend off predators, by spreading them wide and warning them to keep away. There are also some species of butterflies that are poisonous.

There are about 24,000 different species of butterflies in the world. Butterfly often taste through their feet and live on a liquid diet, usually consisting of nectar from flowers. It can see things well within 10-12 feet and has a maximum flight speed, of about 30 miles per hour, although this also varies among the different species. Interestingly, the more poisonous the butterfly is, the lesser its flight speed.

These pictures of rare butterflies have been taken from Dhaka and around.

Hasan Masood is a renowned actor, director and freelance photographer


10 PhOTO STORy | buTTerflies


11


12 FEaTuRE | school for blind children

Rana and Sajeeb were so immersed in a patriotic song, that they didn’t pause their singing, as a stranger

approached. The two young boys live in a dorm on the ground floor of a multi storied building, which is packed with iron bunk beds. The environment of the school dorm is vaguely musty and there is little access to light.

Sajeeb, who seemed to be the more perceptive of the two, noticed the newcomer and abruptly stopped

singing and gestured a welcome.This a school for students

with visual impairment. Boys – underprivileged and mostly neglected – live and learn in a crowded lane of Rupnagar Residential area of Mirpur.

The ground floor of the building is used as a classroom and the rest of the open space of the building is used as the students’ play ground. The school, teaching visually disabled boys from classes one to five, is run by the Blind Education and Rehabilitation Development

BeRdo school is educating visually disabled children and bringing light into their lives

Farhana Urmee

Letting them see

Only educating the visually impaired is not enough, rehabilitating

them with a job is necessary so that they

can lead an independent and dignified life


13

Organisation (BERDO). Hasan, another student, joined in

with the singing duo. The youngsters were in a particularly happy mood – the final examinations for Class Five were over – and now they were busy making preparations for the International Day of Persons with Disability on Dec 3.

Sajeeb and Hasan were to perform in the school’s functions for the annual event. Rana seemed a little sad, having been left out of the performances, as he had been ill on the day of the selections and was unable to make the try-outs.

On asking Rana, what he wanted to be in life, he eagerly stated: “A singer, obviously.”

Thirteen-year old Rana was born without the ability to see. Although, treatments and operations have partially restored his vision, this sight too will be lost as he grows older.

He knows about the cruelty of life. Yet he smiles and finds hope as schools like this have brought him the privilege of an education.

“In my village in Munshiganj no one wanted to be friends with me as I cannot see, I really don’t know how my sight may hamper my ability to make friends? But now that I am studying in Dhaka, my neighbours and peers from my village give me importance,” said the ever-smiling Rana whose father is a day labourer.

When Sajeeb was asked about his life, he echoed Rana’s sentiments but added, “In my village in Barisal no one could imagine that a blind person can study if he or she is given scope and necessary support. I want to continue my studies as long as I can and want to be a singer too as I know when I am singing, there will be someone listening to me. I want to be heard.”

The executive director of BERDO, Md Saidul Huq, who himself is a visually impaired person, started the school as he has learnt from his life that only a school solely dedicated to educate the visually impaired can change the lives of these persons.

“There are some special logistics

that are needed to start and run a school for the visually impaired, as the system needs to run on a needs-based approach,” says Huq while giving a tour of BERDO’s own Braille printing press, Braille and audio library, studio for recording audio books and computer training centre for visually impaired persons.

“If a regular school had such facilities, a visually impaired student could continue to study with hardly any hindrance,” says Huq.

“Regarding the funding of the school, I initially started out on a very small scale but I was unable to turn it into a big project. BERDO has a total of 20 residential students who have local sponsors.”

BERDO plans to expand their services for the local students and become a non-residential school as well.

“Interestingly, while working with poverty-ridden, discriminated, underprivileged and visually impaired children, we have noticed that if someone has a visually impaired child, the parents are sceptical towards providing education to that child. They seem to believe no change will come in their child’s life even after becoming educated,” Huq says. He also elaborated on another side of the problem of educating the visually impaired: “A residential school providing food and accommodation is helpful to the poor parents.”

BERDO has contacts with eye hospitals in the city to locate visually impaired children scattered across the country. BERDO also campaigns for “Job Placement” where the organisation asks different corporate offices, service centres and other industries to give at least one skilled visually impaired person a job.

Huq who is also the president of National Forum of Organisations Working with the Disabled (NFOWD) thinks, “Only educating the visually impaired is not enough, rehabilitating them with a job is necessary so that they can lead an independent and dignified life.” n

Photos: Mahmud Hossain Opu

Letting them see

Small but inspiring numbers

BERDO Braille library has 375 books.

285 students are benefited by its library.

BERDO has 426 talking books.

1,895 persons were benefited by the Community Based Rehabilitation programme in Gazipur and Barisal.

BERDO has lobbied 85 befitting jobs for skilled visually impaired persons.

BERDO has provided computer education for at least 50 students since 2012.


14 LEGaLESE | Jennifer ashraf kashmi

Dear Reader:Immediately get, and I cannot stress this enough, your lawyers to draft you an employment contract. Do not, under any

circumstances, simply “browse” online for a “template somewhere” and then do the bare minimum of simply filling in the details as appropriate. And, as mentioned earlier, I simply cannot stress this enough.

The reason I say this is simple. An employment contract is a legally binding document between an employer and an employee. Not only does it clearly define responsibilities and obligations from both sides (ie the employer and the employee), it also specifies probable courses of action and possible avenues, depending on how certain circumstances/situations play out.

Think of a well drafted employment contract as an investment for your business – once you have one contract drafted whilst solely encompassing the objectives of your business within it, this could serve as a template for future contracts between new employees. However, if this is something you are aiming for, you must ensure that the first employment contract you get drafted by a lawyer includes all the provisions that you desire.

Depending on time and complexity, an employment contract could fall anywhere in the range of BDT15,000 to 50,000. Beware of people who

A

got a

problem?

Write to Jennifer at weekend@

dhakatribune.com

claim that they would be able to prepare an employment contract for you at a ridiculously low price. More often than not they are simply re-utilising a ready-made template and handing you the “finished” product after simply filling in your details in the specified fields. There is hardly any difference between this shoddy example of workmanship and a sample contract you could have easily picked from the internet or elsewhere.

Employment contracts can subject you to a lot of liability as a business owner. The way the contract is worded can affect the way you pay taxes, the way the employee is paid, the benefits that you may have to offer, your insurance (if any), etc. It can also affect your worker’s compensation and unemployment compensation payments. Can you find it somewhere online? Probably yes. You most certainly should not.

Will it hold up in any of the dozens of disputes that might arise? No one knows. Would you have recourse against the place you downloaded the form from in the event you lose your business in a lawsuit? Probably not. It is better to do this right the first time than risk losing your business once it is more successful and you have more to lose. Also if these are not actual employees and are subcontractors make sure the contract is very clear.

There are too many individualised considerations that may not be and probably are not covered by a simple template. The drafter of the

template probably hasn’t accounted for every situation that may affect your business. For example, what if your artists and designers are actually considered independent contractors and your contract does not have a work-for-hire provision? Your company may not even own the work those workers create and could be subject to thousands of dollars in copyright infringement liability. Also, do you want your employees to be at-will or subject to a contract of a specific term of employment?

Food for thought, my dear reader. Food for thought indeed.

QI am a business owner and have just hired a couple of artists and designers, and I may need an employment contract in place to clearly define

responsibilities and obligations from both sides and also because my new employees have been asking for one. I recently started a company and we’re very close to launching, but we’re also very close to the end of our budget. Do I need to have my lawyer draw up the contract, or is there a template somewhere I can tweak for my purposes, or fill in specific fields? Is there somewhere I can go to get the contract made at a lower price? How much will an employment contract cost me?

Cartoon: Priyo/Dhaka Tribune

Jennifer ashraf Kashmi is a barrister and solicitor of England and Wales. She is currently Senior Partner at Legacy Legal Corporate.

The weight of employment contracts


15bihari mechanics | FEaTuRE

At 8 am, seven-year-old Ghulab shows up in a striped blue tank top, dusting the cement floors of

debris. In a few hours, motorcycles in various states of disrepair will line up here, waiting for service.

From 9am to 11pm, his 15-year-old brother Malik will attend to the engines and bodies, donning no safety goggles or other protective gear while his hands clutch polychromatic wires shaking with electric yellow sparks.

Malik and Ghulab live in the Geneva Camp erected for stateless Biharis in 1971 by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The Biharis are an Urdu-speaking minority numbering up to 300,000, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Today, many still live in close quarters in one of the 68 densely-populated camps with poor health, sanitation, electricity, and educational facilities.

Twenty years ago, Malik’s father went to Pakistan, a dream cherished

by the early Biharis. Today, however, Malik has no desire to visit. Although he speaks Urdu at home with his family, on the streets of Dhaka, his Bangla vowels are virtually indistinguishable from a Bangali’s.

This ability to effortlessly code-switch in a different milieu is a feature of young Biharis, the majority of whom will never leave Bangladesh.

Last year, Malik’s parents spoke with a Bihari mechanic shop owner to employ their two youngest sons. The eldest two are married barbers. “I didn’t want to be a barber,” Malik admits.

Informal LabourWhether he works as a barber or a mechanic, Malik joined most Bihari young men employed in the informal sector of Bangladesh’s economy.

Historically, Biharis have not been able to vote until 2007, when the Dhaka High Court ruled that Biharis constituted Bangladeshi citizens, eligible to vote and receive identity cards.

Lacking identity cards, most Biharis were not able to rent properties outside of the camps or participate in Bangladesh’s formal economy.

As part of the UN's Let's Fight Racism campaign, Bihari men like Khalid Hussain spoke out about the perceived discrimination in the labour market.

"Due to the undefined legal status, wider discrimination in the job market remains a prime concern," he told the UN.

"The vast majority of Biharis are pushed into the informal sector, working as rickshaw-pullers, drivers, butchers, barbers, mechanics and craft workers."

Child LabourGiven the labour market challenges, Bihari parents groom children to take up a trade from an early age, often choosing work over school. Both Ghulab and Malik admit they have never seen the inside of a classroom.

In 2002, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics recorded at least 3.2 million

child labourers aged 5-17 in the workforce. The International Labour Organisation categorises Bihari childeren as "an especially vulnerable group of children in Bangladesh."

In 2006, the new Labour Law of Bangladesh set the legal age for work at 14, but Bihari children, like other children from under-resourced communities, continue to appear in large numbers in the informal workforce.

Although the government implemented a National Child Labour Elimination Policy in 2010, UNICEF Bangladesh reports that the informal sector employs 93% of child labourers, one third of whom face occupational hazards.

However, the apprenticeship model is entrenched in the mechanic industry, where young, unlettered children are brought to shops – often by their own parents – to learn a trade they will pass on to their own children.

The salary increases with each year and with more experience, but children are expected to work for free until they earn the requisite skills. Malik has been working in a Town Hall mechanic shop for a year, where he was initially accruing just Tk50-100 a day.

Nowadays, Malik earns Tk200 daily, while his younger brother Ghulab earns none. Ghulab hands scissors to his brother, deferentially watching Malik’s motions with fraternal awe, while Malik configures wires to jump-start a motorcycle engine.

In a few years, Ghulab will perform the same tasks, and Malik hopes he will own the mechanic shop that will employ his younger brother.

For now, it’s no easy job toiling away as a young labourer. On a good day, when Malik earns a handsome tip, his Bihari boss will find a way to collect the tip on his behalf: “A tip? Go buy a round of tea for everyone,” the boss will say, “you’ve earned it.” n

NO COUNTRY FOR YOUNG MENPrompted by poverty, young Bihari mechanics skip school to learn a trade in the informal sector

Sabrina Toppa

Photos: Sabrina Toppa


Well, you need to lay down the law, honey. While I sympathise with the fact that he may just be over-worked and exhausted, I also know that staying at home with a young child is

no easy task and can make sitting at a desk all day seem like a walk in the park.

If he’s stopped showing an interest in you and the family, you may have to consider the fact that his interest is diverted to other areas. Have you noticed any other signs? What is his reason for coming home past midnight on a regular basis? What exactly does this man do? You need to grill him good and proper and look for any holes in his story. If anything

sounds remotely suspicious, you need to follow up on it. Check his pockets when he’s in the shower, look at his cell phone logs while he’s asleep, and don’t think you’re above asking around to get some much-needed answers from friends, family, chauffeurs and peons.

Investigate the possible reasons why your man has checked out of the relationship. Maybe he neglected to read the memo that states he’s in this for the long run, that marriage is a lifetime commitment and no job or floozy will take away from what is rightfully yours. Of course, it may be entirely possible that he’s simply busting his butt to provide a better life for you and your child, but it’s so much more fun to suspect the worst, isn’t it? .

Dina sobhan is a freelance writer, and cautions readers not to take her ‘advice’ here too seriously!

16 TOuGh LOvE | dina sobhan

My husband and I have been married for six years. We have a 3-year-old child. But since last year, my husband has shown zero

interested in family issues. He leaves for work and comes home past midnight and goes to bed. I am very sad that he feels like he’s doing his bit by just bringing in income. I have tried talking to him but I find his lack of interest very hurtful. What do I do now?

A

got a problem?

Write to Dina at weekend@dhakatribune.

com

Bikes and babies: zero interest

QCartoon: Rio Shuvo/Dhaka Tribune

I study in NSU and love motorbikes. Since the beginning of this year I have been pestering my father, who loves

me dearly, to buy me a motorbike. He, however, thinks that I am not ready for it yet and tells me to wait. It’s not like my grades are bad, I don’t understand why he is so stubborn. What should I do to get this across to him – that I am a grown up now and need a motorbike?

Q

First of all, you are not a grown up. Simply using that phrase to describe yourself indicates that you are anything but. Moreover, grown ups don’t “pester” their

father to buy them things, because they usually have jobs and can buy things for themselves.

Now, having cleared that up, you need to understand that nobody “needs” a motorbike. It is entirely possible that you have a death wish and would like to own a motorbike to speed up the process, but you can understand why your father might not want to be party to that process. And having good grades or a lack thereof will probably not sway him in his decision to help you shuffle off this mortal coil any quicker.

I suggest you be a good boy and listen to your father. Once you finish your education, you can get a nice, lucrative job and buy yourself a motorbike. By then, you will be a proper grown up and your father will probably have come to terms with your death wish. If you’re really fortunate, you’ll have met a woman by then to take over your father’s role in ensuring that you continue to exist.

A


17rabindranaTh Tagore | POST-RIPOSTE

Jana Gana Mana and Amar Sonar Bangla, two national anthems, penned by the same person whose life and work seems to be relevant more than ever in today’s world of fragmented nationalist ideologies. Two avid lovers of Tagore – divided by the Indo-Bangladesh border and united by the same language – talk about the influence of Rabindranath Tagore in their lives and how people around them portray this figure.

Tausif Sanzum

My Tagore / Your Tagore

A story of appropriationParjanya Sen, KolkataI think Kolkata and Dhaka, rather let’s say Bangladesh and West Bengal, have had different ways of memorialising Tagore. It would be completely acrimonious if we say one has a greater claim than the other. Each nation has followed a different path to immortalise Tagore.

For instance, Tagore’s work played a crucial role in Bangladesh during the 1971 Independence movement with Pakistan wanting to overlook Tagore’s lineage. On the other hand Kolkata has a different story to tell. During the nationalist movement of India, there was a certain side-lining of Tagore because during his later years, the man was quite a staunch critic of Nationalism and that did not go down too well with the Nationalists or the Swadeshis . If you look into Tagore’s novels like Gora, Ghore Baire and his essays, they critique nationalism very strongly, something that the Nationalist leaders were not fond of.

Also if we look through the pages of history, initially a lot of Tagore’s songs would be sung by people in the red light areas. But in the later years, there was a gentrification or “bhadrolokification” of Tagore’s songs particularly in the last 50-60 years. In the process, Tagore has been completely re-appropriated in Kolkata.

Its questionable as to how many Bengalis in Kolkata actually bother to engage with Tagore’s complex philosophy, his critique of nationalism, family and bourgeoisie values. Instead, we simply brand Tagore to be a bourgeoisie hero – a bourgeoisie romantic appropriation. He has become this icon of high

philosophy through his huge literary body of work – his poems, songs, plays, short stories, novels, essays, autobiography, etc.

Later on I was introduced to his more informal works such as the letters he wrote to his friends, family and fans, his speeches and absolutely stunning humours. At this point, I was overcoming my awe of his aura and started personalising Rabindranath. I started giving him a face by shaping and de-shaping his ideologies, experimenting with his verses and twisting his philosophy into my life and work. Both of his symbolic plays ‘Raja’ and ‘Raktakarabi’ left a deep impact on my mind that majorly inspired many of my works later on.

From my personal experience, I feel that people here, never tend to see Tagore with an open imagination. They avoid giving their own interpretation to his work. They try to follow the same age old idea of interpreting the work of this genius. If I try to project my imagination of Rabindranath, they impose their strict notions of him upon me. A phenomenon that led me to label them as “Rabindra moulobadi” or Rabindra extremist. I think Rabindranath himself would be offended if he had the misfortune to meet them.

On the other hand, through my encounters with people from West Bengal and Tripura, I could see that there the practice of promoting Randindranath Tagore through day to day life is omnipresent. They read Rabindranath, practice Rabindranath, and live Rabindranath! It’s amusing to see A how Rabindranath becomes Rabi to them, like just another family member whom you can love, hate, get obsessed with, critique or just ignore after a point. You don’t need to be a Rabindranath analyst there to talk about Rabi, people just express Rabi in whatever way they prefer; through films, novels, songs or even simple addas.

Probably that’s how a poet should be kept alive, probably that’s how he’s still young for me even after more than 150 years of his death. .

culture rather than a critic of any of it which is deeply embedded in his philosophy.

Thus, the way we academics have appropriated Tagore is very different from the way the Bengali middle class in Kolkata see him.

It almost seems like the new Government is trying to force feed Tagore to the middle class with Randindra Sangeet being played even at traffic signals.

As far as my personal life is concerned, his novels, essays, critiques of bourgeoisie high values, nationalism, relationships, remain very relevant in my own notions of understanding gender, sexuality etc.

Rabindranath walked into my life through three phases. First, during my school years when I had to memorise his difficult verses from his paradoxical poems without even knowing what they exactly meant. Then when I was in my teenage years, I got mesmerised with Tagore through his enigmatic lyrics and enchanting music. The final phase which was the most intense was rediscovering him through his life and philosophy. I started reading Upanishad to discover the connectivity between Rabindranath and mysticism. This was the first time I was elaborately exposed to his massive work. I started to explore his

A tale of extremismM Rasel Ahmed, Dhaka


18 STay IN

S u d o k uuse the numbers 1-9 to complete each of the 3x3 square grids such that each horizontal and vertical line also contains all of the digits from 1-9

Last week’s sudoku solutions

Mini cryptics

aCrOss1 Proposals of iron rights empty (6)6 Squeal head off and move around even (5)7 Inflexible American soldier in ditch (5)8 Thin liquid consumed in sardonic way (6)DOwN2 Fighter destroyed cargo (7)3 Country road turns after miscue (7)4 Poses models rarely (6)5 Man’s first projectile a vegetable (6)

Last

wee

k’s

solu

tion

s

aCrOss1 Discover fat free contains raisin first (5)5 One card (3) 6 Act unconcerned about quiet carpet (5)8 Painful sound after final gift (5)10 It writes notes in blue initially (3)11 Turn left in mix together (5)DOwN1 Takes heed of tangled tinsels (7)2 The appearance of ether (3)3 Badger horse (3)4 Revitalised Frenchman married (7)7 Uruguay’s first Royal Navy vessel (3)8 Go out with Emma’s big brother initially (3)9 Deer act before end of June (3)

CluesPopular music releases in 2014We hand picked some of the year’s popular music releases across various genres from the country and internationallyAmarey ChhuiyachhileNoted singer Fahmida Nabi’s maiden Nazrul Sangeet album, “Amarey Chhuiyachhile,” was unveiled on July 17. Music director, Partha Mazumder, blended piano and other western instruments with Fahmida’s melody and the outcome was soothing and harmonious. Fahmida’s solo album of modern songs, titled “Tumi Ovimane,” was released under the Laser Vision banner.

Uddesho Nei

Celebrated artiste Tahsan’s sixth solo album is out. The much awaited album is tuned by Tahsan himself. Sajid Sarkar and Arup are the music directors of the album which includes 11 new tracks and is released under the banner of G-Series.

BhaabBaul Shafi Mondol’s second solo album released on July 18. Music

is composed by Seth Panduranga Blumberg under the banner of World Future Orchestra. The album is comprised of a total of ten Lalon songs. The Endless River

Pink Floyd’s newest record has topped charts in a multitude of countries – France, Denmark, Ireland, Italy and Israel. It’s particularly illuminating that a song called “It’s what we do” displays all the ruminative noodling of Pink Floyd’s extended jams without the bookends of, well, an actual song. This feels palpably different from classics like “Dogs”, which contextualised their lengthy mid-sections with song-oriented support beams, constructing, in the process, grand pieces of musical architecture.

Bulletproof PiccassoTrain has come back with a new album, which was released in

October, 2014. Bulletproof Picasso is definitely a Train album. The band’s fans will love it. Everyone else will sing along to the singles when they come on the radio.

Pale CommunionOpeth’s latest album, was released worldwide on August 26. A common denominator between Pale Communion and Opeth essentials like Blackwater Park is Steven Wilson, who returns here as the record’s mixer. Wilson was a big part of the reason why Heritage sounds the way it does; he and Åkerfeldt, self-described “best buddies”, wrote Storm Corrosion, their off-kilter collaboration LP, at the same time as Heritage (and Wilson’s Grace for Drowning), and the sonic continuity between the three is obvious. Blackwater Park hugely benefited from Wilson’s songwriting contributions, but here he wisely exercises control only over the mixing board, leaving Åkerfeldt and his merry band of prodigious musicians to crank out some of the most impressive tunes of their career. n

Solved it? Email answers to [email protected] and win one free month of the Dhaka Tribune.


GO OuT 19

The festival is arranged by Bangladesh Short Film Forum and the event will screen over 200 films by eminent and promising film makers from all over the world.

It includes two main competitive categories – International Competition and Tarek Shahriar Independent Short Films competition. The films will be screened over five sections of the event.

Three winners from each competitive category will receive $1,000 as honorary money and a crest. Like every year, a life time achievement award will be presented to a film personality for his/her contribution to Bangladesh film industry.

Other films will also be screened under Creative Documentaries, Independent Films and Independent Cinema category.

A total of ten cinemas from seven

countries of the Caribbean Islands will be screened specially in this festival. In addition, a special workshop titled “Bangladesh Cinema Talent Campus” will be held for young film makers.

The films will also be screened at the Independent University Campus, Jahir Raihan Auditorium, Chhayanaut Auditorium and Russian Embassy Auditorium.

Special ProgrammeThe objective of this programme is to introduce prominent film makers from Bangladesh and abroad to new, young and aspiring film makers. This exposure will allow sharing of knowledge and experiences, exploring new ideas, exchanging opinions and building networks. It will run for 5 days, from December 6 to 10. The programme is a creative summit that will consist of interactive lectures, discussions, seminars and workshops.

The Butterfly Fair has been organised to create environmental awareness since 2010 to protect butterflies and its habitat in Bangladesh.

The event will include an awards-giving ceremony to recipients including teachers, scientists and researchers who have been

contributing to zoological researches.The Butterfly Young Enthusiast

Award will be presented to the candidate who has been doing field research. A book on butterflies of Bangladesh will also be unveiled during the event.

Film | 13th International Short & Independent Film Festival (ISIFF) Dhaka 2014

Environment | Butterfly Fair

WHen 4pm, Dec 4-11 WHere Central Public Library National Museum, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy

WHen Dec 9WHere Jahir Raihan Auditorium, Jahangirnagar University, Savar

Weekly PlannerDeC 5

PaINtINg | emOtION OF lIFe wheN 3-8pm where Drik Gallery, Road 15A, Dhanmondi

what Parvoti Multimedia and Platinum Limited presents a solo art exhibition by Md Nurul Haque. The exhibition is open for all.

PhOtOgraPhy | JahaNgIrNagar uNIversIty, savar - DCP weeKeND PhOtO walK, DhaKawheN 7:30-11amwhere Jahangirnagar University

what This is the first ever cross-country “weekend photo walk” in Dhaka, which will continue every Friday. Prior registration is required for participation.

DeC 6

eDuCatION | traININg ON sOCIal BusINess

DevelOPmeNt wheN 10am-5pmwhere EMK Center, Midas Center, House 5, Road 27, Dhanmondi

what The training is an initiative of the Social Business Youth Network. It is aimed to provide participants with the tools to learn about social business along with designing and testing potential social business models. Certificates will be provided after completion of the programme.

FIlm | sCreeNINg OF stOrm IN the aFterNOONwheN 7-9pmwhere EMK Center, Midas Center, House 5, Road 27, Dhanmondi

what Storm in the Afternoon, directed by Robin Podder, written by Siraj Choudhury (screenplay), Siraj Choudhury (story) and starring David Alan Graf, Naila Azad and Christine Bergeron.

Seats are limited. Please

register at http://bit.ly/Stormintheafternoon

DeC 7-9

FIlm | swIss FIlm FestIval 2014wheN 6-8pmwhere Goethe Institut, House 10, Road 9, Dhanmondi

what The Embassy of Switzerland in Bangladesh, in cooperation with the Goethe Institut Dhaka, is organising a Swiss Film Festival. The shows are free and open for all. screening schedule:Dec 7Die Schwarzen Brüder (The Black Brothers) by Xavier Koller Dec 8

More than Honey by Markus Imhoof Dec 9Der Verdingbub (The Foster Boy) by Markus Imboden

DeC 8

eDuCatION | COuNsellINg aND INFOrmatION sessION ON aDmIssION & sChOlarshIPs at BaNgOr uNIversIty, uKwheN 4-6pmwhere MIM Study Abroad, L 361, Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotelwhat Aled Griffiths, Deputy Head of the Law School, Osian Rees, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Li Tang, Student Advisor from Bangor University will be present as the discussants at the event.

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This memorial lecture is named after the late Bangladeshi film maker Alamgir Kabir, who was the chairman of the First International Short Film Festival committee in 1988. Renowned cinema personalities

have been invited to deliver lectures, which will focus on art, medium and trends of cinema around the world. Aruna Basudev (prominent Indian film buff) will be the key speaker at the Lecture.

Alamgir Kabir Memorial LectureWHen 9am-4:30pm, Dec 5 WHere Poet Sufia Kamal Auditorium, National Museum

A pioneer of new cinema in India, Shyam Benegal has been considered as one of the leading film-makers of the country ever since the release of his first feature film “Ankur.” The core subjects of his films vary but are

mainly centred around contemporary Indian experiences. Problems of development and social change appear on many levels as a continuing thread in practically all his films.

Tribute to Shyam BenegalWHen Dec 7WHere Music & Dance Auditorium, Shilpakola Academy

20 CONvERSaTION | bangladesh asTronomical associaTion

No member of any other organisation is as “moonstruck” as the members of Bangladesh

Astronomical Association (BAA). Their days are spent peering into the viewfinder of telescopes – seeking celestial objects and researching. The membership in BAA is indeed something that demands a bit of eccentricity and of course an extra bit of “passion.”

“And dedication,” said Mash-hu-rul Amin Milan, founder member of the association and the editor of the magazine, Mahakash Barta. “None of the members of the association are getting paid to do what they do, rather they do it on a voluntary basis, so without strong dedication this is not possible.”

Milan said that there are over a thousand members in their organisation but a little less than a hundred members are regularly active in organising events and observations on behalf of the organisation.

What the association does “It’s simple, BAA wants to promote and popularise astronomy among people in Bangladesh,” said Milan. “Before BAA was founded in 1988, people in the country didn’t have a clear idea about astronomy and thought astronomy and astrology were the same things,” he said.

He spoke of 1981, during the time of the total eclipse, and people had misconceptions and superstitious ideas about it.

“I used to live in Kalabagan then and

found that most people closed their doors and windows during that eclipse as they were told to do so,” he said.

However, BAA came into existence, when the total eclipse occurred again in Bangladesh in 1996, there was a different picture.

“People were eager to observe the eclipse as it was a rare event. If you read newspapers from back then you will find lots of articles saying that school children made “glasses” from x-ray plates to observe the eclipse.”

“That’s what the BAA wants to do – create scientific awareness and interest among the people by staving off all superstition and misconceptions. And so it arranges workshops like the Bangladesh Astro-olympiad, seminars on astronomy and science quiz competitions. It also arranges TV and radio programmes, and science festivals for children – Sunfest and Spacefest,” said Milan.

BAA arranges astronomical workshops to increase exercise of astronomical knowledge. In 1992 they arranged the first workshop and since then they have organised 15 workshops overall, where they feature film shows and lectures on astronomical subjects.

BAA organised Spacefest to develop space science in Bangladesh and raise awareness. Till date, they have organised three Spacefest events. The activities of the association are funded by donations from its members and from revenue earned from their magazine.

“Although the fund that we receive is very modest, yet we continue

arranging several events as we are driven by passion,” says Milan.

History of the BAA The Association started its journey in 1988. After attending a series of astronomy lectures in the Science Museum, Milan and some of his friends became interested to buy a telescope.

“As telescopes were not really available in the market then and were rather expensive, I decided to form a club and raise funds to collect a telescope,” he said.

“Preparation for buying a telescope had turned into a wider dream of spreading interest and knowledge about astronomy among the general public,” he said. BAA's first telescope was donated by Sajeda Amin and Syad Samiul Islam.

Milan said that the first step towards their goal was the publication of the magazine – Mohakash Barta.

Following the publication of the magazine, BAA organised programmes to spread awareness and interest about the association and their work.

Initially, these events were limited to a known circle of people, but gradually the turnout increased and their goal of reaching out to the general public was fulfilled. The magazine was started in broadsheet format but as name of the organisation got around, they soon had enough funds to start printing it as a full-fledged magazine.

The association managed to print a book by the late professor Md Abdul Jabbar called "Tara-Porichiti." It is still considered the best book for amateur astronomers who are just beginning to take an interest about the night sky.

Future plan of the BAAMilan said that they now dream of a permanent “Space Centre” where everything they ever produced would be on permanent display alongside regular installations that include: the planetarium, observatory, exhibit hall, library and information centre, seminar room, mechanical workshops and a lab for children.

“For school going children, it would be a place for scientific exploration and a permanent source of intellectual stimulus,” said Milan.

“Our vision is ambitious. We don’t want to confine the organisation’s activities to astronomy observations and events only. We also want to do research and academic work on astronomy and for that we need huge funding and help of the government,” he said. n

The ‘Moonstruck’ society The Bangladesh Astronomical Association, since its inception in 1988, has come a long way in changing how we look at the stars

Faisal Mahmud

weekend 229

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