Celebrations

Victory and Celebrations

Muhammad Mehdi Hassan

Victory is perhaps the most valuable gift one can get in the short lifespan. People express their wisdom, bravery and ambition to achieve victory. People challenge his or her closest friends, fights wars and even shed blood for that little glimpse of victory. And sometimes victory gives birth to a new era, a new name or a new nation. A nation, which was born through the sacrifice of 3 million people and courageous fighting and the struggle of her brave daughters and sons, finds many reasons to celebrate her victory. Because of the extreme patriotism of the people of the country, our beloved Bangladesh achieved her victory on December 16, 1971. This day gets painted in green and red in the eyes of every Bangladeshi.

After going through a massive struggle and nine months of war, we got our much labored for victory. Since 1971, we are observing December 16 as our “Victory Day”, our Bijoy Dibosh. On this very day, Pakistani oppressors surrendered to the Joint Force of Freedom Fighters and India. The surrender signing was the birth of a nation which welcomed their war heroes with love, respect and gratitude. Many old photos show freedom fighters, sons of our soil, being saluted by the general people as the fighters were entering Dhaka on trucks or tanks. Many brought out procession with the slogan “Joy Bangla” on the streets of Dhaka (then Dacca) which was filled with blood and flesh of her inhabitants. After 40 years, Bangladeshis, especially the young generation, still show that enthusiasm of the processions. Young minds celebrate this day by paying proper tribute for our martyrs and things have changed with the development of our society. Victory day has added a delicious flavor in our thousand year old culture and has created a new traditional fashion among youths. Green and red are the dominant colors people are attired in for the day. Boys prefer designed panjabis or fatuas and on the other hand Girls take on sari and salwar kamiz. Students and other young people wear tee shirts with beautiful designs of our natural sceneries, flag and poems based on the liberation war, which adds to the entire mood of the day.

Different organizations and cultural bodies arrange different programs. Dhaka University (DU), which is regarded as the birth place of all important movements, gets jam-packed with young people. TSC, the meeting place for students of DU and other universities, gets busy after the early morning hours. To let the young generation know about the struggle and history of our liberation war, DU authority organizes a 15 day long Book fair on a field of the university. This book fair is called “Bijoy Dibosh Boi Mela”. Many bookworms gather here to find pieces of knowledge about their beloved motherland. Amit Kumar Bhowmik, A student of Physics in DU said, “Every year I attend this book fair and see lot of things which are known to all of us. As my home is a stone throw away from the book fair, I try to come here every day with my friends to look at books about our independence.” Asked if these books are helping our young people to know the true history of our liberation, he said that young children and teenagers can get some good information about the war if they explore the bookstores for about an hour. Besides this, many cultural organizations of DU arrange painting or photography exhibitions, dialogues or cultural programs. Colorful fairs named “Bijoy Dibosh Mela” are put up around different parts of our country and these fairs showcase the perfect essence of our culture. But in recent times, concerts are also taking part in the celebrations of Victory Day and while some may feel that the Victory day fairs are losing their galore, they are still enjoyed with much zest in rural or semi-urban areas.

December 16 is such a symbolic and significant day for us, and added to that the thoughts of the young generation will give it more meaning. A long and extensive initiative to sort and spread the true history of Bangladesh's independence is needed, because the outcome of this will be useful for our future generations.

(The writer is studying MBBS at Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital.)

DID YOU KNOW?

Jimi Hendrix

Jimi Hendrix was born as Johnny Allen Hendrix in Seattle, Washington, on November 27, 1942, the son of Al Hendrix and Lucille Jeter. His father, a gifted jazz dancer, who worked at a number of jobs, including landscape gardening bore much of the responsibility of raising the boy and his brother, Leon, as did their grandmother and various family friends. This was due to the unreliability of Lucille, who drank excessively and who would disappear for extended periods. Jimi Hendrix wanted a guitar early on. Before acquiring his first real instrument, he "played" guitar on a broom and on a one-stringed ukulele. At last, Al got his son a guitar, and the twelve-year-old Jimi began to teach himself to play. The guitar rarely left Jimi's side, even as he slept. By his mid-teens, Hendrix had formed a band called the Rocking Kings. He played behind his back, between his legs, and over his head as had many blues guitarists before him. Thus, he became a favourite to audiences, if not to all musicians. After dropping out of Garfield High School in Seattle, Hendrix joined the army at age seventeen to avoid a jail sentence for riding in a stolen car. He volunteered as a para-trooper (a person who jumps from planes using a parachute) and was soon jumping out of airplanes. Eventually, he sent for his guitar and continued playing whenever he could. He met another soldier, bass player Billy Cox, with whom he formed a band that entertained troops all over the region. After leaving the army, the two friends formed the King Kasuals and began playing regularly at a club in Nashville, Tennessee. Hendrix became known as the hottest guitarist in town!

Information Source: Internet