Spotlight

It's that time of the year again, when families get busy trying to balance out between cooking new recipes and shopping for loved ones. If you still have not heard your cousins, friends and the older members of your family talk about which malls to shop for clothes and accessories, designs to create and fighting with the 'dorjis' (tailors) to get those designs finished on time, then you probably reside inside a world of your own!

This is what constitutes the spirit of Eid and people from all walks of life, in this country, experience this spirit.

The Star Campus team went out onto the streets, found a bunch of young working people and spoke to them about their plans for the upcoming Eid celebrations. Turn the pages to know more about young vendors, drivers flower-sellers and so on.

FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE

Sumaiya Ahsan Bushra
Naziba Basher
Saad Adnan Khan
Salman Rob
Rakibul Hasan

Munni Akhter, Age 25, Office Assistant at a Private University.	Being a young married woman working with two children at home is no easy task. Munni Akhter who always has her hands full both at work and home elaborates how she will spend Eid at her home village in Chandpur. She plans to leave the city a few days before Eid since her holiday is very short, so, majority of her shopping will be done from the local village market. On Eid, her day will begin with cooking and keeping the house clean for the large number of village elders who will be visiting her in-laws during lunch. Her entire day will be taken up by her family, visiting neighbours and pampering in-laws with her special dish of shemai. At night, if opportunity shows, then she will be visiting her father's house. Although, Eid for them (her husband and her) requires a huge budget (given that they work in the city) and the family expects a lot from them, she believes that is where the joy of sharing comes from!
"I Just love the vegetable noodles that my mother cooks on the Eid day. My taste buds get stirred!” says Jharna. She is preparing for her HSC exam and is currently in second year at Lalmatia Mohila College. Alongside studying, she teaches Arabic and Bangla to the children in her locality as an employee of the Islamic Foundation. Jharna lives in a small room at the Bihari Camp in Lalmatia area with her mother and two brothers. Eid is as fascinating to her as any other girl of her age. She has already bought one dress from New Market and plans to buy another one after getting the bonus. She will buy one pair of sandals as well. However, from the little income she will contribute to the 'Eid er bazaar' for the family as well. Jharna describes, “I'll visit my relatives on Eid day. On the second day I have plans with my friends. We might get together at someone's house and spend quality time with adda and delicacies.”	Jannatul Fardos Jharna Age 19, Tutor at a local centre of Islamic Foundation.
Khudaja Akhtar Lota Age 28, Security Guard for BRAC.	Lota has been a security guard for almost five years. “I felt a little awkward with the uniform when I just joined the job but I, eventually, grew into it,” says Lota. Lota lives in Dhaka with her family, husband and child. This Eid, she will be spending time in Dhaka with her family. “I have plans to roam around the city with my husband and child. We do not go to our village too often because nobody lives there anymore. So, we always spend Eid right here,” says Lota. Lota has already started shopping for her family and herself. She wanted to take her child to the Chiriakhana (local zoo) but has changed her plans and will now probably go to Nuhashpolli.
Mohon is a helper and caretaker of a building in Dhanmondi, Road 13/A. He is from Lokkhipur, Noakhali and has been working in the building for quite a while. Before joining here, he had a little store on Road 32. “My job is to help the people in the building with their shopping bags and help out with anything else that they may need,” says Mohon. Like every other year he will be spending this Eid right here in this building with the other guards, caretakers and the families. “I will go to my hometown, Lokkhipur, a couple of days after Eid for around a week and spend time with my family,” says Mohon. He has already started his Eid shopping and has targeted New Market this year for his special Eid attire.	Muktar Hossain Mohon Age 24, Caretaker.
Jhuma Rani Devi Age 23, Driver.	Jhuma has worked at the Brac Inn Center for four and a half years. Initially, as she started her job, she was a little scared, given that driving in the streets of Dhaka is considered a 'male-centric' job. She however affirms that many women are working in this field nowadays in local and international development organisations. She has full family support. She lives alone in Dhaka, and chooses not to go to her village during the holidays because of the hassle of traffic and getting tickets. However, when she's in her village she spends the whole day with her friends and families. This year, on Eid, Jhuma wants to relax a bit at home, and spend the day with those friends who will stay back in the city for Eid.
With so many orders from his customers to make new outfits, Mohammed Hassan is going through a busy schedule this Ramadan. As the clattering sound from his sewing machine fills the air from dawn to dusk, Hassan desperately waits for the chand raat (the night before Eid-ul-Fitr) as it is when he would set off for his village in Comilla and would get to meet his family. He works at the Nandini Tailors, Motaleb Plaza, Hatirpul. The Eid celebrations for Hassan consist of buying new clothes for his parents and younger brother and hanging out with friends after the Eid prayer.	Mohammed Hassan Age 17, Tailor.
Lipa Harido, Age 19, Worker at a local women's saloon.	Eid is a festival for everyone, no matter what caste or class one belongs to it is an event which is celebrated by all. Lipa, who works in a women's local parlor expresses how she would like to spend her Eid despite the fact that she belongs to another religion. Coming from a distant village in Mymensingh, she barely has any relatives in the city. Lipa's ideal Eid day consists of spending time with the rest of the parlour girls as the owner of the parlour gives them half the day off on the day of Eid. Often, she goes out to Ramna Park, roams around the empty streets of Dhaka city as a care free soul with her fellow workers. After returning home if she does not have an eager customer to attend then she watches the series of bangla dramas that are aired on television.
Ali Islam is a wooden-stick-seller in the busy Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue of the Capital. Ali will be spending this Eid in his village in Mymensingh. With his daily earning of 200-300 Takas per day, he says it's hard to manage money for Eid clothes and hence 'celebrate'. However, he enjoys his Eid in his own way with his family and friends back in the village. “Eid prayer is the most enjoyable part to me,” said Ali. “Offering prayer in such big congregation has a unique feeling which only Eid can offer us!” added a jolly Ali.	Ali Islam Age 20, Wooden-stick-seller, Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue.
Shohan Shumi Age 21, Home Nursing.	Shohan Shumi is a personal nurse who does part time nursing for patients at home. Shumi is currently working and studying at the same time at Monu Miah College in the commerce department. "Living in Malibag and going all the way to places like Uttara in the month of Ramadan is pretty difficult for me, but the thought of someone who might need me always keeps me going," says Shumi. Talking about Eid planning she mentions, "My family and I don't have many plans for this Eid other then just buying few new clothes for my nieces. We are trying to save up money for a house that we are building back in my home town, Comilla." Since the capital is already over crowded, Shumi's family plans to move to Comilla for good and she wants to finish her studies as fast as possible.
Sagor is one of the caretakers at Gulshan Jaame Mosque located in South Gulshan Avenue. He has been working for the past eight years. He said he was 6 years old when he came to Dhaka and started to attend Madrasah. “I live with my parents in Badda and prefer to spend the Eid with them,” said Sagor. “After attending Eid prayer I have to clean the mosque and then I am done,” added Sagor. He spends the rest of the day with his family.	Md Abdur Rahman Sagor Age 21, Caretaker of Gulshan Jaame Mosque.
Abdullah Al Mamun Age 25, Auto-rickshaw puller.	Mamun drives an auto-rickshaw in the Mirpur area. He worked as a mechanic before, but now he prefers his current job, because it's convenient and also financially satisfying. He also worked with Sajid Iqbal, a student of North South University, to install 'botol-bati' in the Muslim camp. He smiles and says that people should be more aware of environmentally friendly technology. Earlier he used to go to his village for Eid, but now he has moved his family to Dhaka. This coming Eid, he is looking forward to spending the whole day of Eid with his family and friends.
Hanufa Akhter is a young girl who sells flowers at the city's Sonargaon intersection. She will be spending her Eid in this metro city of Dhaka along with her four siblings. “I earn 50-100 Takas a day, and with that you don't expect one to 'celebrate' Eid,” said Hanufa. However, she tries her best to make the most out of it. “Sometimes the well-off people give us new clothes and therefore we have something to celebrate. Other than that, it's just another day to hang around with friends and family,” added a smiling Hanufa.	Hanufa Akhter Age 16, Flower seller at Sonargaon Intersection, Kawran Bazaar.
Md. Hossain Nayan Age 20, Street-Book-Seller, Kawran Bazaar.	We often see book-sellers roaming around the busy streets of the city carrying a load of books in their hands. Nayan, the book seller, was spotted in the city's Kawran Bazaar area. He will be celebrating his Eid in his hometown Comilla. He is hopeful of having a lot of fun with his friends and siblings in the village. “I have 3 brothers and 2 sisters and all of them stay in the village, so I don't get to spend much time with them,” said Nayan. He will spend his Eid roaming around with his friends and family and visiting relatives.