LIFE AS IT IS

Americans voted with zeal and fervour; they voted in-person and by mail, setting a record voter turnout, even amid a pandemic that is ravaging their nation. Joe Biden bagged more than 75 million popular votes, the highest so far in American political history. The 2020 US election saw so many firsts; America created history by electing its oldest president, and also its first female, Black and South Asian Vice President. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris represents a new face of the political power. On the 100th year of Women's Suffrage that is, American women gaining their constitutional right to vote, the country elected a woman as its next Vice President. When it comes to political leanings, Bangladeshi Americans have historically favoured the Democratic Party. This year was no different — they voted enthusiastically for their favourite candidate. We asked Bangladeshi Americans living in different parts of the country how they feel about this historic election. It seemed likely ...

The aroma of crispy lentil fritters, crunchy jilapi, flavoursome haleem and sweet-plump dates is missing in the air, so is the ambience of Ramadan. But life goes on; Bangladeshis living in different corners of the globe observe Ramadan in their own way, thousands of miles away from their roots.  The Daily Star link  June 20, 2017 While some manage to prepare spicy-savoury chickpeas, fried delicacies and fresh lemonade for iftar throughout the holy month, there are others who do not even find the time to eat a traditional iftar, except perhaps on the weekends.  Fasting in a foreign country is a different experience altogether. “We fast for nearly 17 hours here in Toronto. Being without food and water for 17 hours is not easy, but our bodies have adapted to the rituals here,” said Sabrin S, 36, a medical doctor and a graduate student who lives in Canada. “There have been many occasions when I missed my iftar because I was attending an evening class,” Sabrin furthe...

Do not confuse the title with Jamaica, the island country in the Caribbean. This Jamaica is a neighbourhood in Queens, the New York City borough, which often claims to be one of the most ethnically diverse places on earth.  Jamaica is a neighbourhood where you spot 'deshi' men and women speaking Bangla on the streets, women wearing shalwar kameez buying grocery from Bangladeshi-owned stores, and where Bangladeshi restaurants sell everything from shingara-samosa to  naan-paratha, halua, kebab, and biryani. Also available are traditional sweets, 'bhorta-bhaji' and an incredibly wide variety of spicy and aromatic fish and meat preparations that are bound to satisfy the taste buds of any Bengali.  I first explored Jamaica in 2013 on a New York City trip with my husband and then nine-month old daughter. As I strolled along Jamaica's Hillside Avenue, I turned my head to see anyone who spoke my mother tongue. It felt like I was at home except that in Dhaka you do not...

I joined an online forum a year ago. Let’s not get into the details of what that forum is about, but talk about what I earned from it. The most beautiful thing that the forum has perhaps given me is a few dozen Bengali-speaking friends hailing from both Bangladesh and West Bengal. Some of them are Bengali expatriates like me, living in countries like America, Canada and the U.K. Together we have a knitted a virtual circle of friends, which has the potential of lasting a lifetime. It’s a twist of fate that one of the friends I found on that forum lives only 15 mins away from my home! But when we first became virtual friends none of us knew that we lived so close to each other.  She is older than me and I call her didi or di. She is married with a 12-year-old son. First we talked over the phone and then we met each other for the first time at a concert in Philadelphia, PA, where Kolkata’s musical band, Chandrabindu, performed. She then invited me and my family to her place for l...