Talking to myself

Finally we met the PM of Bangladesh. After great expectation it took the shape. Last three days was just like a festival. The President Hotel was always full of Bangladeshis, mainly from Awami League, Chatra League and Bangbandhu Porishad, but there were a few people like us who too came and stayed there to meet old friends either coming from Bangladesh or living in Moscow but hardly can be seen due to business.  So in some sense it was a meeting place. As for me the President Hotel (previously known as Hotel October) is a nostalgic place. It is the place where most of the CPB first ranked leaders stayed during the Soviet Union. We used to go there to meet them, learn the latest news of Bangladesh Politics, drink coffee at the Bar Aurora or buy chocolates from there, especially during the last years of Soviet Union when shops were almost empty. It is the place where Comrade Farhad died. After the fall of the USSR every time when I moved near this Hotel, it attracted m...

Today India and the whole world is celebrating 150 years birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.  As far as I remember, in our family, I think in most Indian families, he is regarded as a disciple of Ram Krisna Parama Hongsha. He was regarded as a preacher of Hindu Faith and especially famous for his speech in Chicago. If Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Iswar Chandra Bidya Sagar and many others known as social reformer, Vivekananda did not enjoy that title. I am talking about only my knowledge, what I could know living in a Bangladeshi village. When I came to Dubna in 1994, I found that his name is well known here as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t read much about him or his writings. Only recently downloaded some volume of his work and planning to read it soon. But two things I remember forever. I read them in our school text books Where are you looking for God when He is everywhere? Those, who loves His creation serves Him. (Bohurupe shomukhe chari kotha khujicho Iswar? Jee...

It was 1974. I was a pupil of class V of Tara Primary School. Our school was quite small, so we studied in two shifts, class I and II from 10 to 12 and other three classes from 12.30 to 16.30 (most probably). We didn’t have any play ground, so we usually spend our leisure in the nearby market, sitting on the trunk of a banyan tree (to be perfect, Koroi gach) with ice creams, biscuits etc. That time the Kaliganga Bridge was under construction. A lot of people from our village worked there with the Americans. It was a good chance to fill the low ground in front of the school and convert it into a normal play ground. So we few boys of class five (Montu, Ranjit and myself, 2nd, 3rd and 1st boy of the class, respectively) were asked to collect signatures from the villagers and hand over a petition on their behalf to the Vanel Company (who constructed the bridge) for technical help. WE did it in a few days and one morning three or four dozers came and in no time converted the l...

It was in 1983. I had already got admission in BUET. After the killing of a few students by Ershad junta the universities went on indefinite vacation. That time I was active khelaghar movement. One day when I went to Dhaka with Arzu Bhai (Comrade Azharul Islam Arzu from Manikgonj). My destination was BUET, but he asked me to go to the CPB office where for the first time I met Moni Da and Farhad Bhai. After that many time I went there, exchanged words with Nurul Islam Nahid Bhai, Lenin Bhai, Selim Bhai< Kali Da, Sjekhar Da, Ajoy Da and many others, but never with Moni Da.  He was quite old that time. I always saw him sitting on a chair.    It was sometimes in mid-August, 1983. Finally our session in BUET began. Those days, if stayed back in Dhaka, I usually spent the afternoon at the party office. One day, when I went there, some public function took place. I was standing in front of the stair, just in front of the room where Moni Da sat. There was a stag...

It was an October day of 1987. As usual after the class I went to see one of my friends. Those days I liked to visit friends just after doing my home task in the library. I mostly go to Plekhanov to see Ruma and Shusmi (before I went to MSU hostel, where Ruma and Shaon did their preparatory course). Second choice was to visit first medical to see Dipu. Other places were MEI where stayed Nabin, Arif and Sattar and MAMI, where lived Eqbal. Though I also spend a lot of time in other PFU hostels, mainly 7 th block (Ahsan, Anowar and Bimal) and 10 th block (Jalal and many senior students). So this day I decide to visit Eqbal. In the summer I visited Bangladesh after 4 years. Spend a few very good and active weeks in Bangladesh. Those days CPB was at its zenith. Its mass organizations like Khetmojur Somiti, Udichee, Students Union, Khelaghar were at their pick. I remember during that short visit almost every day I visited different meetings with Azhar Bhai. Farhad Bhai was then...

Last few days I was really busy writing a review paper on dark energy. But at the same time keep an eye in FB, as there were many posts both interesting and boring on 15 August: two completely different aspects – National mourning day and Birthday of Khaleda Zea. The last part is completely boring, as I have no business about it. I even not interest in her birthday, let alone whether it is on 15 th August or some other day. But many people, including some friends wrote about it, which naturally popped up in my FB page. Felt disgusted. I am sure Mrs. Zia or her allies didn’t even look at those posting but got some free PR. Remember – negative PR also PR, it reminds people about their existence. The first part was to pay tribute to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.  There were many good posts, many emotional, but a few really objective. Our subcontinent has got three outstanding figures (though in fact there are much more) to be named as father of the nation. Mahatma G...

April 26 is a remarkable day in the history of Bangladesh, if not for the whole nation, at least for its progressive part. The Language movement of 1952 ultimately gave birth to our beloved Bangladesh, but one of the earliest product of that movement was the appearance of Bangladesh Student Union (I believe, that time it was not known as BSU), a non-communal, anti-imperialistic and progressive student organization in the political landscape of East Pakistan. In pre-liberation period as well as post-liberation Bangladesh BSU has played a key role in student politics and given the fact that the BSU activists from a large part of leadership of whole spectrum of Bangladeshi politics, the influence of BSU much deeper rooted than one can imagine. This year BSU is going to celebrate its 60 years Jubilee.  In Russia, where I am living for last 30 years, 60 year is a prominent day for an individual. Men become pensioner. In this day there usually take place celebration. Collea...