Eid Thoughts

The movement of people during Eid is a long tradition. Take my childhood which was spent in Sylhet in the 1960's. My extended family was spread far and wide over the two halves of the country. Eid was the only time I could see cousins, uncles and aunts. There were, for example, my dashing and smart cousins who lived in erstwhile West Pakistan, or my affectionate aunt from Monipuri Para, Dhaka.  I recall waiting at the train station with great anticipation for their arrival and spending magical days showing off my 'territory' while catching up on the latest from the world out there.

Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. Today, Dhaka attracts numerous people from all over Bangladesh who come here to make a living. Some stay here alone; others raise a family. Most of them yearn for their home village: the fields, the greenery, and family and friends they have left behind. For children growing up in Dhaka, the visit to 'desher bari' is also a chance to learn about their roots.

The holidays around Eid, when most people get a week off, is their opportunity. Salaried workers get a bonus while others accumulate bokhshish from their happy (or not) clients. They go home to celebrate the end of the fasting month Ramzan while enjoying a few days with family free from work, school, and, hopefully, worries.

So when Eid comes around this year I am out and about photographing people in a joyful mood. The crowds at the train, bus and launch stations are packed. The usual snack vendors are missing since it is still Ramzan, but bottled water and juice sell briskly as Iftar items. While it rains outside, a vendor at Tangail bus station makes the rounds inside the waiting hall. His multicoloured umbrellas are a hit with passengers.

The patience of the people amaze me. Despite their wait in the crowded platform at the end of a month of fasting, they happily pose for my camera. The happiness multiplies when I photograph their children, clad in colourful clothes. They eagerly show off the fashion accessories: ornate flower hairclips and bangles for the girl, perhaps a large yellow wristwatch for the boy. On this drab day, the intricate henna patterns on the hands and arms of women glow like rays of sunshine. I see a mother bent over her toddler, buckling up a multicoloured sandal. Newly installed televisions on the platforms help passengers pass the time.

If people's patience is amazing, their enterprise is more so. A young man on the platform has a stack of rectangular plastic pieces folded over his arm. In this rain, he is catering to the freeloaders who travel on the train's roof who are, of course, exposed to the elements.  He has just sold six pieces – at twenty taka each – to a group of men who are sitting in a row on the roof. They have already covered themselves. As the train speeds through the rain, these will keep them dry.

And so another Eid comes and goes, bringing happy moments to our lives.

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