On being a Muslim in the west, and more

As you read Border Crossings by Mohammad Tufael Chowdhury, you feel that you are actually on a journey of "crossings" with the author, as he takes you from the depths of war-torn villages to the heights of picture-perfect skyscrapers. 

One of the first British-born Bangladeshis to study at Oxford University, Chowdhury is a technology expert. 

This book is a journey of finding one's own identity. The author narrates his early years of feeling like a "migration rounding error", "stuck between incompatible worlds", taking us from the intermediary years of an urge to assert his identity through elements of outward appearance and noticeable objects, to his later years of a state of composure, where intolerant remarks aimed at him are no longer able to shake his sense of self, and nor does he feel a compulsion to "profile" his identity.

This book is a journey of finding meaning in one's faith. The author narrates his journey from praying five times a day by reciting Arabic verses of which he does not know the meaning, to a state, where the meaning of faith is more about serving God's creations than about following rituals. Through accounts of his heart-felt interactions with common people in numerous countries, he portrays his realisation that religions at their core are more similar than they are different, and how global political forces are at play in amplifying the differences rather than celebrating the similarities.

This book is a journey of finding one's own roots. The author narrates his journey from waking up to the aroma of British tea, to finding and breathing the air, the morning mist that his ancestors woke up to, in a small Bangladeshi village. 

His journey has the power to ignite an inexplicable pull towards one's own roots—whether it be a geographic location, or a community, or a set of people who have shaped you, knowingly or unknowingly. 

This book will put you through an emotional roller coaster ride. 

It will make you think. 

It will make you laugh. 

It will make you cry.

It will make you jump from your seat with suspense. 

Most importantly, it will take you back to where you truly belong.

Mridul Chowdhury is the CEO and Founder of mPower, a technology-based social enterprise.