Dhaka Diary

Weird rules...indeed!
A cousin of mine recently got married and we, the younger cousins, got the opportunity to enjoy all the little rituals involved for a whole week. A few days before the wedding, when all the girls in the family were getting busy, taking all kinds of make-up decisions and getting their hands and nails ready for henna and nailpolish. I was admiring my little cousin's adorned hands, when another cousin of mine was found sitting in a corner with a sad look on her face. When we asked her the reason, she said that the educational institute she attends does not allow female students to wear any kind of make-up, including henna, nailpolish or any kind of jewellery. I burst out laughing at the 22-year-old cousin of mine, who was on her way to getting a Bachelor's degree within a year or two. Why would an institution form such bizarre rules and regulations in the name of disciplining these young men and women? They would probably seem apt for teenagers going to high school. The institute that my cousin attends is a reputed one in our country. I wonder if the authorities actually think carefully and logically before coming up with rules and regulations, or whether they simply create them just for the sake of it.
SH Dhanmondi

Title Koi ?
Sometimes I think it's simply a sin to be a female in this society. I tried my hand at writing and a while ago, an article suggesting several points on how to learn English was published in a certain magazine in Dhaka. Within a few days, I began to receive letters asking me further about this article of mine, and also asking for permission to use it as a reference in many projects. Accompanying these letters, I also received a huge number of mails requesting me to be their friends. It was absolutely astonishing to see that most of the men folk constituting the population of this country, seem to think that women to nothing more than a fair and fun companionship for men! They even have all the time in the world to actually sit and write out pages and pages of 'love notes' for girls they have never seen. I wonder when this society will start taking the idea of women exposing and expressing their feelings and talents in a positive and healthy way, instead of treating each and every action as something out of a Bangla film or a romantic novel.
Student Department of English Dhaka University

Yet another MOBILE VICTIM
A few Fridays ago, I was praying my jumma in a mosque, when suddenly my cell phone began to ring. The polyphonic form of a famous Indian film song was blaring out in the middle of the prayer and I could not do anything for a long time, in fear of breaking the prayer routine. Somehow, I fished into my pocket and turned off the ringer. I am sure I was going to get a nice beating after the prayer, and so I ran away as soon as possible. The imam now begins his prayer with the preamble with a new line added to it, "Please turn off your cell phones."
Zubair Parvez CUET

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