When the heroes built a new bridge …
Photos: Ismail Ferdous
In Narayanpur, a quaint little village in Satkhira's Tala upazila, a small colony of a few families struggle with water-logging for eight to nine months a year. Their house yards are inundated, the small pond they share overflows and keeping livestock becomes a huge challenge. But they are not the only one: the shifting dynamics of rivers as a result of climate change is making life incredibly difficult for many such communities all across Bangladesh. BBC Media Action (BBCMA), the international development charity of BBC, aims to use the power of media and communication to inform, connect and empower these people, and they have been doing so in Bangladesh for the past two years with a TV programme "Amrai Pari". The show, putting the people of the locality in charge, provides simple, low-cost, locally-resourced and easily replicable solutions to the adversity posed by climate change, to the people affected by it. At Satkhira's Tala, they took it a step further, with the power of inspiration.
"Cricketers are the biggest heroes for the people of Bangladesh, and we wanted these people, and through our broadcast of the show to other people in similar situations, to be inspired by the presence and support of the National cricketing heroes," says Rachael Julia Canter, the project director of BBCMA's resilience programme. "When we reached out to the cricket board, they were on board, and the cricketers themselves were very interested. We also wanted to have a big season finale, and so we managed to rope in four national cricketers to feature in it."
BBCMA's plan for the site, designed by a landscape engineer, featured maximum utilising of the pond that the community shares: netting of the pond so they can farm fish without the risk of them getting away during rising waters, a duck coupe on a raised platform on a side, vegetable patches on higher ground on the four corners of the pond, and possibly the most important: a bamboo bridge for the families to cross the high waters that confine the residents. With the help of local labourers (and often crew members themselves), the construction was almost done.
Even without Facebook and Twitter, news spread quite quick and far about the arrival of National cricketers, and people thronged the shooting site to get a glimpse. Shihan Zuberi, the series director ran around making sure everything was in place, as the whole village waited for Mashrafe, Soumya and National Women's team players Salma and Jahanara to arrive. Their landing in nearby Ashashuni on a sea-plane got delayed due to dense fog, worrying the crew and building anticipation among the people in equal measures. But as the foursome got off the microbus and into their first shot, the atmosphere changed. From little kids to the shy housewives, everyone watched in awe as the amazingly humble Mashrafe asked them about their problems, and gave a short but moving talk about the importance of teamwork and spirits. And then, they took turns in helping the workers in building the platform for the duck coupe and the bamboo bridge, driving nails through woods and tying up bamboos in sturdy knots.
But the real excitement broke out when the cricketers were handed a challenge – to hit small targets 70 feet away across the pond – throwing cricket balls. After Mashrafe came close but failed to hit in his two attempts and Soumya stepped up, a teenage school-girl in the background clenched his hands and prayed "Allah! Soumya'r ta jeno lage!" (God, please, let Soumya hit the target!) Her prayers did not go unanswered, as Soumya (and later, Jahanara) drew thunderous cheer from the audience with their bulls-eyes. The quartet smiled through autograph and selfie requests despite the time constraint, and when they stood in a huddle with the villagers for a closing shot, the faces of the villagers said that they were touched by a special experience, that gave them courage, belief and strength. In the course of lending a hand to build a small bamboo bridge, the cricketers had forged a much stronger one, with some of their most ardent yet far-away fans.
The series is produced by BBCMA with funds from the UK Department for International Development and the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Department. The episode mentioned above will air on February 7 (Sunday) at 8pm, and repeated on February 10 (Wednesday) at 9:30pm, on ATN Bangla.