Weekend Read

Weekend Read

Life takes place in Dhaka’s cafes

How  humans discovered coffee and how, after centuries of innovation, it  became the elixir it is now is a fascinating tale itself.

3d ago

Islampur: a business hub with centuries-old vibe

If listened carefully, amid the maddening hustle and bustle, cacophony of sounds, one might find a strange harmony in the chaos -- a thing that links this place to a bygone era.

1w ago

Rediscovering Traditions: Putting folk arts, crafts at the forefront

Wooden dolls painted in a crimson-red or saffron-yellow sari with a black hair bun are a traditional craft of Bangladesh and an integral part of every rural fair.

2w ago

To be able to dream again

At first glance it looks like a happy gathering of women and girls spanning ages from 15 to 50 years. We are greeted by this group of 30 and they welcome us with a song and dance routine.

3w ago

Safe but not free

For the last five years 19-year-old Sumona (pseudonym) has been living at the Training and Rehabilitation Centre for Socially Disadvantaged Women in Barishal.

3w ago

Karwan Bazar / Where night never sleeps and market is always open

As the night gets deeper and Dhaka goes to sleep, one place pulsates with energy -- Karwan Bazar kitchen market.

Ahsan Manzil / A palace by the river

Leave behind the tangled streets and chaotic symphony of Old Dhaka for a while. Close your eyes and imagine yourself in a different era, stepping onto a gilded boat that glides through the sun-dappled Buriganga.

The wondrous world of rooftop gardening

Perhaps, there is a hidden farmer in all of us. Although suppressed under the urban rat race, many secret gardeners have decided they will create a garden, however small, within the confines of their buildings.

Banglabazar: All things book

Walking past the Jagannath University and Dhaka Collegiate School, amid heavy noise of construction work at Dhaka Sadar Post Office, these correspondents heard a voice that cut through the cacophony in narrow lanes of Old Dhaka.

Dhaka’s vanishing wildlife

Gendaria, a neighbourhood in Old Dhaka, once known for its spacious roads and European style colonial buildings, has lost much of its grandeur.

Women cricketers making waves, but is next-gen ship steady?

The vast potential of women’s cricket in Bangladesh has come to the fore again following the national team’s success of late, across formats and conditions this year. But has reality at the grassroots escaped the harsher sides or, at least, on the verge of it?

Gill nets banned but abundant

At least 300 factories continue to make these deadly fishing traps in Munshiganj due to lax monitoring and lenient punishment

In Cumilla, canals run black

Joinul Hossain, a 55-year-old farmer in Cumilla Sadar south upazila, followed in his father’s footsteps to dedicate his entire life to cultivating their small piece of land and fishing in a canal near it.

Eden Mohila College: 150 years of history and glory

The Eden Mohila College is noted not only for its academic excellence and its pioneering role in promoting women’s education in erstwhile British Bengal and present-day Bangladesh, but also for its glorious past and major contributions in shaping the nation’s history.

The forgotten people of Gaibandha shoals

It was September 20. The clock almost ticked past midnight at  Dighalkandi shoal in the Jamuna river.  Manoara Begum, 30, had been suffering from a persistent fever and cough for over two weeks.

From Chatlapur Tea Garden to Gothenburg: A journalistic odyssey

All that I tried so far was to represent the tea garden people and write about their plight, alongside reporting about the regional affairs.

‘It was technically complex, challenging’

Md Harunur Rashid Chowdhury, who is an additional chief engineer at the Roads and Highways Department, has served as the director of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel project since February 2018, with his term extended three times until February 2024.

Bangabandhu Tunnel Dream becomes reality

The inauguration of the Bangabandhu Tunnel by the prime minister today carries high hopes, with experts and locals anticipating that it will transform Chattogram into a city resembling Shanghai and boost industrial growth in the port city.

Exploring the delectable world of Durga Puja bhog

Durga Puja, the celebration of goddess Durga’s triumph over the demon king Mahishasura, is perhaps the biggest religious and cultural festival for Hindus in Bangladesh, West Bengal, and some other parts of Eastern India.

Unplanned sluice gates a curse for coastal districts

Once a fisherman, Sagir Hossain Somed, 55, of Dakshin Gilabad village of Pirojpur’s Mathbaria upazila, switched to farming after fish population depleted alarmingly within a few years of the construction of a sluice gate in neighbouring Dadhibhanga village.

Rajuk caves in to realtors’ pressure

Just over a year ago, the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) adopted a new Detailed Area Plan (DAP), introducing height restrictions for buildings in a bid to enhance Dhaka’s liveability.

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