Ancholika: a celebration of Bangladesh’s linguistic diversity
On December 23rd and 30th, BRAC University Communication & Language Club (BUCLC) organized Ancholika, a celebration of Bengali identity and its diverse dialects, in a blend of competitive segments and cultural festivity.
The event commenced on December 23rd with exciting competitions. Rahad Hussain (Lecturer, School of GenEd) was a core judge throughout. Segments such as আমার শেকড়, a presentation contest of representing the heritage of the different regions of Bangladesh were also held. The highlight of this event was the impromptu speaking segment আমার ভাষা, where participants were given a randomly selected topic to talk about in their native dialects. The audience greatly enjoyed listening to the different versions of “Bangla”, hailing from Chittagong, Barishal, Sylhet and many more. Tahia Mahmud (Freshman, SoL) shared, “The experience was actually nice and I enjoyed performing in my own dialect without any feeling of prejudice.” The first day ended with cultural performances by members of BRAC University Cultural Club (BUCuC).
Then on the 30th, poem recitation and final round of আমার ভাষা owned the stage. Following that, Dr. David Dowland (Registrar, BracU) expressed how every district has their own uniqueness and long heritage. Mohammad Ashaduzzaman (Professor, Dhaka University), shared that the diversity of our language has its beauty and how ‘প্রমিত বাংলা’ is the result of change in language through time. Afterwards, renowned writer Sadat Hossain emerged to the stage and shared his advice on writing. He shared, “It is not only from books that we can read but also from our surroundings.” Emran Mahfuz, (Writer, Daily Star, Bangla) started his speech by observing 30 seconds of silence in remembrance of the July uprising and shared the importance of Bangla. Shaila Sultana (Professor, BIL) said, “This program has been a great celebration of languages, to keep all the indigenous languages alive.”
Tamanna Tabassum Treya (News Presenter, Daily Jugantor) advised to reduce use of devices and to read more books. But lastly, the most awaited moment came when winners from all segments were announced, wrapping the program with mesmerizing cultural performances.
