Muntasir Mohiuddin

My mother, Mahbooba Mahmood, founder of Utsho Bangladesh recently asked to write something about Utsho Bangladesh. I wasn’t sure where to start. I have been out of the country for a while and I have been so busy with my own life that I have missed many of the new developments of Utsho. So, I decided to write about how I grew up with Utsho. Long before she started the school, my mother used to take us on her field trips to the many slums of Dhaka. I still remember how I saw a child the same age as mine who had a worn-out old sandal as his only toy! Growing up, I guess we never complained much about not having enough. We wouldn’t ask for the shiny toy that the kid next door got as birthday present. We were not complaining about not getting new clothes on every Eid. We knew we had enough. My parents taught us to appreciate everything. They had to work hard to achieve all that they had. After all these years, I am so grateful to them. Most importantly, they taught us how to share.

I couldn’t survive the harshness of North American broken dreams without their love warmth and exemplary teachings. They taught us how to accept people for who they are and what they are. I have learnt to accept people regardless of their race, gender, religion or profession and respect everyone; specially if they have a handicap such as not knowing the identity of his father. I believe that with the proper education opportunity, anyone can be the scientist who finds the perfect solution for the next best renewable energy source.

Utsho literally started from our living room. On a few occasions, they even returned to the roots! I remember one particular pouring rainy evening when the flood gushed inside the rented school building. I was helping the children move while my sister was taking care of them and cleaning them up. We had “khichuri” that night and it never tasted so good! Most residential students would go home for Eid but there would always be one or two unfortunate ones with no parents or nowhere to go during the festivities. Those kids would always stay with us.

A while ago my father felt the urge to buy another TV, a bigger one. We were happy, a new TV, higher resolution, better entertainment. Everything was decided, my father took out the money from his account as well. While this was all happening, we went to see our mother at the school one day. It was summer and the sun had no mercy. We saw all the kids sweating but they still had a smile on their faces even brighter than the scorching sun. My sister and I felt really bad. We asked our father if we could do something for those kids. He said we could buy them ceiling fans, but he only had enough extra funds to get the new TV. If we were to get them fans, we wouldn’t be able to afford the TV anymore. We finally decided to get them the fans!

When Utsho started the catering business, I volunteered. I learned how to give “shingara” the pyramid shape, a skill I am still proud of. Utsho Bangladesh has been part of my life ever since the birth of the organization. I get ecstatic when I hear something good happening to the organization. I wish all the best to every single individual who is directly or indirectly involved with the success of the organization.