It took time and copious amounts of tea, but listening to her lively and animated stories, made it hard for me to relate to the same woman with the large 'teep' and serious demeanour that I had seen on the telly over the years, cooking up dishes from all regions of Bangladesh.

This quote readily applies to our country's rich cuisine as you will also not experience such lovely and delicious food anywhere else. Yes, I am talking about Bangladeshi food. No matter where Bengalis live in the world, the taste of their own cuisine remains to them like the proverbial honey. The eternal Bengali comfort food, khichuri-gosht-omelette, with a dash of ghee or a spoonful of achar, almost always brings a smile to a Bengali heart; more so if it is raining outside- irrespective of your geographic location.

Motifs —decorative images used to unify an elaborate design or even an idea— have probably existed since the dawn of civilisation. They can be found in people's everyday lives and activities. In fact, if you look closely, you will notice that there are motifs in every object, starting from the basic clovers on your bedroom curtains to the clay planters sold on the roadside. Paisleys, a common and popular form of

We may live and breathe words, if American author, Cassandra Clare is to be believed, but changing shades of time are in no way shy of conveying their own mosaic of stories. In all their tints and shades, shifting spectrums of colour invoke nostalgia, relate to literature, represent cultures and even instigate whole movements for change.

The first season of the year in Bangladesh is not spring or summer, it is the wedding season. As guests see the smiling bride and groom on the day of their wedding reception, little thought is spared on the stories that transpired out of sight. The people come in droves, and every single one welcomed by the families of the bride and the groom, the photographers are literally throwing themselves on the floor for the perfect shot, the aroma of the food enticing the invited guests.

It is a universally acknowledged fact that one's appearance speaks volumes even before words are spoken. Clothes are not just articles covering one's body, they tell a story, at times much more than we give them credit for. Clothes maketh a man, they say and how! The need and the desire to feel attractive and beautiful is only human nature. Almost every person out there, even the biggest simpletons, have some sense of personal style, if not fashion. The subtle difference is well-understood.

Dhaka is an intense city. If you find yourself in Gulistan or Farmgate, you understand what urban intensity is. These are examples of extreme urban nodes.

Tomorrow's Bangladesh is already here. Achievements and progress in all fields—from manufacturing to cricket, and from architectural excellence to social indicators—open up new prospects and promises for Bangladesh. PricewaterhouseCoopers, in its global economic projection for 2050, estimates that Bangladesh can potentially become the world's 28th largest economy by 2030, surpassing countries like Australia, Spain, South Africa, and Malaysia in economic growth.

The architectural scene in Bangladesh has been thriving with a “new” energy over the past two decades or so. Bangladeshi architects have been experimenting with form, material, aesthetics, and, most importantly, the idea of how architecture relates to history, society, and the land.

A city of over 14 million, roughly 400 years of history, rapidly rising incomes and mass migration patterns that seems unsustainable to outsiders—yet somehow Dhaka survives against insurmountable odds.

Recently, two facts drew our attention in the context of our overall national economic development—the first one is that our growth rate is now well over 7 percent and is one of the highest in the world at present.

Dhaka is “growing” in its own happy rhythm, spurred on every now and then by fragmentary planning initiatives. This “growth” is neither relieving pressures at the centres nor creating a decent urban development for the city and its regions. We propose a “Dhaka Nexus” linking the core city with a greater region. Dhaka Nexus is a new network of liveable towns and settlements based on improved transportation and economic opportunities to facilitate their

In this city with 15 million people, movement of the private cars always gets priority in planning and development. Government has realised that only increasing roads cannot pull this city out of the current transportation crisis. In response, constructions of MRT 6 and BRT 3 have already started with some others in the pipeline. Our analysis shows that Dhaka needs more public transport besides the ongoing

Bangladesh can become the world's 28th largest economy by 2030, according to PwC. Goldman Sachs has already listed the country as one the "Next 11" high potential economies of the 21st century.

Our future is destined to be urban as urbanisation in developing countries is a defining feature of the 21st century. It is the most significant demographic transformation in our century because it restructures national economies and reshapes the lives of billions of people.

Bangladesh is one of the fastest growing urbanising countries of the world. By 2025, 50 percent of Bangladesh is supposed to be urbanised. Cities are growing rapidly. By 2050 the number of city dwellers is supposed to increase by 66 percent (from 4 billion in 2016 to 6.3 billion in 2050).

To an air traveller, an airport gives the first impression of a country. It is a picture that promises the offer of what a first-time visitor may expect in the country. The aviation authority, thus, can play the crucial role of promoting a country to the outsiders.

Given your long-term teaching experience, how would you evaluate the education system of Bangladesh? When we were children, our Balyashikkha book would start with Bangla alphabets (au, aa, ka, kha). But nowadays the very first book for children starts with sentences and the alphabets come at the end of the book. This is a major fault in our primary education system.

According to received wisdom, Bangla language was just fine until the fateful emergence of Fort William College. The pundits and the Sahibs of this college on the eastern bank of Hooghly River fiercely mauled, mutilated, and marred our mother tongue beyond recognition. Word had been married to thought and the literate had been immersed in the popular until this event drew an iron curtain of alienation.

RACIAL, religious, national, tribal, and ethnic lines dissolve on February 21. Unlike independence days, religious holidays, cultural festivals, or birthdays of national figures, International Mother Language Day celebrates something the whole world can appreciate: our right to use our native tongue. Whether we speak a national language sanctioned by the government or a local language spoken by only an