In a triumph of soft power over the vagaries of diplomacy, around 100 young Bangladeshis are currently visiting India to build bridges of understanding between the two neighbours, whose ties have been dramatically transformed over the last two years, but still remain mired in perception-deficit.
It’s a motley lot: young entrepreneurs, doctors, professionals and journalists, and many of them are visiting India for the first time, a country with which they feel culturally intertwined and admire as an emerging power.
An initiative of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the eight-day tour by Bangladeshi youth, which includes trips to Delhi, Agra and Kolkata, has been designed to expose the new generation of Bangladeshis, unburdened by history, to myriad facets of Indian life and culture. Like India, Bangladesh is a predominantly young society, with more than half its population under 35 years.
They have been here just three days, but as Mohammad Ashrafuzzman, a Dhaka-based 30-year-old doctor, said they already feel more connected with India.
‘It’s good to be here. People-to-people contacts always help build better relations. We should bring young people of India and Bangladesh together,’ he said.Political differences should not come in the way of youths of both countries coming together, he added.
‘Most of us have our roots here. And we are surrounded by Indian culture. Indian TV dramas and films are very popular,’ said Amit Mallick, a student.
In a similar vein, Elizabeth Rumi D. Costa, a student of television and film studies in Dhaka, says she is excited about visiting India and wants more collaboration in areas of film-making.
‘Bollywood is extremely popular. We should have more tie-ups in film-making,’ she said.
It’s a motley lot: young entrepreneurs, doctors, professionals and journalists, and many of them are visiting India for the first time, a country with which they feel culturally intertwined and admire as an emerging power.
An initiative of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the eight-day tour by Bangladeshi youth, which includes trips to Delhi, Agra and Kolkata, has been designed to expose the new generation of Bangladeshis, unburdened by history, to myriad facets of Indian life and culture. Like India, Bangladesh is a predominantly young society, with more than half its population under 35 years.
They have been here just three days, but as Mohammad Ashrafuzzman, a Dhaka-based 30-year-old doctor, said they already feel more connected with India.
‘It’s good to be here. People-to-people contacts always help build better relations. We should bring young people of India and Bangladesh together,’ he said.Political differences should not come in the way of youths of both countries coming together, he added.
‘Most of us have our roots here. And we are surrounded by Indian culture. Indian TV dramas and films are very popular,’ said Amit Mallick, a student.
In a similar vein, Elizabeth Rumi D. Costa, a student of television and film studies in Dhaka, says she is excited about visiting India and wants more collaboration in areas of film-making.
‘Bollywood is extremely popular. We should have more tie-ups in film-making,’ she said.