18 February 2011
Mirpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh
When I decided to go to Mirpur Stadium (Sher-e Bangla National Stadium) in the evening, the first thing that came to my mind was traffic jam. I had already tried this once (on 16th February 2011), on the eve of ICC World Cup 2011 opening ceremony. That futile attempt cast some shadows on my mind, but also made me more determined to make it happen this time. Not being a professional photographer has its own drawbacks. The push doesn’t arrive, which would’ve automatically made things happen. On the other hand, having the passion to capture moments, it becomes hard to sit idle! So, that no-push-not-idle situation ultimately pushed me and my family into the car! And was I happy that I made that decision!!
The other day, we drove around the City for two-and-a-half hours without calling it a successful night. This time, it took us almost two hours to reach the point when our feet took over. Numerous diversions due to heavy security made the journey tough. And it was tougher for everyone else who went on foot all the way. I saw it on TV how people were celebrating into the night for whatever little (if any) incentive they had. But hardly had any idea how it would’ve looked like being there in person. Now it opened my eyes.
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was a show of passion and attitude.....
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was a show of solidarity......
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was a show of patriotism.....
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was a frenzy!!
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was noisy!!
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was a show of defiance....
I don’t know how many thousands of people were there. But one thing was sure most of those people didn’t have ticket for next day’s Bangladesh-India opening match! Then what on earth were they doing there? You gotta be there to believe this, really! They were dancing, chanting and singing to their own rhythm! Hundreds of flags were waving in the night sky, under the colourful lighting display. Everyone was wearing national colours, either on their body as a shirt, or on their head as a headgear. Fire-spitters were showing off that dangerous game of theirs, reminding us that it was a festival to be reckoned with. People were running with the crowd with children on their shoulders! They had created enough noise with the vuvuzelas (fresh imports since the FIFA World Cup 2010) to make your ear drop off! It was deafening! There were people of all ages and all religion to make this into a real show of solidarity. It was as if they have already won the World Cup!
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
keeping memory.......01
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
keeping memory.......02
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was overwhelming for many....
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
it was almost alcoholic!!
A good portion of the people went there just to have a look at the lighting around the stadium, which we had never seen before in Dhaka. They were making use of any photographic instrument at their possession to record history! Others were there just because they couldn’t stay home once they had seen on TV what was happening there. The opening ceremony created enough hope into those hearts to force them to leave home. There was no way you could tell them to stop and go home! It was a drunken party without a drop of alcohol; it was a winning celebration without actually winning. It was actually a celebration of having something that wiped off the pain of the feel of having nothing. It was history.
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| From Mirpur Stadium, 18 Februady 2011 |
Its not that ICC World Cup 2011 made history by coming down here. It was rather the people of Bangladesh, who made history by showing the world how to embrace the Cup!
