The second installment of my ad critique that appeared on the May 2008 issue of the Bangladesh Brand Forum magazine
Errata: I have wrongly said that Amitabh Reza produced the Banglalink Desh 3 ad. He did the first two. This one was Kislu's work. Sorry!
A lot is happening in the mobile telecom advertising world recently. After a dull year it seems most of the players are back in action. For this month’s review I thought it would be interesting to see what the various communication are looking like.
grameenphone: well before I start of, a disclaimer. My agency was fired by grameenphone this month. It seems after a year or two of dabbling with various agencies handling different segments, the company has decided to consolidate most of its work at one place. Grey is the beneficiary of this move. And they have just started rolling out the new campaign – “Stay Close”.
A very powerful insight indeed. Why else would one carry a phone but to connect? It is amongst the most basic of the function of category. But the question that arises in my mind, is it good enough to bring in new customers to grameenphone? Is that the customers are looking for? Of course the advertisings are just rolling out so it is a bit presumptuous of me start guessing the purpose of the campaign.
So what did I think of the actual ad? A railway station and a chance encounter between old lovers. Quite an interesting setting and Amitabh Reza’s execution of the script was wonderful. Very poetic indeed. Quite a few people will like it. Some swoon over it. But I get the distinct feeling where have I seen it before?
The story line has a few holes in it as well. Our protagonist seems to have his ex-flames number and knows that she is still unmarried after all these years. So why didn’t he try to “stay close” earlier? Hmmm… I have broken the 1st Golden Rule of Cinema – “Thou shalt not question the holes in the plot!”
I would wait till the whole campaign roles out before making my mind up about if I like it or not, but right now, I’m sitting on the fence.
On production value I’ll give it a 7 on 10. On originality a 4. Overall: let’s wait.
Banglalink: on its third instalment Banglalink Desh 3 is another Amitabh Reza production. Is it working? I am positive speaking to the marketing gurus from Banglalink the answer will be an emphatic “yes”. Numbers are up, they are now number two player in the market. A lot of people like the song and dance routine. Or maybe some like me just like watching Monalisa on TV! But I’ll bet you a dinner at a restaurant of your choice the series of ads isn’t adding anything to the brand value.
There is no insight here. There is no consumer connect. There is no element of campaignability or anything that is making the subscribers remember it beyond the catchy jingle. Ads like this work as long as there is money to play it on TV and then when they go off air… poof!… they are forgotten. Quick, name me a biscuit!… how many of you thought of the rage from a few years back “Khaitay khaitay jai bela?” What was the brand anyway?
Banglalink D3 as an ad itself isn’t anything to talk about. It isn’t different from D2 or D1! A lot of people dancing around and singing the same old song. Are you impressed? I bet Amitabh made a lot of money on it. And I bet he is not going to put it on his showreel.
Worst bit of the campaign is that it is a complete rip-off Telenor Pakistan’s one. Shame. Our advertising world has (or atleast should have) gone beyond this. It helps no one. Not the agency, not the industry, not the client and certainly not the brand. Well to answer then: “Ami bhalo achi kintu apnar brand nai!”
On production value I’ll give it a 4 on 10. (it isn’t any better or worse than the other two) On originality a 0. Overall: 3/10.
Citycell: I started my advertising career working on this brand. I watched by as they made one mistake after the other and eroded their brand value and market share. So they brought in another agency, another marketing head and another campaign to save their proverbial bacon. The knight in shinning armour it turned out is a campaign copied from one of my favourites – Mac vs. PC.
The Creative honcho of the agency behind the ad is none other than Shargil Karim. And according to me (and I’ve said it many many times before) he is amongst the top 3 creative people in advertising in Bangladesh. I am not sure if he was involved in the campaign or not, but as a fellow Mac user, I’ll venture a guess that he had more than his share of input in it. At first I thought, I hate this campaign because it’s another copy. But more I think of it, more I think they have got something brilliant going here. What a wonderful grasp of product differentiation. They have taken a product and a technology that is in consumer’s mind inferior to the market leader’s, and then point by point they refute it. With consumer’s perception being turned on its head I am sure Citycell is back in their list of consideration before making a purchase. And end of the day, that is all an advertising should really do.
I can’t talk of this set of ads without mentioning two people. Samir the director is one of the most under-rated resources we have. I am surprised why we don’t give him more films to do. He did great editing on it and the art direction was meticulous. The second person is Asif the main actor. He pulled it off to the tee. We liked his performance so much that we’ve used him for one of our ads. Look out for him. He is going places. Remember, Justin Long, the Mac in the original ads, is now an up-and-coming actor in Hollywood.
On production value I’ll give it a 6 on 10. On originality a 5 (yup! That’s right) Overall: 5/10 (I still subtracted 2 points because is a copy).
Nazim Farhan Choudhury is the chief mattobbor in Adcomm Limited. Spending 14 years pretending to be in advertising, he now thinks that he can critique works that others have spent many nights (and in some cases even 5 minutes) trying to come up with. To his utter surprise he notices that most of the brands that he has worked on have become quite powerful in the market. He would love to come up with a Cannes Lion winning idea but unfortunately his “dimak key batti” is on a permanent load-shedding schedule. You can send angry emails to him at farhan@adcommad.com or visit his blog http://nazimfarhan.blogspot.com.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
BBF: Ad critique 1 : Meril Fresh Gel
Recently Bangladesh Brand Forum magazine was launched. And starting from issue two I've got a column in there critiquing ads that appear in Bangladesh. Here is the first one reproduced.
I hope those involved will take it in the spirit it was intended - to better the game for all!
Meril Fresh Gel
I did not know what to make of the ad when I first saw it. The TVC, while interesting, lacked quite a bit on finesse. Based on the insight that a bad mouth needs cleaning as well, the premise was very simple; Fresh Gel cleans your mouth. Of course exaggerated to say that it would clean even the filthiest of mouth.
In my mind it was a strong creative idea. Unfortunately the production value of the ad had a lot to be desired. It, in the end game, let the whole brand down. It left a very “cheap” after taste. But I should not single out and only blame Fresh Gel’s owners Square. It is a common problem I have seen in Bangladesh. Client’s often in a fit of being astute with their wallets balk on paying top takas for a well-produced ad. This is so counter productive. Does no justice for the idea or the brand. If you squeeze the producer on his budget, corners will be cut and TVC will look haggard. I can bet you my copy of the Gunn reel that this is what has happened in this case. Shame.
Specially so if you look at the work Square’s oral has been making over the last few years. Magic toothpowder’s “Amar naam Mofiz” ad reached iconic status. (I however will be quite interested to see how effective it was!) Their strong teeth propositioned ads specially on press and on billboard was well executed. And who can not agree with the ad with the dog. Their use of humour brought in a re-freshing change from the drabness of the ads created by oral market leaders.
Oh before I forget. Another aspect that bugs me to no ends – why do we still need “freight sections”? That is the little computer graphic based sequence in the middle that “proved” the rational reason to buy the product. This DOES NOT HELP! Don’t think the consumers are not intelligent enough to make the connect between the toothpaste and fresh mouth. The TVC would have worked better without that reason why!
On a more positive note I quite like the consumer promotion that Square has spun off from the TVC. It is to clean the country of corruption and band ideas. A very potent idea though I am not sure if they are doing it enough justice. Through a more holistic approach that they are endeavouring, the brand will start building a powerful brand essence. Given the potential of campaignibility of this idea, I hope in the future to see more executions in the route.
Over all I’ll give it a 4 out of 10. (It lost 2 points on production value!)
Nazim Farhan Choudhury is the chief mattobbor in Adcomm Limited. Spending 14 years pretending to be in advertising, he now thinks that he can critique works that others have spent many nights (and in some cases even 5 minutes) trying to come up with. To his utter surprise he notices that most of the brands that he has worked on have become quite powerful in the market. He would love to come up with a Cannes Lion winning idea but unfortunately his “dimak key batti” is on a permanent load-shedding schedule. You can send angry emails to him at farhan@adcommad.com or visit his blog http://nazimfarhan.blogspot.com.
I hope those involved will take it in the spirit it was intended - to better the game for all!
Meril Fresh Gel
I did not know what to make of the ad when I first saw it. The TVC, while interesting, lacked quite a bit on finesse. Based on the insight that a bad mouth needs cleaning as well, the premise was very simple; Fresh Gel cleans your mouth. Of course exaggerated to say that it would clean even the filthiest of mouth.
In my mind it was a strong creative idea. Unfortunately the production value of the ad had a lot to be desired. It, in the end game, let the whole brand down. It left a very “cheap” after taste. But I should not single out and only blame Fresh Gel’s owners Square. It is a common problem I have seen in Bangladesh. Client’s often in a fit of being astute with their wallets balk on paying top takas for a well-produced ad. This is so counter productive. Does no justice for the idea or the brand. If you squeeze the producer on his budget, corners will be cut and TVC will look haggard. I can bet you my copy of the Gunn reel that this is what has happened in this case. Shame.
Specially so if you look at the work Square’s oral has been making over the last few years. Magic toothpowder’s “Amar naam Mofiz” ad reached iconic status. (I however will be quite interested to see how effective it was!) Their strong teeth propositioned ads specially on press and on billboard was well executed. And who can not agree with the ad with the dog. Their use of humour brought in a re-freshing change from the drabness of the ads created by oral market leaders.
Oh before I forget. Another aspect that bugs me to no ends – why do we still need “freight sections”? That is the little computer graphic based sequence in the middle that “proved” the rational reason to buy the product. This DOES NOT HELP! Don’t think the consumers are not intelligent enough to make the connect between the toothpaste and fresh mouth. The TVC would have worked better without that reason why!
On a more positive note I quite like the consumer promotion that Square has spun off from the TVC. It is to clean the country of corruption and band ideas. A very potent idea though I am not sure if they are doing it enough justice. Through a more holistic approach that they are endeavouring, the brand will start building a powerful brand essence. Given the potential of campaignibility of this idea, I hope in the future to see more executions in the route.
Over all I’ll give it a 4 out of 10. (It lost 2 points on production value!)
Nazim Farhan Choudhury is the chief mattobbor in Adcomm Limited. Spending 14 years pretending to be in advertising, he now thinks that he can critique works that others have spent many nights (and in some cases even 5 minutes) trying to come up with. To his utter surprise he notices that most of the brands that he has worked on have become quite powerful in the market. He would love to come up with a Cannes Lion winning idea but unfortunately his “dimak key batti” is on a permanent load-shedding schedule. You can send angry emails to him at farhan@adcommad.com or visit his blog http://nazimfarhan.blogspot.com.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Nazimgarh Resorts
As you might have heard we have opened a resort in Sylhet called the Nazimgarh.
Below is a review of the place by a Canadian travel writer:
http://www.joybangla.info/2008/03/02/nazimgarh-resort-a-taste-of-bengali-luxury#more-50
Their YouTube review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWFKFMqZIAg
Hope you can visit soon.
Below is a review of the place by a Canadian travel writer:
http://www.joybangla.info/2008/03/02/nazimgarh-resort-a-taste-of-bengali-luxury#more-50
Their YouTube review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWFKFMqZIAg
Hope you can visit soon.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
The man with a wall of cars
When Shabanaz Diya first spoke to me about doing a write up about me on Rising Star I was a bit confused. Though a big fan of the supplement, I knew I didn't fit into its "target audience". Anyway Diya came over for an interview, which I thought was very pleasant chat with an energetic and motivated young lady. It gives me hope to see such driven young people like her. Anyway the outcome of that conversation is reproduced below for my readers to critique.
Rising Star, The Daily Star, Thursday February 7, 2008
It's difficult to narrow down what Nazim Farhan Choudhury could be best liked for. The current Deputy Managing Director of Adcomm Limited, an active member of 'Phiriye Ano Bangladesh', a blogger, a RS fan and a broad-minded enthusiast of local youth projects; he is someone or the other to everyone. What made him stand out to this reporter is the simple fact that he still remembers he used to be a reckless teen not so long ago, and thinks outside the box unlike most of the obstinate adults we meet. Sabhanaz Rashid Diya visits him on a windy January evening for a tête-à-tête about advertising, nation-building and something in a box that we are all glued to.
Lots of private universities are opening courses under Media and Communication. Are the students that are coming out good enough for the job market? Do they fulfill a professional advertising firm's requirements?
First of all, I have to admit I don't know enough about the courses. However, what I do know is that most of these courses are designed with a journalistic or business perspective. They do not cater to advertising as a subject. Having said that, practitioners like me believe that advertising cannot be taught in a classroom environment. It's a different and more practical branch of media. There are actually few schools across the world that teaches advertising. You have to remember that every one of us falls into the category of a potential consumer, and hence, you really have to go out into the field and understand the demands of the market.
More importantly, we don't expect much formal education when we hire someone. We don't think he/she will just step into the office and be perfect. For the first 6 months after recruiting, the person will basically have to write reports, make estimates and do other desk jobs. Eventually, he/she becomes more involved and steps out into the field. This is what we call job training and in the process, we shape the individual to cater to our needs.
So, what do you look for in a potential candidate?
For a place in an advertising firm, you do not need to come from a media background. Somebody will not be in a better position simply because he/she has a major in Media and Communication. We look for other things in any candidate, which includes mainly intelligence, ability to handle situations efficiently, ability to work under pressure, if he/she can come with a unique solution in a particular situation, if he/she has an open mind and is welcoming to new ideas and whether he/she can interact well with others.
So, universities offering a major in Media and Communications will not necessarily make it more credible to an ad firm?
Each of us in an ad firm comes from different backgrounds. I, for example, have a major in Economics, whereas we have people from Zoology, Sociology, Architecture and many more. The composition is diverse and each of us contributes to the making of a unique idea.
People are still watching Hindi channels, although we have several local, private channels. Why do you think this is so?
On that note, I disagree with you. A research company called SIRIUS runs a regular TV tracking study which shows that Hindi channels in general have less than 10 percent viewership of the entire TV-watching population. Whereas, say for example, ATN Bangla caters to 30+ percent of the audience. There has been a gradual and positive migration from Hindi channels to the local ones.
It is often seen that women are portrayed as mere tools in commercials. They are brainless housewives or something similar. Do you think ads can be sexist on those grounds?
The scenario that you're describing used to be a stereotype 5-10 years back. Things have changed and women are shown in more professional or corporate positions. For example, BanglaLink and GrameenPhone have some women-oriented ads that have worked very well. Most brands have a target audience and the advertisements are designed to cater to the needs of that audience.
You also have to understand that ads reflect on what is in the society. If a large proportion of the women are housewives, then the ads must reflect on that to reach out to them. 16 years ago, we aired an ad where the husband was bringing tea for the wife. This raised a huge controversy, as the masses found it to be absurd. However, we took that slim step to bring about changes. Ads cannot create situations that do not fall under the barometers set by a society. Recently, what we've shown is that the husband is occasionally cooking when the wife is sick, or making tea on a day off from work. Such things are acceptable to people. Portraying something that is unusual in an average family will result in the audience rejecting that concept.
What about fairness creams? The dark girl falling behind or not getting married was a common concept. Do you think they were sexist to a certain extent?
'Fair & Lovely' happens to be one of the brands I work on. Earlier, as you've described, it showed how a girl could not get married because she was dark-skinned. However, the recent ads are different. It is seen that a girl has a boost in confidence after using the fairness cream and feels more prepared to become a movie star from being a small time, theatre actress. In that particular ad, the girl's talents are not being demeaned. The fairness cream only raises her confidence level the same way dandruff-free hair, fresh breath or a bright smile would. These ads are not sexist.
Besides, a lot depends on the market where a product is being publicized. For example, the same company that is selling fairness cream in India and Bangladesh are selling tanning cream in Europe. Professional brands are careful about the kind of market they're targeting, whereas several unprofessional brands don't look into it.
Since the media and advertising agencies play a huge impact on a consumer's shopping list, do advertising firms have a regulation for quality control?
Certainly, there is a regulation. The ad firm does not make any claims about the product unless it can be substantiated by a test or by facts. Apart from that, the consumer is not stupid. If he/she buys a product after being influenced by the ad and finds it to be unsatisfactory, then he/she will not buy it again. So, the product themselves have to maintain certain standards in order to capture the market. The product must deliver itself to its consumers.
You've been actively involved with Phiriye Ano Bangladesh. What is the story behind it?
What we have seen is that the majority of the current population in Bangladesh has not had first-hand experience of the Liberation War. Although, many of our parents or grandparents were born and grew up in India, Pakistan or even British Raj; for us, home means Bangladesh. We've lived here all our lives and there is a certain sense of responsibility that we feel towards it. A sense of conflict is also evident amongst the older generations. They argue about who declared independence, instead of working towards the future. They wait for a large-scale change to happen, something of a miracle.
Phiriye Ano Bangladesh (PAB) is a very interesting concept. Around 70 percent of the population is in their late 30's or below 30. On the other hand, most politicians are over 65. There is a difference between politicians and nation builders. An individual who's not into politics can also be an important part of the nation-building cycle. Anyway, we believe that since 70 percent of the population is young, they should have a leading voice in nation-building. PAB aims to promote such young people. It creates a platform for the young to step up and work for the development of the country.
So, PAB acts like a platform for young nation builders. How has it been able to do so?
When we meet inspired youngsters, it's often seen that they suffer from a sense of apathy. They feel discouraged to do things on their own. This is where PAB comes into the picture. It gets more people to be involved with a certain idea and takes it to the next level.
On a brighter note, young people are not interested in many conflicts. They are motivated to change their present and do field work. We've seen several young individuals with micro projects such as teaching a small group of street children. These projects, collectively, can result in a macro change in the country. PAB promotes and facilitates micro projects like there. If you come to us with an idea, then we will sit with you and consider its feasibility. We'll provide the bridges that you need to turn your idea into reality and engage more people to develop on that idea.
At the same time, we've realized Bangladesh is in need of some serious sensible discussions. People need to think outside the box instead of just debating on talk shows. At times, I feel I should put everyone in Bangladesh in Facebook just so that they could interact and discuss ideas. Nonetheless, PAB provides a platform for discussion. People with different ideas can sit together and discuss them to come to a more practical solution. Instead of debating over trivial issues and being stubborn, young people are more open to new concepts and are motivated to implement them.
I agree. Young people can be future nation builders. However, there is a severe lack of opportunities. Adults just won't listen. What are your views on the matter?
Like I've said, only 30 percent of the population comprises of adults over 45 or 50; whereas, 70 percent is the younger generations. Why should such a large percentage of the people wait for opportunities to be provided by a smaller percentage? Make little changes happen for you and people around you. This can inspire others to make the same changes, and eventually, we have a snowball effect. If an old man does not listen to you, raise your voice and tell him that you're going to be on bigger role-player on the development wheel in the future. What power has he got against such a large number of youngsters?
Besides, young people like Barack Obama in the USA and David Cameron in the UK are coming into politics. Similarly even in countries like ours India, Pakistan, Bhutan, and Southeast Asia, the young politicians are beginning to create a major impact. The same needs to happen for Bangladesh. The young have a much more open mind. They are more exposed and they have the need for change. Say if the life expectancy of an average person is 70 years. Between a 65 year old and 20 year old, who would you say has more stake in the future?
I believe those words will be inspiring to any kid who's reading this. By the way, you have a very cool model car collection. I'm quite impressed.
(smiling) Ah, thank you! I hope to transform those into real cars someday!
By Shabanaz Rashid Diya
To read the unabridged version of the interview, visit: sabhanaz.blogspot.com
Rising Star, The Daily Star, Thursday February 7, 2008
It's difficult to narrow down what Nazim Farhan Choudhury could be best liked for. The current Deputy Managing Director of Adcomm Limited, an active member of 'Phiriye Ano Bangladesh', a blogger, a RS fan and a broad-minded enthusiast of local youth projects; he is someone or the other to everyone. What made him stand out to this reporter is the simple fact that he still remembers he used to be a reckless teen not so long ago, and thinks outside the box unlike most of the obstinate adults we meet. Sabhanaz Rashid Diya visits him on a windy January evening for a tête-à-tête about advertising, nation-building and something in a box that we are all glued to.
Lots of private universities are opening courses under Media and Communication. Are the students that are coming out good enough for the job market? Do they fulfill a professional advertising firm's requirements?
First of all, I have to admit I don't know enough about the courses. However, what I do know is that most of these courses are designed with a journalistic or business perspective. They do not cater to advertising as a subject. Having said that, practitioners like me believe that advertising cannot be taught in a classroom environment. It's a different and more practical branch of media. There are actually few schools across the world that teaches advertising. You have to remember that every one of us falls into the category of a potential consumer, and hence, you really have to go out into the field and understand the demands of the market.
More importantly, we don't expect much formal education when we hire someone. We don't think he/she will just step into the office and be perfect. For the first 6 months after recruiting, the person will basically have to write reports, make estimates and do other desk jobs. Eventually, he/she becomes more involved and steps out into the field. This is what we call job training and in the process, we shape the individual to cater to our needs.
So, what do you look for in a potential candidate?
For a place in an advertising firm, you do not need to come from a media background. Somebody will not be in a better position simply because he/she has a major in Media and Communication. We look for other things in any candidate, which includes mainly intelligence, ability to handle situations efficiently, ability to work under pressure, if he/she can come with a unique solution in a particular situation, if he/she has an open mind and is welcoming to new ideas and whether he/she can interact well with others.
So, universities offering a major in Media and Communications will not necessarily make it more credible to an ad firm?
Each of us in an ad firm comes from different backgrounds. I, for example, have a major in Economics, whereas we have people from Zoology, Sociology, Architecture and many more. The composition is diverse and each of us contributes to the making of a unique idea.
People are still watching Hindi channels, although we have several local, private channels. Why do you think this is so?
On that note, I disagree with you. A research company called SIRIUS runs a regular TV tracking study which shows that Hindi channels in general have less than 10 percent viewership of the entire TV-watching population. Whereas, say for example, ATN Bangla caters to 30+ percent of the audience. There has been a gradual and positive migration from Hindi channels to the local ones.
It is often seen that women are portrayed as mere tools in commercials. They are brainless housewives or something similar. Do you think ads can be sexist on those grounds?
The scenario that you're describing used to be a stereotype 5-10 years back. Things have changed and women are shown in more professional or corporate positions. For example, BanglaLink and GrameenPhone have some women-oriented ads that have worked very well. Most brands have a target audience and the advertisements are designed to cater to the needs of that audience.
You also have to understand that ads reflect on what is in the society. If a large proportion of the women are housewives, then the ads must reflect on that to reach out to them. 16 years ago, we aired an ad where the husband was bringing tea for the wife. This raised a huge controversy, as the masses found it to be absurd. However, we took that slim step to bring about changes. Ads cannot create situations that do not fall under the barometers set by a society. Recently, what we've shown is that the husband is occasionally cooking when the wife is sick, or making tea on a day off from work. Such things are acceptable to people. Portraying something that is unusual in an average family will result in the audience rejecting that concept.
What about fairness creams? The dark girl falling behind or not getting married was a common concept. Do you think they were sexist to a certain extent?
'Fair & Lovely' happens to be one of the brands I work on. Earlier, as you've described, it showed how a girl could not get married because she was dark-skinned. However, the recent ads are different. It is seen that a girl has a boost in confidence after using the fairness cream and feels more prepared to become a movie star from being a small time, theatre actress. In that particular ad, the girl's talents are not being demeaned. The fairness cream only raises her confidence level the same way dandruff-free hair, fresh breath or a bright smile would. These ads are not sexist.
Besides, a lot depends on the market where a product is being publicized. For example, the same company that is selling fairness cream in India and Bangladesh are selling tanning cream in Europe. Professional brands are careful about the kind of market they're targeting, whereas several unprofessional brands don't look into it.
Since the media and advertising agencies play a huge impact on a consumer's shopping list, do advertising firms have a regulation for quality control?
Certainly, there is a regulation. The ad firm does not make any claims about the product unless it can be substantiated by a test or by facts. Apart from that, the consumer is not stupid. If he/she buys a product after being influenced by the ad and finds it to be unsatisfactory, then he/she will not buy it again. So, the product themselves have to maintain certain standards in order to capture the market. The product must deliver itself to its consumers.
You've been actively involved with Phiriye Ano Bangladesh. What is the story behind it?
What we have seen is that the majority of the current population in Bangladesh has not had first-hand experience of the Liberation War. Although, many of our parents or grandparents were born and grew up in India, Pakistan or even British Raj; for us, home means Bangladesh. We've lived here all our lives and there is a certain sense of responsibility that we feel towards it. A sense of conflict is also evident amongst the older generations. They argue about who declared independence, instead of working towards the future. They wait for a large-scale change to happen, something of a miracle.
Phiriye Ano Bangladesh (PAB) is a very interesting concept. Around 70 percent of the population is in their late 30's or below 30. On the other hand, most politicians are over 65. There is a difference between politicians and nation builders. An individual who's not into politics can also be an important part of the nation-building cycle. Anyway, we believe that since 70 percent of the population is young, they should have a leading voice in nation-building. PAB aims to promote such young people. It creates a platform for the young to step up and work for the development of the country.
So, PAB acts like a platform for young nation builders. How has it been able to do so?
When we meet inspired youngsters, it's often seen that they suffer from a sense of apathy. They feel discouraged to do things on their own. This is where PAB comes into the picture. It gets more people to be involved with a certain idea and takes it to the next level.
On a brighter note, young people are not interested in many conflicts. They are motivated to change their present and do field work. We've seen several young individuals with micro projects such as teaching a small group of street children. These projects, collectively, can result in a macro change in the country. PAB promotes and facilitates micro projects like there. If you come to us with an idea, then we will sit with you and consider its feasibility. We'll provide the bridges that you need to turn your idea into reality and engage more people to develop on that idea.
At the same time, we've realized Bangladesh is in need of some serious sensible discussions. People need to think outside the box instead of just debating on talk shows. At times, I feel I should put everyone in Bangladesh in Facebook just so that they could interact and discuss ideas. Nonetheless, PAB provides a platform for discussion. People with different ideas can sit together and discuss them to come to a more practical solution. Instead of debating over trivial issues and being stubborn, young people are more open to new concepts and are motivated to implement them.
I agree. Young people can be future nation builders. However, there is a severe lack of opportunities. Adults just won't listen. What are your views on the matter?
Like I've said, only 30 percent of the population comprises of adults over 45 or 50; whereas, 70 percent is the younger generations. Why should such a large percentage of the people wait for opportunities to be provided by a smaller percentage? Make little changes happen for you and people around you. This can inspire others to make the same changes, and eventually, we have a snowball effect. If an old man does not listen to you, raise your voice and tell him that you're going to be on bigger role-player on the development wheel in the future. What power has he got against such a large number of youngsters?
Besides, young people like Barack Obama in the USA and David Cameron in the UK are coming into politics. Similarly even in countries like ours India, Pakistan, Bhutan, and Southeast Asia, the young politicians are beginning to create a major impact. The same needs to happen for Bangladesh. The young have a much more open mind. They are more exposed and they have the need for change. Say if the life expectancy of an average person is 70 years. Between a 65 year old and 20 year old, who would you say has more stake in the future?
I believe those words will be inspiring to any kid who's reading this. By the way, you have a very cool model car collection. I'm quite impressed.
(smiling) Ah, thank you! I hope to transform those into real cars someday!
By Shabanaz Rashid Diya
To read the unabridged version of the interview, visit: sabhanaz.blogspot.com
Monday, January 07, 2008
A Purple Future
This Article of mine appeared in the January 2008 issue of the Purple magazine.
As I board the Commuter Shuttle Train at the Gulshan station, I look at my communication device. It should take me about 20 minutes to reach downtown Dhaka’s Bhaluka station. Just in time for me to receive the guests from Ireland who are arriving at Gazipur International Airport to attend the Economist Magazine’s conference titled “Learning from Bangladesh’s Economic Transformation.” They have a lot of learning to do over the next two days.
The year is 2040. Bangladesh is in the heart of the South Asia’s booming economic zone. Dhaka mega-city itself is a huge metropolis that houses a population of 50 million. The last 30 years have been a wonderful journey for a nation one time called “a bottomless basket” by Henry Kissinger. The transforming few years of early 2000s laid a foundation to an exponential growth curve. Today Bangladesh’s economy is a gateway for all economic activity for the Indo-Chinese world.
We had played our cards just right. After realising in 2007 that confrontational politics was tearing our nation into pieces we set ourselves a goal for going through a transformation that would surpass that of post WWII Japan or that of the erstwhile Asian Tigers. Our leaders at that time very rightly decided that a quantum change required new thinking and a new mindset. Wisely they brought in a cadre of capable and professional young Bangladeshi’s to infuse life into the roadmap of growth.
Known as Gen71, this group of enthusiastic young minds set about the transformation process with a passion not seen in Bangladesh since the War of Independence. They focused their energy into three areas – Reform, Education and Industrialisation.
It was self evident that the first hurdle that needed to be crossed was the bureaucratic misalignment that defeated almost all of the positive changes that were being taken. Rapid movement towards e-governance and dissemination of information brought transparency and honesty to the functioning of the government, judiciary and other branches of authority. At the same time it ensured that businesses followed the regulatory framework that were laid out to protect consumers and workers.
The other pillar of the Bangladesh miracle was the huge investments that were made in Education. It was a no-brainer that the 150 million population of that era needed to be made employable. Massive IT, mathematics and multi-language education centres were set up. Education curriculum and methodology was completely overhauled. Emphasis was given to ensure that the young population had enough skill sets to play an aggressive role in the rapid industrialisation that was on the drawing boards.
On the economic side Bangladesh was astute to stop listening to the socialist economists that were still married to their Stalinist pasts. Yes Bangladesh was once an agrarian society, but being the world’s most densely populated country the only way to ensure economic growth was through unprecedented industrialisation. Basic industries like steel and electronics were encouraged. Ancillary businesses grew up to support these. The RMG sector, which was even then, the powerhouse of the economy continued to grow strongly. Businesses in that sector consolidated and became some of the leading players in the world market. However the raw talent of our youth meant that ICT now rivalled RMG as the export earner for the nation. Utilization of huge coal reserves and discovery of both on and off shore Oil and Gas deposit turned Bangladesh into a net exporter of these commodities and of Power. A robust stock market and a liberal financial and foreign exchange policy ensured that Bangladeshi companies could take advantage of this energy. Run-away remittance earnings and FDI fuelled on the economy. Many of our entrepreneurs and corporations bought up companies big and small around the world. Bangladesh had arrived.
As did Bangladesh Biman’s non-stop supersonic flight from Dublin. I rapidly closed the active channels of the all-enveloping Net coverage that was beaming the world into my comdevice. I wondered if the Irish guests would be able to tell if the bottle of Guinness they had on board actually came from the industrial area of Rajshahi.
As I board the Commuter Shuttle Train at the Gulshan station, I look at my communication device. It should take me about 20 minutes to reach downtown Dhaka’s Bhaluka station. Just in time for me to receive the guests from Ireland who are arriving at Gazipur International Airport to attend the Economist Magazine’s conference titled “Learning from Bangladesh’s Economic Transformation.” They have a lot of learning to do over the next two days.
The year is 2040. Bangladesh is in the heart of the South Asia’s booming economic zone. Dhaka mega-city itself is a huge metropolis that houses a population of 50 million. The last 30 years have been a wonderful journey for a nation one time called “a bottomless basket” by Henry Kissinger. The transforming few years of early 2000s laid a foundation to an exponential growth curve. Today Bangladesh’s economy is a gateway for all economic activity for the Indo-Chinese world.
We had played our cards just right. After realising in 2007 that confrontational politics was tearing our nation into pieces we set ourselves a goal for going through a transformation that would surpass that of post WWII Japan or that of the erstwhile Asian Tigers. Our leaders at that time very rightly decided that a quantum change required new thinking and a new mindset. Wisely they brought in a cadre of capable and professional young Bangladeshi’s to infuse life into the roadmap of growth.
Known as Gen71, this group of enthusiastic young minds set about the transformation process with a passion not seen in Bangladesh since the War of Independence. They focused their energy into three areas – Reform, Education and Industrialisation.
It was self evident that the first hurdle that needed to be crossed was the bureaucratic misalignment that defeated almost all of the positive changes that were being taken. Rapid movement towards e-governance and dissemination of information brought transparency and honesty to the functioning of the government, judiciary and other branches of authority. At the same time it ensured that businesses followed the regulatory framework that were laid out to protect consumers and workers.
The other pillar of the Bangladesh miracle was the huge investments that were made in Education. It was a no-brainer that the 150 million population of that era needed to be made employable. Massive IT, mathematics and multi-language education centres were set up. Education curriculum and methodology was completely overhauled. Emphasis was given to ensure that the young population had enough skill sets to play an aggressive role in the rapid industrialisation that was on the drawing boards.
On the economic side Bangladesh was astute to stop listening to the socialist economists that were still married to their Stalinist pasts. Yes Bangladesh was once an agrarian society, but being the world’s most densely populated country the only way to ensure economic growth was through unprecedented industrialisation. Basic industries like steel and electronics were encouraged. Ancillary businesses grew up to support these. The RMG sector, which was even then, the powerhouse of the economy continued to grow strongly. Businesses in that sector consolidated and became some of the leading players in the world market. However the raw talent of our youth meant that ICT now rivalled RMG as the export earner for the nation. Utilization of huge coal reserves and discovery of both on and off shore Oil and Gas deposit turned Bangladesh into a net exporter of these commodities and of Power. A robust stock market and a liberal financial and foreign exchange policy ensured that Bangladeshi companies could take advantage of this energy. Run-away remittance earnings and FDI fuelled on the economy. Many of our entrepreneurs and corporations bought up companies big and small around the world. Bangladesh had arrived.
As did Bangladesh Biman’s non-stop supersonic flight from Dublin. I rapidly closed the active channels of the all-enveloping Net coverage that was beaming the world into my comdevice. I wondered if the Irish guests would be able to tell if the bottle of Guinness they had on board actually came from the industrial area of Rajshahi.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Elections ’08: Power to the People
Ambassador Butenis bemoaned recently that she could not see “free and fair” election in Bangladesh before leaving for her new assignment in Iraq. I too share the good ambassador’s frustration. As a Bangladeshi citizen I too would want that our nation could move forward down the democratic path with another of our free and fair elections. After all is not democracy the ultimate destination of any free nation? But then I got thinking? Are we actually a democratic country? Were we ever a democratic country?
I know it is fashionable to say that we have been a practicing democracy since the elections of 1991. After over throwing an autocrat through a popular people lead revolt, we truly had a democratic election. Well participated and actively contested, this election offered hope to the citizens. Unfortunately it has been a downward slide for the nation since then. Though we have had two more “democratic” elections, I am afraid we have not achieved “democracy”!
One definition of the word democracy is “the free and equal right of every person to participate in a system of government, often practiced by electing representatives of the people by the people.” So have we had free participation? To an election I suppose, but what about then to the governance afterwards? Have even the Parliamentarians we elected been able to participate in the process we elected them to? Now I am sure I don’t need to debate here the utter failure of the experimentation. Even the ardent supporters of the past regimes will agree with me, that the failure of democracy to live true to its definition is unquestionable.
Ambassador Butenis, I am sure will soon find out in her new posting, that an election for the sake of an election is no indication of people’s will. It is easy to hold an election but quite different to usher in participation in the political process. So if “free and fair” elections do not necessarily give us democracy, should that be our only goal? Or should our aim be of a higher calling? Maybe to ensure that participation of a vast majority of our citizens in government and the processes of governance should be the ultimate aim of any reform process.
Over the last thousand years, Bangalees have not had much autonomous democratic control of their destinies. We have been ruled during this time from Delhi or London or Islamabad. Even since 1971, our political leaders have often been autocratic leaders. So theoretically speaking we have had at best 15 years in the last 1500 years of free rule. Given this, should we be so sure of what democracy or which model of democracy suits us best? Should we not even spend some time on deliberating on our structure of government and representation?
Let us assume for sake of argument that you good readers have said yes to the questions above and have opted for some debate on the path to democracy we should take. In that case could I offer an alternative roadmap to democracy?
I am a firm believer in the power of the Demos in democracy. That is the common man in the street (or in this case villages) should not only have a say in but also participate in the political process. In our previous incarnation of government, even in the best of light, was limited to 300 or so parliamentarians. Mind you I am not even getting into the debate of Article 70, which in effect, coupled with megalomaniac leaders and ineffective party structure, concentrated power in the hands of, at best 5 people! This concentration of centralised power lead to its wide-scale abuse. Now say if we could divorce the unbridled authority that the legislative members have on the development cash cows and disseminate that to local authority, we would be achieving two things. One we will allow local citizens to have a direct say on what development priorities of a local area should be. And secondly we would allow legislators fulfil their number one task – to legislate.
This simple relook at what democracy actually means will achieve to give power back to the people where it should have come from the first place. Local Upazila Parishads will be allocated a development budget which they will decide on without the interference of the, till date, ever powerful MP. As UP leadership in vast majority of the cases live in the local area and come into interaction with their constituents on a day to day basis, I believe they will be more answerable than the absentee landlords of our previous Jatiya Sangsad. This devolution of power from the central authority to many local authorities will have the most pliable change in the fabric of governance in the nation. And that my friend in my book is the best example of democracy I can think of.
So if keeping to the Caretaker Government’s announced timetable, we have local authority elections by December 2008, we fulfil pledge we took as a nation on 1/11 ’07 of transferring power to an elected government at the earliest possible time.
Now now, I am sure there are puritans amongst us who will equate only Parliamentary elections to democratic handover of power. But why is that the only criteria, the only benchmark of democracy? With my local authority elections (and mind you, effective devolution of power) we are achieving a far stronger participation in governance than any Parliamentary elections under our old structure will allow us.
I am sure the next question on everyone’s minds is, does the unelected Caretaker Government stay on forever? Well of course not. Say we give the elected UP a year to settle in and find their foothold in government. In December 2009 (or Q1 ’10) we hold an election to a “Constitutional Assembly”. I am sure I have a few perplexed readers on my hand. Why do we need to do this? Well easy, we are not sure of what model we should follow. Do we have, say, two houses of Parliament? Or should we replace first-past-the-post with proportional representation? Or even how do we ensure equitable participation of citizens regardless of gender, religious beliefs or ethnic bias? And thousand other questions like this need to be asked, and more importantly debated and answered. Only after this process (say near the end of 2010 or early 2011) we should be bold enough to venture into a Parliamentary election.
I know many of my readers are sceptical of allowing an unelected CTG stay in power for so long. But the solution to that is in two folds. Firstly as discussed often, we need to broad base the actual cabinet. The idea of a National Unity Government (NUG) drawing from a larger cross section of political parties and apolitical activists (I did not want to use the word “civil society”) seems quite attractive a proposition. Secondly on a supervisory role we have a “Panel of Elders”. Say a body of 10 prominent and acceptable elders who act as a national conscience. The NUG will fix policy and implement them and the Panel of Elder will offer advice, guidance and most importantly critic.
The election for the sake of an election is not and cannot be the only answer to democracy. It is through a creative re-evaluation of what the ultimate objective of the reform process is, will we be able to fix priorities that will help us achieve a robust and long-term solution to the problem that have plagued our race for a millennium. There is an earnest effort for the citizens of Bangladesh to break out of the endless cycle of cynicism and corruption. Our friend Ambassador Butenis and her colleagues I am sure will appreciate this desire for self-rule that yearns in the heart of most Bangladeshis. And hopefully they will accept the paradox that for the emergence of true democracy, the only target cannot be the speed at which we attain it.
I know it is fashionable to say that we have been a practicing democracy since the elections of 1991. After over throwing an autocrat through a popular people lead revolt, we truly had a democratic election. Well participated and actively contested, this election offered hope to the citizens. Unfortunately it has been a downward slide for the nation since then. Though we have had two more “democratic” elections, I am afraid we have not achieved “democracy”!
One definition of the word democracy is “the free and equal right of every person to participate in a system of government, often practiced by electing representatives of the people by the people.” So have we had free participation? To an election I suppose, but what about then to the governance afterwards? Have even the Parliamentarians we elected been able to participate in the process we elected them to? Now I am sure I don’t need to debate here the utter failure of the experimentation. Even the ardent supporters of the past regimes will agree with me, that the failure of democracy to live true to its definition is unquestionable.
Ambassador Butenis, I am sure will soon find out in her new posting, that an election for the sake of an election is no indication of people’s will. It is easy to hold an election but quite different to usher in participation in the political process. So if “free and fair” elections do not necessarily give us democracy, should that be our only goal? Or should our aim be of a higher calling? Maybe to ensure that participation of a vast majority of our citizens in government and the processes of governance should be the ultimate aim of any reform process.
Over the last thousand years, Bangalees have not had much autonomous democratic control of their destinies. We have been ruled during this time from Delhi or London or Islamabad. Even since 1971, our political leaders have often been autocratic leaders. So theoretically speaking we have had at best 15 years in the last 1500 years of free rule. Given this, should we be so sure of what democracy or which model of democracy suits us best? Should we not even spend some time on deliberating on our structure of government and representation?
Let us assume for sake of argument that you good readers have said yes to the questions above and have opted for some debate on the path to democracy we should take. In that case could I offer an alternative roadmap to democracy?
I am a firm believer in the power of the Demos in democracy. That is the common man in the street (or in this case villages) should not only have a say in but also participate in the political process. In our previous incarnation of government, even in the best of light, was limited to 300 or so parliamentarians. Mind you I am not even getting into the debate of Article 70, which in effect, coupled with megalomaniac leaders and ineffective party structure, concentrated power in the hands of, at best 5 people! This concentration of centralised power lead to its wide-scale abuse. Now say if we could divorce the unbridled authority that the legislative members have on the development cash cows and disseminate that to local authority, we would be achieving two things. One we will allow local citizens to have a direct say on what development priorities of a local area should be. And secondly we would allow legislators fulfil their number one task – to legislate.
This simple relook at what democracy actually means will achieve to give power back to the people where it should have come from the first place. Local Upazila Parishads will be allocated a development budget which they will decide on without the interference of the, till date, ever powerful MP. As UP leadership in vast majority of the cases live in the local area and come into interaction with their constituents on a day to day basis, I believe they will be more answerable than the absentee landlords of our previous Jatiya Sangsad. This devolution of power from the central authority to many local authorities will have the most pliable change in the fabric of governance in the nation. And that my friend in my book is the best example of democracy I can think of.
So if keeping to the Caretaker Government’s announced timetable, we have local authority elections by December 2008, we fulfil pledge we took as a nation on 1/11 ’07 of transferring power to an elected government at the earliest possible time.
Now now, I am sure there are puritans amongst us who will equate only Parliamentary elections to democratic handover of power. But why is that the only criteria, the only benchmark of democracy? With my local authority elections (and mind you, effective devolution of power) we are achieving a far stronger participation in governance than any Parliamentary elections under our old structure will allow us.
I am sure the next question on everyone’s minds is, does the unelected Caretaker Government stay on forever? Well of course not. Say we give the elected UP a year to settle in and find their foothold in government. In December 2009 (or Q1 ’10) we hold an election to a “Constitutional Assembly”. I am sure I have a few perplexed readers on my hand. Why do we need to do this? Well easy, we are not sure of what model we should follow. Do we have, say, two houses of Parliament? Or should we replace first-past-the-post with proportional representation? Or even how do we ensure equitable participation of citizens regardless of gender, religious beliefs or ethnic bias? And thousand other questions like this need to be asked, and more importantly debated and answered. Only after this process (say near the end of 2010 or early 2011) we should be bold enough to venture into a Parliamentary election.
I know many of my readers are sceptical of allowing an unelected CTG stay in power for so long. But the solution to that is in two folds. Firstly as discussed often, we need to broad base the actual cabinet. The idea of a National Unity Government (NUG) drawing from a larger cross section of political parties and apolitical activists (I did not want to use the word “civil society”) seems quite attractive a proposition. Secondly on a supervisory role we have a “Panel of Elders”. Say a body of 10 prominent and acceptable elders who act as a national conscience. The NUG will fix policy and implement them and the Panel of Elder will offer advice, guidance and most importantly critic.
The election for the sake of an election is not and cannot be the only answer to democracy. It is through a creative re-evaluation of what the ultimate objective of the reform process is, will we be able to fix priorities that will help us achieve a robust and long-term solution to the problem that have plagued our race for a millennium. There is an earnest effort for the citizens of Bangladesh to break out of the endless cycle of cynicism and corruption. Our friend Ambassador Butenis and her colleagues I am sure will appreciate this desire for self-rule that yearns in the heart of most Bangladeshis. And hopefully they will accept the paradox that for the emergence of true democracy, the only target cannot be the speed at which we attain it.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
S Nahoum Ali: A Question of Friendship
"...In the days of my youth, I was told what it means to be a man...
...Now I've reached that age, I've tried to do all those things the best I can...
...No matter how I try, I find my way into the same old jam...
...Good Times, Bad Times, you know I had my share..."
- Led Zepplin
When Nahoum called me few months ago to remind me that it was the 10th year anniversary of the time I “saved his life” after a very bad car crash, I joked with him if he wanted to thank me or curse me.
Last few years have been extremely bad for him. Life often doesn’t turn out the way we want it. Not that I ever thought Nahoum had a plan in life. Well actually I’m lying. We had a million plans on how we will become rich. And I can bet you that majority of them would succeed. His capability of looking at a situation and finding a solution to it for one to make money is absolutely amazing. Or I actually should say, “was”. He died today.
How are we supposed to deal with a friend dying? I remember how sad my father looked a few years back when his best friend passed away one fine afternoon. I don’t re-collect him ever looking sadder. Some friendships are supposed to be forever. We are supposed to grow old together. We shared a past and a life that was supposed to ensure a future. And then one day without any warning I have to erase his number from my speed dial list!
Through his bad days Nahoum became a loner. Crying out for some companionship. It was a spiral that he went down. Deeper he was in trouble the more he needed his friends. But more we judged him and more he stayed away. And more he needed us. Ironic for a person who would do anything for his friends, he was short of them in the last few years.
I never did figure how to handle him. I knew the trouble he was getting into. He chased that elusive rainbow. He could not handle the fact that when he thought he got close, it turned out to be another mirage. I used to joke with him that he was a man who could not stand happiness. Whenever he was happy he had to go out and search out pain. I saw the growing dependence on things that would bring him that fleeting moment of bliss. When I complained he went away for a few weeks. But then I would remember he needed me. And in some subliminal level I needed him. I needed to know that my optimism could conquer his gloom.
But where was that balance going to be? For every taka of mine that he abused, there was a minute of conversation that kept him sane. Was I wrong? Did I not do enough to help him? What should I have done? Questions. All going through my head now are questions.
Some who did not know him could not understand why I kept being generous with him. The easy answer is that he too would have done the same if I were in his shoes. But I think from that day 1997 on Airport road when I saw him lying on the road in a pool of his own blood; I believed I was his lifejacket. I was selfish. Every time his name came up on my cell phone it was like the “bat signal” calling out for the superhero to ride out to the rescue. And there have been many phone calls - some that the whole world jokes about and some that not another soul knows. Long drives and longer conversations; large and small amounts of money; big plans and bigger disappointments; crazy dreams and wild despair – an endless list of reasons to call us friends.
But what do I do now? Should I have done more? Could I have done more? Would things be different if I was in Dhaka during his last momentary lapse of reason? I guess it will haunt me for rest of my life. But maybe it won’t. Maybe life would go back to normal. As I said earlier, some friendships are forever. He might just always be there. Looking down with that grin, with that take-on-the-world attitude and laughing to see his friend here crying, devastated that I could not be his lifejacket.
I miss you Gutu! Keep a space for me in Heaven, my friend.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
No Laughter Please, we are Bangladeshi
Sometimes I wonder why humour hasn’t caught on in Bangaldeshi advertising. We (the advertising fraternity) are actually a very funny. Most of the creative directors (or aspirants) I know have a rib-tickling capability to lift one’s spirits. This coupled with the fact that life and reality around us is so overwhelmingly serious I would have thought humour would be the natural aphrodisiac of life.
Over the last half-year we attempted to inject humour in some of the Mojo advertising we are doing. Our “Hamba” ad where we gave away a cow for Qurbani and the “Abdul Quddus Bond” series for the Cricket World Cup used humour to make our carbonated beverage advertising stand apart viz a viz the song and dance routines of rest of our competitors. The result I think has been largely positive. The talented actor in the TVC, Noyan has turned out to be quite a celebrity. And I think it is a surprise for all of us on how he is hounded for autographs wherever he goes.
I do hope other advertisers pick up on this experiment and turn it into a trend.
On a lighter note (pun of course intended!) I thought I’d tell you readers of this marvellous young Bangladeshi talent - Naveed Mahbub. An engineer from BUET by training he is now trying break out in America as a stand up comic. I kid you not! Recently to conquer his fear of public speaking he went through one of those life changing experience. Now he is on a reality show [www.Famecast.com] competing to be the best comic in the US. And guess what, he has made it to the top 10!
To take him to the next level he needs us to vote for him. It won’t take too much time for you to register on to Famecast.com and vote for him on the Comedy Stage. Go on make us proud…
Websites:
FameCast site : http://www.FameCast.com
FameCast Comedy Stage http://www.famecast.com/contest/centerstage.php?stage_id=6&round_id=59
Naveed Mahbub’s webpage: www.naveedmahbub.com
Unfortunately the voting closes on 14th July - so hurry!
PS I’ll try and see how to master YouTube so that I can upload the TVCs for everyone to see.
Over the last half-year we attempted to inject humour in some of the Mojo advertising we are doing. Our “Hamba” ad where we gave away a cow for Qurbani and the “Abdul Quddus Bond” series for the Cricket World Cup used humour to make our carbonated beverage advertising stand apart viz a viz the song and dance routines of rest of our competitors. The result I think has been largely positive. The talented actor in the TVC, Noyan has turned out to be quite a celebrity. And I think it is a surprise for all of us on how he is hounded for autographs wherever he goes.
I do hope other advertisers pick up on this experiment and turn it into a trend.
On a lighter note (pun of course intended!) I thought I’d tell you readers of this marvellous young Bangladeshi talent - Naveed Mahbub. An engineer from BUET by training he is now trying break out in America as a stand up comic. I kid you not! Recently to conquer his fear of public speaking he went through one of those life changing experience. Now he is on a reality show [www.Famecast.com] competing to be the best comic in the US. And guess what, he has made it to the top 10!To take him to the next level he needs us to vote for him. It won’t take too much time for you to register on to Famecast.com and vote for him on the Comedy Stage. Go on make us proud…
Websites:
FameCast site : http://www.FameCast.com
FameCast Comedy Stage http://www.famecast.com/contest/centerstage.php?stage_id=6&round_id=59
Naveed Mahbub’s webpage: www.naveedmahbub.com
Unfortunately the voting closes on 14th July - so hurry!
PS I’ll try and see how to master YouTube so that I can upload the TVCs for everyone to see.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Do I stand behind the CTG? -part II
I think some are missing the point of the emergency. It is NOT to disrupt lives of the innocent. It is to bring order to a political climate that was out of bounds in the late part of last year.
In the initial stages at times the Emergency Powers were used a bit indiscriminately. However as time passed and rule of law established itself then the unintended damage it might have caused have come down. Due process that we were shouting about in the early months of this regime is something that is now being adhered to.
Again I am not saying whatever the CTG government is doing is the best, but it is making an honest, sincere and well-intentioned effort to make amends for the past mistakes.
The two examples that Nazzina has brought up are good. [ Pls refer comments of the post Do I Stand Behing the CTG?] Because in case of Mr. Richil an investigation has been put together. I believe his body was exhumed for another autopsy. Those responsible for this gruesome incidence will be bought to justice.
In case of Tasneem, the authorities maintain that he was NOT detained for his journalistic work, but rather because of receiving huge amounts of unexplained overseas funds. According to published transcripts it appears that he was planning to use that money to fund anti-state activity. Now I am not saying it is true or not. Tasneem never cleared it to me. [Incidentally I have tried to contact Tasneem many a times. I have left messages, sent sms and emails. I have been in direct contact with his father who is worried about his son’s welfare. Tasneem has decided to remain incommunicado. Hence the disclaimer and the benefit of the doubt rather than a full frontal attack on reported transcripts.]
As some of you know, public perception in Bangladesh is often tracked through opinion polls. Our studies have shown very high approval ratings for the CTG. Which brings me to Tanvir’s point. You are right CTG does not have an election that it needs to win. But to ensure that the reforms brought in are successful in the long run, it still needs to win the hearts and minds. For that they need to ensure that the citizens of our nation are fully behind the decisions taken. In my mind one of the shortcomings of the CTG has been to clarify the reasons for decisions they are taking.
Of course not having an election to be answerable to also allows the CTG not to be a populist government (as opposed to a popular government.) Some hard but necessary decisions can be taken and implemented. Take for example the Chittagong Port. Years of corruption and misuse have been reversed in matter of weeks. Productivity of the Port are at all time high and decisions are being made on the future of our export gateway.
I think it is a misunderstanding that we believe that arrests will be made if everyone of us speak out. That is not true. Bangladesh enjoys a high level of press freedom. I am at times amazed by the harshness of a lot of reports I read in many papers or hear on TV. Till date no one has been arrested for an opinion they have had. As explained in the Tasneem’s incidence, it is for his other alleged activities that he was questioned. Not because he had an opinion about the CTG.
In absence of any political opposition, it is journalist and blogger like us who can constructively critique the government. This will help them to moderate their actions and benefit from the collective wisdom of this nation’s quite capable human resources.
Supporting any government cannot be done blindly. Neither can opposing it. Decisions need to judged on merit of that particular case. Many progress have been made and many more remain. Some have gone to our liking, some have not. But at the end of the day we have a CTG that is dedicated in its effort to bring order and prosperity to our nation. And till that remains their objective, they have my full support. And I hope the support of every citizen who wants the same.
In the initial stages at times the Emergency Powers were used a bit indiscriminately. However as time passed and rule of law established itself then the unintended damage it might have caused have come down. Due process that we were shouting about in the early months of this regime is something that is now being adhered to.
Again I am not saying whatever the CTG government is doing is the best, but it is making an honest, sincere and well-intentioned effort to make amends for the past mistakes.
The two examples that Nazzina has brought up are good. [ Pls refer comments of the post Do I Stand Behing the CTG?] Because in case of Mr. Richil an investigation has been put together. I believe his body was exhumed for another autopsy. Those responsible for this gruesome incidence will be bought to justice.
In case of Tasneem, the authorities maintain that he was NOT detained for his journalistic work, but rather because of receiving huge amounts of unexplained overseas funds. According to published transcripts it appears that he was planning to use that money to fund anti-state activity. Now I am not saying it is true or not. Tasneem never cleared it to me. [Incidentally I have tried to contact Tasneem many a times. I have left messages, sent sms and emails. I have been in direct contact with his father who is worried about his son’s welfare. Tasneem has decided to remain incommunicado. Hence the disclaimer and the benefit of the doubt rather than a full frontal attack on reported transcripts.]
As some of you know, public perception in Bangladesh is often tracked through opinion polls. Our studies have shown very high approval ratings for the CTG. Which brings me to Tanvir’s point. You are right CTG does not have an election that it needs to win. But to ensure that the reforms brought in are successful in the long run, it still needs to win the hearts and minds. For that they need to ensure that the citizens of our nation are fully behind the decisions taken. In my mind one of the shortcomings of the CTG has been to clarify the reasons for decisions they are taking.
Of course not having an election to be answerable to also allows the CTG not to be a populist government (as opposed to a popular government.) Some hard but necessary decisions can be taken and implemented. Take for example the Chittagong Port. Years of corruption and misuse have been reversed in matter of weeks. Productivity of the Port are at all time high and decisions are being made on the future of our export gateway.
I think it is a misunderstanding that we believe that arrests will be made if everyone of us speak out. That is not true. Bangladesh enjoys a high level of press freedom. I am at times amazed by the harshness of a lot of reports I read in many papers or hear on TV. Till date no one has been arrested for an opinion they have had. As explained in the Tasneem’s incidence, it is for his other alleged activities that he was questioned. Not because he had an opinion about the CTG.
In absence of any political opposition, it is journalist and blogger like us who can constructively critique the government. This will help them to moderate their actions and benefit from the collective wisdom of this nation’s quite capable human resources.
Supporting any government cannot be done blindly. Neither can opposing it. Decisions need to judged on merit of that particular case. Many progress have been made and many more remain. Some have gone to our liking, some have not. But at the end of the day we have a CTG that is dedicated in its effort to bring order and prosperity to our nation. And till that remains their objective, they have my full support. And I hope the support of every citizen who wants the same.
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