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1971 War Through a Child’s Eyes: Innocence Meets Reality
RBR
When our Liberation War broke out, I was just shy of two. I have no recollection of what happened around me during that period.
I heard many such recounts of those days -- some good, some sheer ugly. Villagers cooked in big pots to feed the exhausted Mukti Bahini; sang songs to keep their spirits up; fell in love, and married during those days of war.
Ordinary memories of 1971 are all we have now to hold on to.
Tahera Yasmin’s new podcast series “Reminiscing 1971” is in sync with this exact thought, where she is recollecting her everyday experiences as she passed her day constantly shifting from Mohammadpur, Green Road, and Dhanmondi back in 1971.
Her naturally eloquent narration of the scattered memories as a child gives you another perspective of the times of war.
How children coped with the stress of war, not quite comprehending what the screaming, and the sound of artillery on the night of March 25 meant, or why it left her teeth clattering throughout the night.
“Words like enemy, fear, danger was introduced to me. Suddenly, the adolescent girl was aware that rape could be a reality, and death or being tortured a possibility. I came to realise how many left their families, trusting others, to go into the unknown to join the war,” Tahera said.
She talks about the fear, the complete blackouts, and the drop-dead silence that was only shattered by the bombing. She talks about her raw emotions when an orphanage in Tejgaon was bombed to debris. She remembers how as a child she coped with stress and fear with the books she read, the food she ate, and the games she played in her grandmother’s backyard with her sisters and cousins.
“Children could comprehend the gravity of the situation. I vividly remember the images of fear and anxiety on the faces of our parents and elderly relatives but amid the tension, we enjoyed the extended school holidays caused by the war.”
Born in 1959, Tahera grew up in Dhaka and was fortunate to have witnessed the Liberation War. She feels that the time has come to talk about her memories as a 12-year-old during the war, before she becomes older and starts to forget the experience.
She finds it easier to talk to the camera than to write, hence the series on Reminiscing 1971, the title coined by her friend. The short videos capture what she remembers of her and her family’s life and hopes that these videos rekindle the memories of others who lived through the war.
And rightly so.
Her videos posted on Facebook are like an account of oral history without any political spin to it.
“I am not a social scientist or a historian. These short anecdotes of 1971 are of ordinary people like me, my friends, family and others, who lived through those days.
“My memories are my testimonials of our Independence War. My mother remembered the horrifying details about the war that I was not aware of during that time. My memories are based on my experiences and has helped define me. These videos might attract the younger generation who did not live through the war, or it might not. They will only listen if it is relevant to them.”
Listening to her podcast, I feel the sanctity of our Liberation War should be held above any political affiliations. There are so many such minuscule sacrifices that, till today, no one knows about.