Bright colors and festivities has always adorned the Bengali New Year at AIUB. It’s been a long standing tradition, to celebrate the day with students, faculties, alumni, officers, and the management alike. And though this year was no different, it still had something new. It was the first Pohela Boishakh in the new campus.
Surrounded by the beautiful greenery and architecture of the new campus, the Office of Student Affairs (OSA), arranged the “AIUB Boishakhi Ullash 1425”, a daylong ‘mela’ on the 14th of April 2018, complete with diverse stalls of traditional food, ‘noboborsho’ specialties, handicrafts, local merchandise, etc. were set up by the students themselves, a ‘nagordola’, which is the traditional Bengali Ferris wheel, and a concert with a line up starring dance and musical performances from the university’s very own AIUB Performing Arts Club, followed by renowned icons, Maqsood O Dhaka, Dolchut, and LRB! The entire campus was beautifully decorated various interesting and unique props, danglers, and characters, as well as an inspired road painting, done by volunteering students together with the Architecture Department and the AIUB Arts Club, reflecting the traditional Bengali culture.
The Founder and Vice President of Student Affairs, Ms. Nadia Anwar, inaugurated the event, where AIUB officials, faculty members, students, and alumni all joined to rejoice the occasion in numbers. The Vice Chancellor, Dr. Carmen Z. Lamagna, and the Founder, Treasurer, and Vice President of HR & Administration, Dr. Hasanul A. Hasan, along with the Founder, Chairman of the Board, Mr. Ishtiaque Abedin, also joined the celebration in full swing, reveling in the bright colorful stalls, the bustling crowd clad in red and white, and the brilliant musical performances that put up quite the show. Even the sudden yet much-awaited storm failed to dampen the spirits that ran high all through the gusts of wind and splatter of rain.
Everyone enjoyed every bit of the program from the early morning till the very end at dusk, and when the day finally did come to a close, the merriment and anticipation of the next year was evident amongst all. And like every year, AIUB looks forward to staying true to its roots and celebrating another year of its Boishakhi Ullash, befitting the wholehearted support of the AIUB Management and the relentless efforts of the students and staff, commemorating the Bengali New Year with even more grandeur in the years to come.