BUTEX Jute seminar and fashion show 2018

Bangladesh University  of Textiles hosted a two-fold event on 16 September, 2018 to raise awareness for the importance of reviving the Bangladeshi jute industry. The first part of the show, a seminar, included a Memorial Speech under "Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and Fatema Ahmed Trust Fund" followed by a scholarship granting ceremony to the students. Chief guest of the event, Minister of Education Nurul Islam Nahid, and Dr. Abdul Jabbar Khan, member of Bangladesh Public Service Commission and professor at BUET, spoke to endorse the cause of the event, and jute promoter Amir Hossain Rangan was invited to collaborate with BUTEX to present a fashion show, where BUTEX students walked as models.

The students as models showcased jute jackets and coats in unique colour combinations and prints by Rangan. The show was met with immense applause from the students. To this, Rangan commented, "When you mix fashion with nationalism, it inspires the youth to take the idea further." Rangan and his choreographer trained the students to walk for the fashion show with the hopes that their pride towards wearing Bangladeshi made jute jackets would encourage them to study and enrich jute textile engineering at their university. Rangan wants BUTEX students who will pursue jute technology to compete with denim and cotton. The trustees of BUTEX and Rangan share common values for jute textiles and together they aim to locally create environmentally friendly jute products that will create a new wave of economic revolution in Bangladesh.

Photo courtesy: Amir Hossain Rangan